Understanding by DesignDay 1

Secondary Science Training

Ground Rules

Desired Outcomes

• Awareness of the UbD philosophy and framework.

• Awareness of science teaching philosophy and beliefs.

• Development of a UbD unit– Development of Big Ideas and

Essential Questions.

• What does good science teaching look like?

• How do students learn science?

Facts or Critical Thinking Skills?What NAEP Results Say

• Read the 1st two paragraphs

• Turn to a partner and talk– What was the main idea of the

article?– What are the implications for

what we do in our classroom?

What is UbD?

• Backwards design model

• Follows the research in NAEP report to improve student performance

• Based on teaching for understanding rather then memorization

We Learn About…

• 10% of what we READ

• 20% of what we HEAR

• 30% of what we SEE

• 50% of what we both SEE & HEAR

• 70% of what we DISCUSS

• 80% of what we EXPERIENCE

• 95% of what we TEACH

Understanding vs. Knowing• Understanding is a mental construct, an

abstraction made by the human mind to make sense of many distinct pieces of knowledge.

• Understanding is the ability to connect knowledge/facts. Person is able to relate individual knowledge/facts.

• Understanding is about transfer.

Understanding vs. Knowledge

Knowledge• Facts• Group of related facts

• Verifiable claims• Right or wrong• I know something to be true

• I respond on cue with what I know

Understanding• The meaning of facts• The “theory” that provides

coherence and meaning to those facts

• Fallible, in-process theories• A matter of degree or

sophistication• I understand why it is, what

makes it knowledge• I judge when to and when

not to use what I know

Understanding Pieces of a puzzle

• Tile analogy.– Tiles represent facts

– Understanding is the pattern of many tiles

What are Big Ideas?

• A linchpin that is essential for “holding together” related content knowledge.

• Central to coherent connections in a subject and an anchor for making facts understandable and useful.

What are Big Ideas for?

• Connect the dots for the learner by establishing learning priorities.

• Without Big Ideas, students are easily left with forgettable fragments of knowledge.

• Provides:– Conceptual “lens” for area of study– Breadth of meaning by connecting and

organizing facts– A focus on the heart of the subject– Ability to transfer knowledge/facts

Features of a Big Idea

• Enables learner to make connections between prior and future knowledge

• Helps to connect facts and knowledge• Focuses instruction to a level that allows

for connective instruction• “Not just another fact or vague abstraction

but a conceptual tool for sharpening thinking, connecting discrepant pieces of knowledge, and equipping learners for transferable applications.”

Kernel of Understanding

Worth being familiar with

Important to know and do

Big Ideas and Enduring

Understandings

Big Idea Levels:

• There can be several levels of Big Ideas based on its purpose:– Area– Course– Unit– Lesson

• Big Idea should be at or near the appropriate level for its purpose.

Big Idea Levels:Area

Course Course Course CourseU

nit

Uni

tU

nit

Uni

t

Uni

tU

nit

Uni

t

Uni

tU

nit

Uni

tU

nit

Uni

tU

nit

Uni

t

Big Idea Levels:

• Area

• Course

• Unit

• Life Science

• Human Anatomy

• Respiration

• Interdependence

• Human Systems

• Respiration System – Oxygen/carbon

Big Idea Unit Examples:

• A balanced diet contributes to physical and mental health.

• Ecosystems have limited resources to sustain a balanced population.

• Novelist often use fiction to provide insights about human experience.

• Statistics can be manipulated to obscure the truth.

Big Idea Activity

• Building Consensus

• In mixed groups, look at each of the eight science standards.

• Create Big Ideas for each of the standards.

• The standards are K-12.

STAGE 1

• Targets

• Big Ideas

• Essential Questions

• Skills

• Content

• “Form follows function…We must be able to state with clarity what the student should understand and be able to do as a result of any plan and irrespective of any constraints we face.”

• “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.”

• “Too many teachers focus on the teaching and not the learning. They spend most of their time thinking, first about what they will do rather then first considering what the learner will need in order to accomplish their learning goals.”

TargetsWhere are we going?

Targets

• Standards

• Benchmarks

• Benchmark maps

Big Ideas

• Useful in clustering benchmarks

• Can be derived from Course-level Big Ideas

• Helps to keep focus on the purpose of the instruction

Essential Questions

• EQ is a way to connect content/facts in an engaging and thought provoking way.

• Centered on the Big Ideas

• Allows students to apply their skills while addressing the Big Ideas

Good Essential Questions…

• Spark meaningful connections to prior knowledge and current content.

• Allows students to “uncover” the real riches of a topic.

• Highlight the Big Ideas

• Serve as doorways through which learners explore the key concepts.

Essential QuestionsExamples:

• In what ways is algebra real and in what ways is it unreal?

• Must heroes be flawless?

• What are the strengths and limits of the Big Bang theory?

• How are form and function related in Biology?

Skills and Content

• Identify specific Skills and knowledge that the students will learn and use in the unit.

• Be specific: What will students know and be able to do?

• Benchmark deconstruction

Stage 1 Alignment

• Benchmark• Label each Big Idea and Essential

Question with the benchmark that it addresses.

• For example:– Big Idea: Energy flows though the

environment 7.3.1– Essential Question: How are the biotic and

abiotic factors on the environment related? 7.3.1

Questions?

• Complete UbD Frayer Organizer