UDL – The Role of Joy and Play in Higher Education
Friday, 10/03/2025
This Teaching Minute continues our exploration of Universal Design for Learning’s Engagement principle, focusing on Checkpoint 7.3: Nurture Joy and Play.
As the semester settles in like the changing season, pause and take a moment to reflect: When was the last time you felt a spark of joy or playfulness in your teaching? Maybe it was a lively class discussion or one of those “aha” moments when everything clicked - for both you and your students. What conditions made those moments possible?
Why Joy & Play Matter in Higher Ed
As educators, we strive to create meaningful learning experiences that engage students cognitively, emotionally, and behaviorally. While lecture remains a common and valuable teaching method in higher education, research shows that incorporating active learning - where students engage directly through discussion, problem-solving, or hands-on activities - leads to increased understanding and improved outcomes.
Play, often associated with early childhood, can also be a powerful component of adult learning, too. Stephen Brookfield, a leader in adult education and metacognition, notes that almost every textbook on adult education practice affirms the importance of experiential methods such as games, simulation, case studies, psychodrama, role play, and internships.
When joy and play are a part of teaching, students become more motivated, take intellectual risks, and engage with ideas more openly. As Eugen Korsunskiy, associate professor at Dartmouth College, observes, “students who are having the most fun produce their best work.”
Practical Ideas to Try
While integrating joy and play into higher education offers many benefits, it’s understandable that time constraints and uncertainty might make these approaches feel challenging to implement. If you’re looking for ways to bring more joy and play into your course design, consider these strategies:
- Incorporate storytelling to provide context and help students connect on a personal level.
- Introduce puzzles, physical objects, games, or even surveys to facilitate hands-on learning. One idea is to revisit previous material through a quiz show format, with students paired up to play against each other at the same time.
- Try quick “Joy Card” activities (developed by Professor Eugene Korsunskiy at Dartmouth College) to prompt reflection.
- Problem-Solving Activities: Use escape-room style activities to encourage collaboration and critical thinking. Here’s some examples, designed by Professor Teresa Thompson.
- Choice-Based Learning: Inspired by the creativity of our own UVM colleagues (see embedded link), use choose-your-own adventure activities to allow students to explore topics non-linearly and at their own pace.
And don’t forget to explore Professors at Play, a community of practice full of activities, examples, and supportive ideas for infusing joy into your teaching, including online and AI-integrated settings!
Dig Deeper
Looking for more? These resources expand on play and engagement through UDL:
- How to Get Started with Interactive Storytelling (Teaching in Higher Ed podcast)
- Finding the Joy of Teaching (Central Michigan University)
- The Process of Play in Learning in Higher Education: A Phenomenological Study (Forbes, 2021) Dr. Lisa Forbes is an assistant clinical professor in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Colorado Denver. Her research explores play in higher education as a tool for connection, creativity, and deep learning. Learn more about her work.
Want to talk through how UDL and play might look in your own course? The CTL is here to brainstorm ideas, share strategies, or connect you with upcoming workshops. We’d also love to hear how you think about joy and play in your own context.
Schedule a consultation with us to keep the conversation going!
Center for Teaching & Learning
www.uvm.edu/ctl
ctl@uvm.edu