Content, Context, Culture. At National-Louis University.
About the 3C Project
The 3C Project is dedicated to research, action, and partnerships that contribute to the creation of a culture of inclusion in elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education. Three "C's" represent the themes that guide the Project. Content refers to the forms of content knowledge needed to create a culture of inclusion in education: technological content, practical content, and theoretical content. All Project activities aim to address at least one form of content knowledge. Context refers to the contexts of teaching and learning: contexts internal and external to the place of learning, contexts that are both face-to-face and virtual, and contexts that are local, "glocal," and global. Through dissemination of information and research, the Project aims to influence these three types of context. Culture refers to a culture of inclusion for which all community members are responsible. This entails creating visibility, accessibility, and possibility. Through all of its activities, the Project aims to contribute to the international efforts toward inclusive education.
Postsecondary Education and the 3C Project
According to the US Department of Education, 11.3% of undergraduate students in higher education report some type of disability. Most of these students attend two- and four-year institutions and are in credit-earning classes with non-disabled peers. Unless students with disabilities self-identify, faculty tend to remain unaware of their presence in the classroom. When students self-identify, they often do so by presenting an official letter of accommodation from the institution's student services department, however this can come after a course has been designed and the syllabus published. Most last-minute adjustments like this can be avoided if instructors plan ahead by anticipating a classroom of students with diverse abilities and building options into the course from the very beginning. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) offers a philosophy and model for doing just that. The 3C Project is committed to increasing access to a quality higher education for students with disabilities by disseminating information about UDL, developing a model project for increasing course and program completion rates for students with disabilities, and demonstrating the importance of a culture of inclusion.