Sutherland Secondary School Professional Development Day
April 23, 2010
Understanding by Design (UbD)
“To begin with the end in mind means to start with a clear
understanding of your destination.”
Covey, S. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, p.98.
1. Please read your fortune candy quote silently to yourself.
2. Take a few moments to reflect on the statement.
3. Round Robin: share your personal response to the statement with your table group.
Welcome Activity
“Teachers are designers. An essential act of our profession is the crafting of curriculum and learning experiences to meet specified purposes.”
Jay McTighe
Co-author of Understanding by Design
Understanding by Design
Barrie Bennett
“…researching and valuing instruction is one thing; implementing andcollectively sustaining itsystemically over time isanother.”
Human beingsdiffer with their
gifts andtalents;
To teach themyou have tostart where
they are.
Yuezheng in 4th century B.C.Chinese Treatise, Xue
Curriculum Implementation DayMay 10, 2010
“Backward Design”
“Deliberate and focused instructional design requires us to make an important shift… The shift involves thinking a great deal, first, about the specific learnings sought, and the evidence of such learnings, before thinking about what we, as the teacher, will do or provide in teaching and learning activities.”
1. Identify desired results
2. Determine acceptable evidence
3. Plan learning experiences and instruction
UbD: Stages of Backward Design
“Twin Sins” of Curriculum Design
1. Activity-Oriented Design“Hands-on” without “Minds On”
2. Curriculum Coverage“Marching through the
textbook”
Geometry: “Lesson Make-over”
BEFORE UbD• Look at the
middle school Geometry lesson.
• Which of the “twin sins” are represented in this lesson?
AFTER UbD• Discuss the
changes evident in the lesson after “Backward Design” has been applied.
1. Identify desired results.
2. Determine acceptable evidence.
3. Plan learning experiences and instruction.
Stage 1
Establishing Curricular PrioritiesBig Idea: Balanced Diet
Your diet affects your health, appearance, and performance
Establishing Curricular PrioritiesBig Idea: Balanced Diet
Canada Food Guidelines, Nutritional information on food labels
Establishing Curricular PrioritiesBig Idea: Balanced Diet
Different conditions requiring dietary restrictions, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.
Backward Design – Stage 1 Identify the Desired Results
1. Unpack the PLOs – Establish GOALS
2. Identify Enduring Understandings3. Develop Essential Questions
Unpacking the Learning Goals (PLOs)
• PLOs imply BIG IDEAS• Look carefully at the nouns,
adjectives and verbs in the PLO• The nouns and adjectives indicate
the implied BIG IDEAS that will be used to create an Enduring Understanding
BIG IDEAS
• An abstract and transferable concept, theme, theory or process
• At the heart of the subject or topic• Building material for Enduring
Understandings• Examples: equity, good triumphs
over evil, molecular theory, problem solving
Example: Earth Science 11
Prescribed Learning Outcome: • Demonstrate knowledge about the
origins of the universe and about astronomical entities
BIG IDEAS:• Big Bang Theory• Scientific investigation• Creation vs. Evolution
The Big IdeasWhat will
the students remember for:
40 seconds?40 minutes?
40 years? The 40 years are the BIG IDEAS!
Enduring Understandings
• Based on the big ideas • Full sentence statements • What we want the students to
understand 40 years from now
Enduring Understandings - Examples
• Science– Scientific theories are used to explain
the origin of the universe.• English
– Writers use a variety of stylistic techniques to engage and persuade their readers
• Music– Music is a universal language to be
read and understood.
Essential Questions
• Highlight the Big Ideas and Enduring Understandings
• Have no “right” answer; arguable and important to argue about
• Provoke and sustain student inquiry• Address conceptual or philosophical
foundations of the discipline• Raise other questions
Essential Questions - Examples
• How do we decide which scientific claims to believe?
• Are mathematical ideas inventions or discoveries?
• Does art reflect culture or shape it?• Who owns what and why?• How do the structures and functions
of government interrelate?
Activity: Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions
• Review the PLOs provided for the different subject areas
• Brainstorm Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions
• Record ideas on the graphic organizer provided
1. Identify desired results.
2. Determine acceptable evidence.
3. Plan learning experiences and instruction.
Stage 2
BIG IDEA:
Valid Evidence
ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS:
What we assess and how we assess must align with the learning goals
UbD: Stage 2
1. What is “valid” evidence of student
learning?
2. How can we assess ‘deep understanding’
of learning?
3. How do we design “authentic” assessments?
Essential Questions
Types of Assessment
Assessment FOR Learning
Assessment AS Learning
Assessment OF Learning
Guiding instruction
Improving learning
Students monitoring
their own progress
Reporting out
Measuring learning
Descriptive feedback Goal setting Letter grades, %s,
performance scales
Continuous Continuous At the end
Formative Formative Summative
In your group, sort the assessment tasks intocolumns of “valid” or “invalid”
• Could a student do well in this assessment task without a real understanding of the goals?
• Could a student perform poorly on this assessment task but still have a good understanding if allowed to show understanding in other ways?
Testing for ValidityGroup Activity
• Help us find authentic assessment that is suitable for our significant concept/big idea
• Guide us to an measurement that we deem• quintessential for understanding and
comprehension• Help us find a balance between factual recall
and deep understanding
The Six Facets of Understanding
6 Facets of Understanding
DesiredUnderstanding
Explanation
Self Knowledge
Inte
rpre
tatio
n Application
Em
pathy Per
spec
tive
ELECTRICITY
Explanation
Self-Knowledge
Inte
rpre
tation
Application
Em
path
yPer
spec
tive
• Describe an electron’s experience as it passes through a simple current.
• Interpret a schematic diagram and predict the outcome.
• Why does Canada use AC instead of DC current? (historical perspective)• What are the strengths of each type?
• Design an electrical circuit to accomplish a specific task• Troubleshoot a faulty electrical circuit
• Explain to the class how a battery causes a light bulb to glow.
• Give a pre-test and a post-test to assess common misconceptions (eg., force- concept inventory) and have students reflect on their deepening understanding.
1. Identify desired results.
2. Determine acceptable evidence.
3. Plan learning experiences and instruction.
Stage 3
All students work to the same high standards on the same essential outcomes.
Differentiation is in how students learn, not in what they learn.
Hume, Start Where They Are, 2000
Enduring Understandingsare for ALL students
By engaging, we mean a design that the (diverse) learners find truly thought provoking, fascinating…
By effective, we mean that the learning design helps learnersbecome more competent and productive at worthy work.
(Understanding by Design, Wiggins & McTighe)
The Best Learning Designs are Engaging
The Best Learning Designs are Effective
1. When are students most fully engaged
in and out of school?
2. What makes them so engaged, and keeps them so engaged?
3. What are the transferable elements from these exemplary learning situations?
The Best Learning Designs areEngaging
1. When is student learning most effective?
2. Under what conditions are learners most
productive?
3. Under what conditions is the highest-quality
work produced?
4. What makes for the most effective learning,
and what are the transferable elements from
these exemplary cases?
The Best Learning Designs are Effective
UbD End Results
• Efficient and effective units with deeper understandings
• Curriculum design that meets the needs of all learners in the class