Understanding By Design

1. Understanding By Design A Contemporary Approach to Curriculum Design

2. Understanding by Design (UbD) may be thought of as purposeful task analysis: Given a task to be accomplished, how do we get there? What lessons and practices are needed to master key concepts? - Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe, Understanding by Design

3. Think with the end in mind; start with assessment

4. Stage One: Identify Desired Results Elements of the Design: Goals, Knowledge and Skills, Essential Questions, Enduring Understandings

5. Key Elements Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

6. Goals • The Goals for each unit are typically the national, state, and/or local standards. • They often represent content that must be met for a particular grade level or subject. • Goals are over-arching in nature. Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

7. Knowledge and Skills • These are objectives that students should be able to know and to do. • Specific content knowledge and skills must be included. Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

8. Essential Questions • These are open-ended questions that are thought-provoking and interpretive. • Essential Questions are at the core of your content. They often lead to or require further investigation. • Essential Questions: • Have no obvious right answer • Raise more questions • Address concepts that are important to the subject matter. Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

9. Enduring Understandings • Enduring Understandings: • They are Big Ideas (knowledge) that will be transferred; they are made into statements. Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

10. UbD’s FACETS • Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe state that there are Six Facets of Understanding. • When the facets are a part of the curriculum design, students are offered opportunities to obtain key understandings.

11. Six Facets of Understanding • Explanations: Definitions, clarifications, reasons that provide foundation knowledge • Interpretation: Narratives, translations, metaphors, etc. that provide meaning • Application: Ability to effectively apply knowledge in a variety of contexts. • Perspective: Critical and insightful points of view. Recognize the significance of ideas. • Empathy: Ability to see things from other points of view. • Self-Knowledge: Awareness of one’s limitations and strengths, as well as the ability to recognize the roles others play. Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

12. Examples of Performance Tasks: • Explanation: Write letters home describing what the pioneer life was like. • Interpretation: Compare English and Spanish versions of Cinderella to determine if language influences meaning. • Application: Adapt events from history that contributed to societal reaction to the Civil Rights Movement by recreating a scene and presenting it to a group. • Perspective: Participate in a roundtable discussion on the impact of the First Amendment on a specific group. • Empathy: Create a diary that reflects the day in the life of a soldier. • Self-Knowledge: Write a self-assessment reflecting on your progress in mastering a skill.

13. Stage Two: Determine Acceptable Evidence

14. Stage 2: Determine Acceptable Evidence • This stage identifies specific assessments that will be used. • Identify the summative assessment. • What is the culminating activity that will represent the understandings students have gained from the unit? Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

15. Examples of Assessment Types

16. Stage Three: Plan Learning Activities Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

17. Stage Three: Plan Learning Activities • This is the stage where specific learning activities (lessons) are planned to accompany each unit. • The lessons designed in this stage should be based on the desired results from stages 1 and 2. • W.H.E.R.E.T.O. is an acronym for planning steps to help meet the requirements of the unit. • The acronym does not represent the order to be followed Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

18. W.H.E.R.E.T.O. • W - Where are you going with this unit? • How does the unit fit in the curriculum and with state standards? • What is expected? • H - How will you hook the students? • E - How will you equip students for expected performances? • R - How will you rethink or revise? • E - How will students self-evaluate and reflect their learning? • T - How will you tailor learning to varied needs, interests, and learning styles of the students? • O - How will you organize the sequence of learning? Wiggins, G. and McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development

19. IN SUMMARY • Begin with what you want your students to understand at the end of the unit. • Identify each of the elements required in each stage. • Identify Desired Results • Determine Acceptable Evidence • Plan Learning Activities

20. Contact Information For access to the UbD Exchange to search or build units in the UbD format, contact: DeNelle Knowles at knowlesd@edcuationcentral.org