By the end of this unit you should be able to:
Explore the strategic selection and adaptation of teaching materials for university contexts.
Effective teaching materials bridge the gap between learning objectives and student understanding. University instructors must balance authenticity with accessibility, ensuring materials challenge students appropriately while remaining comprehensible and engaging.
This unit covers material evaluation criteria, adaptation techniques, multimedia integration, digital tool selection, and accessibility considerations. You'll learn to create inclusive learning experiences that leverage technology meaningfully while maintaining pedagogical effectiveness.
Authentic materials reflect real-world language or discourse—industry articles, research talks—while pedagogical materials are adapted for instructional clarity. Selection should balance authenticity with linguistic or conceptual accessibility, ensuring tasks remain challenging yet achievable.
Evaluate different materials and classify them as Authentic or Pedagogical:
Real-world sources
Designed for teaching
You're teaching business communication to intermediate students. Which material offers the best balance?
When using commercial texts, instructors may need to simplify vocabulary, localize contexts, or augment exercises with additional scaffolding. Effective adaptation aligns materials with learners' backgrounds and course aims, maintaining fidelity to original concepts while enhancing relevance.
Practice adapting a complex text for different student levels and contexts:
Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
The implementation of machine learning algorithms in diagnostic imaging has demonstrated unprecedented accuracy rates, with convolutional neural networks achieving sensitivity levels exceeding 95% in detecting malignant neoplasms. However, the integration of these sophisticated systems necessitates substantial infrastructure modifications and comprehensive personnel training to ensure optimal utilization.
Select adaptation options to see the modified text.
Notes about changes will appear here...
The original text has basic comprehension questions. How would you enhance them?
Multimedia enriches learning but requires careful preparation: select clips that illustrate key ideas, edit for length, and provide pre-view glossaries or post-view comprehension tasks. Transcripts and guided questions enable learners to focus on salient content without cognitive overload.
Design a multimedia lesson component with proper scaffolding:
Select video options to generate scaffolding recommendations.
Universal Design Elements:
Score: 0/5
Check accessibility features to improve inclusion.
• Use YouTube's auto-caption feature as a starting point
• Provide text alternatives for visual information
• Consider students with hearing or visual impairments
• Test materials with accessibility tools
Students struggle with a fast-paced video. What's your best adaptation strategy?
Tools such as Mentimeter polls, Google Docs for real-time collaboration, and Hypothes.is for shared annotation foster interaction and immediate feedback. Selecting tools that align with activity goals—and providing brief orientation—ensures technology enhances rather than distracts.
Match teaching scenarios with the most appropriate digital tools:
Scenario 1: You want to quickly gauge student understanding during a lecture
Scenario 2: Students need to collaboratively analyze a research paper
Scenario 3: Teams are writing a joint proposal and need real-time editing
Scenario 4: You want students to vote on research topics anonymously
Complete all scenarios to see your score.
Students are overwhelmed by too many different digital tools. What's your best strategy?
Universal design principles mandate that all learners—regardless of disability—can access content. Providing video captions, text transcripts, and descriptive alt-text for images not only meets legal requirements but improves usability for non-native speakers and varied learning contexts.
Audit course materials for accessibility compliance and improvement opportunities:
Video Lecture (30 minutes)
PDF Reading Materials
Interactive Presentations
Overall Score: 0/12
Begin checking items to generate your accessibility report.
Quick Wins:
Medium-term Goals:
Write effective alt-text for this chart showing "Student Engagement by Teaching Method":
[Chart: Bar graph showing Lecture (40%), Discussion (75%), Group Work (85%)]
A student reports difficulty accessing your video content. What's your first response?
Test your understanding of materials and resources:
1. What distinguishes authentic from pedagogical materials?
2. When adapting texts for students, the primary goal is to:
3. Effective video integration requires:
4. Digital tools should be selected based on:
5. Universal design principles in education mean: