Month: May 2025

Designing for Cognitive Accessibility – A Plain Language and Content Structure Intervention

As I develop a fully online Graphic Design course at UAL, I am proposing an intervention focused on improving the cognitive accessibility of course content. This project aims to make written and visual material more inclusive by embedding principles of plain language, clarity, and structured design from the outset.

In my experience teaching at both BA and MA levels, I have seen how complex language, academic jargon, and inconsistent formatting can present barriers to many students—particularly those who are neurodivergent, have learning differences, or speak English as an additional language. I believe that accessible content benefits all learners and is fundamental to inclusive practice.

My intervention will involve creating a plain-language framework to guide how I write and structure course materials. This will include strategies for simplifying language, using clear and consistent formatting, incorporating visual aids, and providing glossaries for technical terms. I will pilot this framework by rewriting one week’s worth of course content, redesigning it with accessibility in mind.

To evaluate the impact, I will gather feedback from students and/or academic support specialists through a short survey or reflective discussion. I will use this feedback to refine the approach and develop a practical toolkit or checklist that can be applied across the course as it evolves.

This project is grounded in the principles of Universal Design for Learning, which advocates for flexible approaches to teaching that accommodate diverse learner needs from the outset (CAST, 2018). By proactively addressing cognitive accessibility, I aim to create a more equitable learning environment where all students can engage meaningfully with the material, regardless of their background or learning profile.

Ultimately, I hope this intervention will set a standard for inclusive content design within online teaching and contribute to a broader culture of accessibility in higher education.

CAST (2018) Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 2.2. Wakefield, MA: CAST. Available at: http://udlguidelines.cast.org (Accessed: 25 May 2025).

Reflective Account: Faith and Inclusive Teaching during Ramadan

When working as an Associate Lecturer on the residential BA Graphic Branding and Identity course at LCC, I have become increasingly aware of how religious identity intersects with other aspects of students’ lived experiences, and how these intersections influence their engagement with learning. This reflection emerged particularly during Ramadan, when I observed that Muslim students were navigating their faith while managing the demands of a studio-based course in a shared learning environment.

Ramadan can significantly affect students’ daily rhythms like energy levels, eating and sleeping patterns, and participation in activities. In our course context, students often fast during long contact hours and are balancing attendance and participation with the physical and emotional demands of religious observance. What became evident was that not all students observing Ramadan communicated their needs with the same level of comfort or confidence.

This variation in response made me reflect more deeply on how intersecting factors such as cultural background and confidence within the institutional system may affect how students advocate for themselves. While some students approached staff to request changes to tutorial timings, a private space for prayer, or flexibility in attendance, others remained silent, despite signs of fatigue or disengagement. These differences cannot be attributed to one single factor such as religion alone, but to the complex interplay of identity and experience.

Rekis (2022) provides a helpful lens for understanding this complexity through the concept of epistemic injustice. Rekis argues that students with minoritised religious identities often face subtle forms of exclusion. In this context, silence is not necessarily a sign of disengagement, but may be shaped by institutional cultures that don’t always make space for diverse expressions of need.

In response to these reflections, we as the course team set up a small multi-faith prayer and reflection space during Ramadan in a corner of the studio typically used for private tutorials. Its presence enabled students to practice their religion or take a moment to rest discreetly during class time. We also adjusted our tutorial scheduling to allow more flexibility during Ramadan, recognising that students may not be at their most alert or productive during typical session hours.

This experience has reinforced my understanding of inclusive teaching as an active, ongoing, and relational process. It requires attentiveness not just to general policy or accommodation, but to the nuanced and individual ways students inhabit their identities. Moving forward, I intend to continue creating spaces, both physical and pedagogical, where students feel empowered to express their needs without fear of judgement.

Rekis, J. (2022) ‘Religious Identity and Epistemic Injustice: An Intersectional Account’, Hypatia, 37(1), pp. 107–124.