Level 3: Student Choice

Offer Students Choices

There are many benefits to allowing students to choose their assignments and/or course topics. Providing students with agency in how they demonstrate their learning honors their diverse learning experiences. Student choices also empowers them to communicate their understanding of content a manner that considers their resources, strengths, and interests. Lastly, student choice allows students to learn in manner that is relevant to their personal experiences and goals. Prior to starting your course, consider how some of assignments can be made to be more flexible, allowing students to make choices in how they engage with class content. This inclusive practice is considered Level 3, in part, because providing student choices cannot be feasibly done with many assignments. Below are a couple of ways to imbed student choice.

• • Allow students to choose the content of their assignments: This gives students the chance to select topics that not only may be of interests to them, but may also be relevant to their daily lives, identities, or interests
  • Allow students to select the medium by which they submit their assignments: Not only does this give students creative freedom, but it also accounts for the resources available to students. For example, students may not have a portable laptop, but they can upload audio recordings of their answers using their phones.

Student choices can be implemented in person or online. When preparing flexible assignments, reflect on whether deliberate practices from levels 1 and 2 have been accounted for as students may feel more comfortable relating class content to their own experiences if you have established a safe classroom space.