success and understanding Chuck McWilliams, MRH School District Understanding By Design: A “Backward Design” Approach to Teaching and Learning Unlocking the keys to success and understanding Chuck McWilliams, MRH School District June 2nd, 2008

"There is nothing so terrible as activity without insight." -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe German Playwright, Poet, Novelist and Dramatist. 1749-1832 McWilliams, 2008

I’m originally from Iowa Teaching emphasis: Biology My Background I’m originally from Iowa Teaching emphasis: Biology Past 14 Years in St. Louis and at MRH: First 6… Past 8… UbD was the event that sparked the new beginning of my role as a teacher and leader McWilliams, 2008

A Brief History of UbD at MRH: Year 1 - 4 2000 to 2001 Intro to UbD Summer Leadership Seminar; Design teams form to write unit/study UbD 2002 Adv UbD Summer Training; Continue writing units/courses; Focus on assessment 2003 More UbD summer workshops; Peer Assessment/Unit revision; Reading in Content Area 2004 Continue work on Unit Revisions; Pedagogical study teams form; Study/Research: Reading in Content Area, Coop. Learning, and Critical Thinking McWilliams, 2008

Pedagogical Study at MRH Reading in the Content Area 1:1 Laptops in ‘07-’08 Developing Teacher Competencies 2004-2008+ UbD Study Critical Thinking Cooperative Learning McWilliams, 2008

A Brief History of UbD at MRH: Year 5 - 8 2004 to 2005 Summer UbD conference; Write Teacher Pedagogical Competencies; Begin working in PAT team study groups; Finish ALL unit designs 2006 Summer UbD/DI Conference; Work on competencies in PAT teams; “Polishing the Stone” UbD Workshop 2007 Misc. Summer workshops/curriculum development; PAT team work; Cognitive Coaching training/implementation w/ PAT specialists; eMINTS training begins at Middle School 2008 MRH hosts AbD w/ Parkway & Bayless; continue working in PAT teams; eMINTS training at MS and HS; Orientation to D2L environment McWilliams, 2008

Year 9: The Future of UbD Study at MRH Taking MRH Curriculum to the web McWilliams, 2008

Year 9: The Future of UbD Study at MRH Taking MRH Curriculum to the web McWilliams, 2008

Benefits of Using UbD It’s a framework for research-based practices- it’s the GLUE that binds all we do! Promotes teamwork - DESIGN TEAMS! Promotes professional conversation about WHAT should be taught - ID Essentials! Increased insight about the purposefulness of curriculum and its impact on students. McWilliams, 2008

Analyzing unit design and student work leads to improved curriculum. Even MORE Benefits... Implementing UbD units helps me re-evaluate my priorities - throughout daily instruction! Emphasis is on assessment! Helps students prepare for MAP and other tests. Analyzing unit design and student work leads to improved curriculum. My curriculum is living and breathing - Never something that’s finished. McWilliams, 2008

Learning and Cognition Research: Learning and Cognition “Learning with understanding is more likely to promote transfer than simply memorizing information from a text or lecture.” -Bransford, et. Al., How People Learn, p.224 McWilliams, 2008

UbD Supports Learning and Cognition From How People Learn (National Research Council, 2000): Teachers need to recognize and draw-out preconceptions from their students and base instructional decisions on the information they get from their students. Teachers need to teach their subject matter in a depth so that facts are conveyed in a context with examples and a conceptual framework. Teachers need to integrate metacognitive skills into the curriculum and teach those skills explicitly. McWilliams, 2008

Some important questions... What is worth understanding? What is understanding? How will we know that students really understand? Why are the best curriculum designs “backward”? How might teachers “work smarter” (not harder!) in curriculum design? McWilliams, 2008

The “Understanding by Design” Approach “Backward Design” The “Understanding by Design” Approach by Wiggins and McTighe Stage 1 - Enduring Understandings, Essential Questions, Key Knowledge and Skills Stage 2 - Assess Enduring Understandings Stage 3 - Design Meaningful Learning Activities McWilliams, 2008

How It All Fits Together Workshop McWilliams, 2008

Understanding by Design is not… a prescriptive program an instructional model opposed to traditional testing and grading McWilliams, 2008

Think like an assessor! Key to Backward Design View: “A Private Universe” Note: Provide an example in your own experience when you thought everyone understood the lesson, but students still couldn’t explain. McWilliams, 2008

A Private Universe McWilliams, 2008

Think like an assessor! Key to Backward Design Be clear about what evidence of learning you seek. Design assessments before you design lessons and activities. McWilliams, 2008

Structure of Knowledge BIG IDEAS Principles and Generalizations Key Concepts and Core Processes Facts and Skills Wiggins, Grant, & McTighe, Jay. (1998). Understanding by Design. ASCD. McWilliams, 2008

More specifically… What is knowledge? Declarative Knowledge Knowing WHAT Procedural Knowledge Knowing HOW Structural Knowledge Knowing WHY -Jonassen, Computers as Mindtools for Schools, 2000 McWilliams, 2008

Matters of Understanding Big ideas or core processes at the “heart” of the discipline “Enduring” - lasting value beyond the classroom Transferable to other topics and inquiries Require “uncoverage” McWilliams, 2008

Two Types of Understandings Overarching - Example: Great artists often break with established traditions, conventions and techniques to better express what they see and feel. Topical - Example: Impressionist artists used novel painting techniques to represent everyday life. They used color, light, and shadow to convey the impression of reflected light at a particular moment. McWilliams, 2008

Concepts - Transferable “Big Ideas” examples... Adaptation Change Energy Exploration Freedom Interaction Justice Migration Patterns Power Symbol Systems McWilliams, 2008

Junk Bags McWilliams, 2008

Establishing Curricular Priorities worth being familiar with “nice to know” important to know and do foundational concepts & skills “big ideas” worth understanding enduring understandings Wiggins, Grant, & McTighe, Jay. (1998). Understanding by Design. ASCD. McWilliams, 2008

Establishing Curricular Priorities Content Standards Identify “Big Ideas” Then,frame them as generalizations and essential questions worth being familiar with important to know and do “big ideas” worth understanding Wiggins, Grant, & McTighe, Jay. (1998). Understanding by Design. ASCD. McWilliams, 2008

Finding “Big Ideas” in the Content Standards Ask: Why? So what? What is the “moral of the story”? How is ____ applied in the world beyond the classroom? What couldn’t we do if we didn’t understand ____ ? McWilliams, 2008

Six Facets of Understanding: What is Understanding? Six Facets of Understanding: Application Explanation Interpretation Empathy Perspective Self-Knowledge Superficial Coverage versus Uncovering the Big Ideas McWilliams, 2008

The Six Facets of Understanding Explanation Interpretation Application _______ Perspective Empathy Self-Knowledge Wiggins, Grant, & McTighe, Jay. (1998). Understanding by Design. ASCD. McWilliams, 2008

Using UbD in a Sophomore Biology Class Chuck McWilliams, Biology Teacher Maplewood-Richmond Heights HS Maplewood, MO McWilliams, 2008

Planning For a “New” Course Develop Course Enduring Understandings Ex.) Life functions as a complex system that exists at many different levels Develop Essential Questions Ex.) How can scientists lead us to understanding how life functions as a system? Develop course assessments - semester exams Develop individual units and assessments McWilliams, 2008

A “New” Biology Course How does a(n) ________ come to know the world and humans’ place in it? Each of the eight instructional units focuses on the Perspective of a scientist During the year, each student will become a: Biologist Ecologist Biochemist Cell Biologist Molecular Biologist Geneticist Naturalist Taxonomist McWilliams, 2008

Learning from Different Perspectives Cell Biologist Molecular Biologist Biochemist Geneticist Ecologist Naturalist Student Biologist Taxonomist Biology: Exploring Multiple Scientific Perspectives McWilliams, 2008

Sample Unit: Unit 6 - Geneticist Enduring Understandings: EU Patterns of inheritance can be predicted in living things. Genetic and environmental factors determine the physical characteristics of living things. As genetic research continues, society will face ethical challenges. Participating in the ethical decision making process will require carefully analyzing scientific research and understanding different points of view. McWilliams, 2008

What will Guide My Students? Essential Questions What will Guide My Students? If offspring inherit their parents genes, then why don’t they look exactly like their parents? What effect does the environment have on gene expression? How will scientists use the information from generated the Human Genome Project? McWilliams, 2008

Performance Assessment How will I know my students understand? PersonaGen® Array 119™ Genetic Test Students receive a simulated genetic test (multiple tests all at once) They must interpret their profile Research and learn about their assigned “mutations” Write a 6 paragraph essay detailing their profile and the effect it would have on their personal and career life Also included in the essay is a discussion/analysis concerning genetic testing in general In class discussion and rubrics included McWilliams, 2008

How It All Fits Together McWilliams, 2008

How It All Fits Together How will we organize and sequence the learning? O How will we tailor the learning plan? T How will students self-evaluate and reflect on their learning? E How will we help students rethink and revise? R How will we equip students for expected performances? How will we hook and hold student interest? H Where are we going? Why? What is expected? W W H E R T O McWilliams, 2008

How It All Fits Together McWilliams, 2008

Some Lessons Learned About Stage 3 Protecting your favorite activities? Including FUN activities? Be aware of TIME and pacing Scaffold toward the Performance Task and other assessments Unit Planning vs. Lesson Planning McWilliams, 2008

How It All Fits Together McWilliams, 2008

Table Talk - Essential Questions What makes essential questions essential about learning? What are the characteristics of effective essential questions? McWilliams, 2008

Ideally, Essential Questions should… Go to heart of discipline Recur naturally throughout ones learning and in the history of the field Raise further questions into the unit’s “Big Idea” Have no one right answer (debatable) Be deliberately framed to provoke and sustain student interest and engage the students in attempting to answer the questions Be derived from the enduring understandings McWilliams, 2008

Tips on writing EQs: Tips! Organize units around questions Design assessment tasks that are explicitly linked to the questions Frame questions in “kid language” to make them more accessible Sequence the questions so that they naturally lead to one another Post the essential questions in the classroom and refer back to them throughout the unit Allot sufficient time for discussion of questions with students Through a survey or informal checks, ensure that every child understands McWilliams, 2008

Examples of good ones... How can a diet be healthy for one person and not another? Why do people move? How does where we live influence how we live? What makes places unique and different? What is the relationship between cooperation and competition? McWilliams, 2008

Not so good ones… Is the weatherman always right? Is Huck Finn a hero? How many legs does a spider have? How does an elephant use its trunk? How do you measure 3-D objects? How are fractions and percentages related? McWilliams, 2008

Assessing Essential Questions McWilliams, 2008

Is the unit focused on important and engaging questions? Level 3: Important and thought provoking;more than single “correct” answer, promote inquiry rather than recall, great potential for student engagement, unifying focus to guide teaching/learning Level 2: Appropriate for topic; not clearly focused on most important ideas/concepts; do not have single “correct” answer, may not require much inquiry or engage students Level 1: Do not focus on big ideas/core processes; not thought provoking; unlikely to engage students; may have one “correct answer” and be too narrow to guide unit McWilliams, 2008

Barriers to Making UbD Work? Lessons from Chapter 13: Misconception #1 - “Yes, but… we have to teach to the test.” Misconception #2 - “Yes, but… we have to much content to cover.” Misconception #3 - “Yes, but… this work is too hard and I just don’t have the time.” Wiggins, Grant, & McTighe, Jay. (1998). Understanding by Design. ASCD. McWilliams, 2008

Challenges using UbD UbD takes TIME to become part of the culture of the learning community. It can create tension and anxiety! Success requires ongoing professional dialogue, sharing, support, and encouragement It’s for every teacher! Peer support! It works WITH high stakes testing! McWilliams, 2008

Process vs. Product: Asking Questions I finished writing this unit and/or lesson. Am I finished now? Is curriculum “living and breathing?” How do I find time? Time!?! Reflective practitioners take time to assess, rethink, and revise unit designs. ALWAYS ASK: What keeps students most engaged in meaningful work? McWilliams, 2008

Lessons Learned About UbD Implementing UbD units helps me re-evaluate my priorities - throughout daily instruction! Emphasis is on assessment! Helps students prepare for state tests. Analyzing unit design and student work leads to improved curriculum. My curriculum is living and breathing - Never something that’s finished. McWilliams, 2008

The Key to Success! “We cannot teach people anything; we can only help them discover it within themselves.” -Galileo Galilei 16th century Italian scientist McWilliams, 2008

Have a Great Journey This Year! Enjoy learning in your curriculum teams! McWilliams, 2008