This site explores the use of Google apps to support the collaborative development of universally designed instructional content.
As ever increasing amounts of instructional content is developed for online delivery, the need for individuals to be able to collaborate effectively becomes a critical component of the development process. Whether an instructional designer working with subject matter experts or education peers co-developing content for learners at any level, easy to use collaborative tools have an important role to play. Using a combination of Google's free utilities makes it possible to develop content collaboratively that also reflects the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Because how the apps are utilized is largely shaped by the user, the apps are examined here not in the context of a single learner group, but rather for their usefulness to a truly "universal" instructional audience with potentially the same diversity and range of needs seen in the general public.
As defined by the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST), UDL is "a set of principles for curriculum development that give all individuals equal opportunities to learn" and "provides a blueprint for creating instructional goals, methods, materials, and assessments that work for everyone--not a single, one-size-fits-all solution but rather flexible approaches that can be customized and adjusted for individual needs." Universally designed content isn't about meeting just the needs of learners with special needs, but about meeting the special needs of all learners.