Universal design for learning in general chemistry: a pre-post study of inclusive teaching competence in pre-service teacher education

Inclusive STEM education places distinct demands on prospective chemistry teachers, owing to the discipline’s high cognitive load, the need to organize practice-oriented activities safely, and the requirement to ensure fair assessment in the context of diverse learners’ educational needs. The present study examined changes in inclusive chemistry teaching competence during a semester-long intervention grounded in Universal Design for Learning (UDL). A single-group pretest-posttest intervention design was implemented in the General Chemistry course (6 credits; 180 academic hours) at Zhanibekov University. The sample comprised 106 first-year university students. Over a 15-week semester, the UDL approach was embedded into the course through a sequence of design-based assignments targeting multiple means of engagement, representation, and action and expression. The course instructor served as the intervention implementer (teacher effect). Data collection included pre- and post-measures using self-report scales (knowledge, self-efficacy, attitudes, and intention to implement UDL), a case-based knowledge test, and the evaluation of student-generated pedagogical artifacts at two time points (T1 and T2) using a study-specific eight-criterion UDL design rubric (0–3 per criterion; total score 0–24). Data were analyzed using paired pre-post comparisons, effect size estimation, and correlational and regression analyses based on change scores. Significant pre-post improvements were observed in several competence indicators, with particularly pronounced changes in applied knowledge, self-efficacy, and pedagogical artifact quality. Because the study did not include a comparison group, these findings should be interpreted as competence development observed during participation in a UDL-integrated General Chemistry course rather than as evidence of a causal UDL effect. The results nevertheless support further controlled investigation of UDL as a discipline-specific model for inclusive chemistry teacher preparation.