Title : Supporting neurodiversity through universal design for learning: Evidence from research

The study explores the role of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in higher education as an inclusive and trauma-sensitive approach that recognizes and supports neurodiversity. Bringing together the principles of UDL and the neurodiversity paradigm, the study views learner differences not as deficits to be corrected but as natural variations in cognition, perception, communication, and learning. This perspective is particularly relevant in contemporary educational contexts shaped by war, forced displacement, COVID-19, and other sources of prolonged stress. Such experiences may intensify individual differences in attention, emotional regulation, information processing, memory, communication, and engagement, creating additional barriers to learning. UDL offers a framework for reducing these barriers by providing multiple and flexible ways of engaging with learning, accessing information, and demonstrating knowledge.

The study aimed to explore how UDL practices can be adapted through a neurodiversity-informed perspective to create a safe, flexible, engaging, and barrier-free learning environment. Particular attention was given to the concept of Sense of Coherence (SoC), which was used as a complementary construct for understanding students’ perceptions of comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness in the learning process.

The study employed action research involving 128 engineering students at Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, including 62 internally displaced students, and eight experienced English language teachers familiar with UDL principles. Students completed the Sense of Coherence-13 questionnaire before and after the integration of neurodiversity-informed UDL practices. In addition, structured interviews were conducted with teachers to identify learning barriers associated with students’ previous stressful and traumatic experiences and to examine the effectiveness and feasibility of the implemented practices. The qualitative data were analyzed through inductive content analysis and coding.

The findings indicated an increase in students’ Sense of Coherence following the implementation of UDL practices, suggesting their potential to support students’ well-being, agency, and engagement. The teacher interviews further demonstrated that flexible representation, varied forms of action and expression, and multiple opportunities for engagement helped address diverse learning needs and reduce barriers associated with stress and previous traumatic experiences.

The study concludes that combining UDL with a neurodiversity-informed perspective can contribute to a more inclusive and responsive learning environment. Rather than adapting students to a predetermined model of learning, this approach encourages educators to recognize cognitive and learning diversity as an inherent feature of the student population and to design learning environments that accommodate such diversity from the outset.

Dr. Iryna Simkova is a Doctor of Education and Professor at Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Ukraine, currently serving as a head of the Department of English Language for Humanities. Her research focuses on neurodiversity, Universal Design for Learning, digital pedagogy, AI in education, inclusive teaching, and virtual exchange. She is Deputy Chair of the Ukrainian Association of Researchers of Educational Virtual Exchanges and has extensive experience in international educational projects and research collaborations. Dr. Simkova has authored numerous publications on innovative and inclusive approaches to language education and actively contributes to the development of internationalisation and English language education in Ukrainian higher education.