No Need To Reinvent the Wheel

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/

Not that the Library of Congress does not want to promote the people's online library, but most people honestly do not know about the treasure trove of knowledge that lies right at their fingertips. A revolution in the way people learn how to learn is possible, from "stand and deliver" to a "student centered" approach to inflaming young minds with a passion for learning essential skills and knowledge. Spread the word, your taxpayers and the blood of patriots paid for these online resources.

As a student of the latest approaches to Special Education, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach that dovetails best with the style of learning that enabled me to overcome my own executive function challenges and succeed at Georgetown University and beyond. Universal Design for Learning is based on an architecture metaphor rooted in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) -- if we enable people with learning disabilities to more easily access the General Education curriculum, we facilitate access to all people in the process. Just as curb cuts make access to a building easier for everybody, making the people's primary sources more easily accessible to people with learning disabilities makes them more accessible to everybody.

Universal Design for Learning is technology-oriented, whereas there was no Internet when I was growing up. Similar to the many ways curators of the online Library of Congress have made primary sources universally accessible, I was taught how to hunt-down primary sources in DC to complete personally meaningful projects. In high school, I took a bus ride to the National Archives in Washington. Today, students can ride the Internet.