Summary:
This post builds on foundational strategies by introducing advanced UDL-inspired discussion prompts designed to scaffold student engagement from surface-level understanding to higher-order analysis. Whether you’re teaching asynchronously or in person, these prompts are customizable for any discipline to help foster richer dialogue and more meaningful learning experiences. You can use any Generative AI App. I’m using Microsoft Copilot. Type, Copy/Paste the prompts below, and review the results.
Prompt 1a: Generating discussion prompts with a file and depth progression.
You are an expert Instructional Designer in higher education. My academic discipline is [Your Discipline]. Based on the [content item type] I am uploading, generate 5 open-ended discussion questions that:
- Encourage meaningful student engagement with the material
- Invite diverse viewpoints and personal reflection
- Are clearly worded and suitable for asynchronous or in-class discussion
- Avoid yes/no or overly simplistic questions
- Include a mix of exploratory, analytical, and evaluative questions
- Use inclusive and conversational language
- Organize questions from foundational to advanced thinking
Optionally, if learning outcomes are provided, align the questions with them.
(Instructions: Replace [Your Discipline] with your academic field (e.g., Psychology, Biology, History). Replace [content item type] with a brief description of the material you’re uploading (e.g., lecture notes, reading excerpt, assignment instructions). You do not need to keep the brackets in your prompt. Upload course content along with your prompt.)
Prompt 2a: Check your work based on source file
Review the five discussion questions you just generated. For each question, explain which specific part(s) of the uploaded [content item type] it is based on. If any question is not clearly grounded in the content, revise it to ensure alignment.
(Instructions: Use this prompt as follow-up to check output accuracy)
Prompt 2b: Check your work based on UDL principles
Review the five discussion questions you generated. For each question:
Identify which UDL principle(s) it supports:
- Multiple Means of Engagement (e.g., relevance, choice, autonomy)
- Multiple Means of Representation (e.g., clarity, accessibility, diverse formats)
- Multiple Means of Action and Expression (e.g., varied ways to respond or participate)
Explain how the question promotes inclusive learning and supports diverse learners.
Suggest improvements if any question does not fully align with UDL principles.
(Instructions: Use this prompt as a follow-up to review UDL accuracy)