Learner Diversity in Irish Schools

Research suggests that 25–28% of the Irish school population has some form of additional need, encompassing not only students with diagnosed disabilities but also those experiencing learning difficulties, mental health challenges, language barriers, socio-economic disadvantage, and other forms of marginalisation. The breadth of this diversity underscores the case for UDL as a universal approach: designing flexible learning environments benefits not only the 8% of higher education students registered with disability services, but the much larger proportion of learners whose needs are not captured in formal disability categories.