{"id":6555,"date":"2026-09-08T09:27:07","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T08:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/?p=6555"},"modified":"2026-09-08T09:27:07","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T08:27:07","slug":"embedding-inclusive-education-in-programme-and-module-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/embedding-inclusive-education-in-programme-and-module-design\/","title":{"rendered":"Embedding Inclusive Education in Programme and Module Design"},"content":{"rendered":"

Context<\/span><\/b><\/h2>\n

Embedding inclusive education practices at programme and module level is central to creating\u00a0equitable\u00a0learning environments where all students can thrive. Within UK higher education, inclusive education\u00a0is increasingly understood not as an \u201cadd<\/span>\u2011on,\u201d but as a proactive,\u00a0intentional,\u00a0anticipatory approach to\u00a0programme,\u00a0curriculum and assessment design (Hockings, 2010;\u00a0Stefani and Blessinger 2018). Rather than focusing on individual adjustments, inclusive design\u00a0seeks\u00a0to\u00a0support belonging, and\u00a0minimise barriers from the outset, to\u00a0create learning experiences that acknowledge and value the diversity of students\u2019 identities,\u00a0backgrounds\u00a0and ways of learning.\u00a0Approaches drawn from Universal Design for Learning (UDL) encourage offering multiple ways for students to engage,\u00a0participate\u00a0and demonstrate understanding.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

See\u00a0previous\u00a0blogs in the Inclusive Education Blog series for more information on<\/span>\u00a0UDL<\/span><\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Belonging<\/span><\/i>. See also the relevant sections of the Inclusivity pages on Cardiff\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>Education Development Toolkit<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Implementation<\/span><\/b><\/h2>\n

The lived experience of our diverse students does not take place at a seminar or session level, or\u00a0even in\u00a0our most common unit of consideration, at a module level. Students experience their learning at a programme level \u2013 the lived experience of each week, and each semester,\u00a0as they learn\u00a0across modules, through different modes of learning and being.\u00a0Embedding inclusive education practices\u00a0therefore\u00a0requires intentional, programme<\/span>\u2011level thinking. Rather than making isolated changes at module level, programme teams work collaboratively to create coherent, scaffolded learning experiences. Useful starting points may include:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  • Getting to know your students using data and personas\u00a0<\/span><\/b>What is the diversity of your students? What challenges are there in recruitment,\u00a0retention\u00a0and attainment of traditionally marginalised groups? What do personas tell you about the lived experience of certain groups of students?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    • Interrogating programme structure<\/span><\/b>: Are learning outcomes\u00a0and assessments\u00a0written inclusively, and\u00a0sequenced in ways that support all students to progress?\u00a0Are alternative assessments design from the outset, to enable students to\u00a0demonstrate\u00a0core competence standards through alternative means?\u00a0Are there hidden assumptions about prior knowledge\u00a0or unspoken expectations of behaviour?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        \n
      • Diversifying curriculum content<\/span><\/b>:\u00a0Do\u00a0examples, readings and case studies reflect a wider range of perspectives and challenge \u201csingle stories\u201d within a discipline?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
          \n
        • Embedding inclusive assessment<\/span><\/b>:\u00a0Are\u00a0assessments\u00a0designed to\u00a0offer clarity,\u00a0choice\u00a0and authenticity? Are submission points and assessment modes mapped\u00a0to avoid unnecessary clustering,\u00a0over<\/span>\u2011assessment\u00a0and reliance on a particular mode of assessment, such as written essays?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
            \n
          • Strengthening transparent communication<\/span><\/b>:\u00a0Are expectations clearly signposted and discussed? Are there\u00a0early opportunities for dialogue, helping students understand how learning builds across modules?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
              \n
            • Collaborating with students<\/span><\/b>:\u00a0Do you gather\u00a0student insights to\u00a0identify\u00a0barriers not always visible to staff? Are\u00a0students\u00a0engaged\u00a0as partners, to\u00a0review materials, assessment\u00a0briefs\u00a0and learning activities?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              Reflections \/ What\u2019s next?<\/span><\/b><\/h2>\n

              As educators, we might consider\u00a0programmes we are familiar with and reflect:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                \n
              • Where do students\u00a0encounter\u00a0friction points or unnecessary complexity in\u00a0the\u00a0programme?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
                  \n
                • Whose voices shaped the design of modules, and whose are missing?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
                    \n
                  • What small, sustainable\u00a0changes\u00a0could make\u00a0the\u00a0programme more inclusive?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                    \"\"A \u2018Starter for ten\u2019<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

                    As a prompt, to get ideas flowing, here are a few questions to help you reflect on\u00a0inclusive programme design\u00a0within your own context:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                      \n
                    • Which hidden assumptions (about prior knowledge, academic\u00a0culture\u00a0or ways of learning) might be disadvantaging some students?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
                    • Where could greater clarity, choice or flexibility be built into\u00a0the programme?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
                        \n
                      • Which perspectives, voices or examples could be added to diversify your\u00a0programme?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
                          \n
                        • How might students be involved as partners in reviewing or shaping aspects of design?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                          <\/h2>\n

                          <\/h2>\n

                          Reference\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

                          Stefani, L. and Blessinger, P. 2018.\u00a0Inclusive Leadership in Higher Education:<\/span>\u00a0International Perspectives and Approaches<\/span><\/i>. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Context Embedding inclusive education practices at programme and module level is central to creating\u00a0equitable\u00a0learning environments where all students can thrive. Within UK higher education, inclusive education\u00a0is increasingly understood not as […]","protected":false},"author":7173,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1082],"tags":[],"custom_author":[1102],"class_list":["post-6555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-inclusive-education","custom_author-inclusive-education-team"],"lang":"en","translations":{"en":6555,"cy":6561},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4KqgK-1HJ","meta_box":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","pll_sync_post":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6555","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7173"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6555"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6555\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6560,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6555\/revisions\/6560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6555"},{"taxonomy":"custom_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/LTAcademy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/custom_author?post=6555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}