Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1505501
Social Media Toolbox Topics Coming Up • Memes, Part 2 • Member Features More ways to build your toolbox: See past columns at cta.org/educator. And if you're attending CTA conferences this fall (including Region 1 and 2 leadership conferences), we'll be offering social media training sessions; check out cta.org/conferences. Universal Design for Learning Resource The California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (CCEE), a state- wide agency that helps county offices of education, school districts and charter schools deliver a quality education for every student, has partnered with educa- tors to create UDL for Educator Empowerment. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an educational framework based on research that guides the development of flexible learning environments and learning spaces that can accommodate individual learning differences. The UDL learning path aims to empower California educators with the needed knowledge and skills to apply UDL holistically to their practices as professionals. Designed in partnership with teachers, for teachers, this path contains six modules of multimedia content, opportunities for reflection and community, and links to resources to deepen participants' learning and practice. Through each of the modules, educators are invited on a "choose your own adventure" path of professional self-discovery that equips them with the skills for creating inclusive and equitable lessons and learning environments. Embedded within these learning experiences is the knowledge for diagnosing learning barriers in real time. The learning path is open to all, on-demand, at no cost, and is the latest in a series of resources created by the CCEE to support the implementation of UDL in schools and districts across the state. Authors include CTA staff consultant on special education policy Karen Taylor. Find it at tinyurl.com/32nnvj8u. Using Trending Memes to Reach New Audiences While some memes are evergreen, some are trends that come along, blow up and then disappear. I'm not saying you need to hop on every trend, but when it works, it works. Anyone remember these Halloween costume memes from October 2022? When I first started seeing them, I thought to myself. "Okay, we have to do this. But it 's not enough to be funny. If this post blows up, we want all those people to understand what it means to be a union educator." Call it the spoonful of sugar that helps the message go down, if you want. While you can't predict when a post will go viral, I had a good feeling with this one. I was happy to see this post get a ton of engage- ment , but what made me happiest was when I saw folks who don't engage with CTA's content sharing it to their Instagram stories and Facebook feeds. This is just the beginning of what you can do will a well-targeted meme. I'll be shouting out some more great examples in my next col- umn, so if you've seen any memes for union educators that you love, send them to ebarcelos@cta.org. I might even feature them in my next column! 31 A U G U S T / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 3