Achievement by Design (AbD) with Highlights of the work of Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe

What is AbD? Backward Design Planning: o Designing lessons with the end in mind (unit begins at the end) o Teaching for lasting/enduring and transferable understandings o Requiring students to apply and demonstrate their learning

Why AbD important? The teacher’s job is to “uncover” the big ideas contained in content standards and to ensure they are understood, not to provide merely fun activities or cover a textbook or cover a textbook’s content. – Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay (1998)Understanding by Design

3 Stages of Backward Design Planning Process 1. Identify desired results 2. Determine acceptable evidence (assessment) 3. Plan learning experiences and instruction

Stage I: IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS  Goals: focus on Big Ideas  Enduring Understandings  Essential Questions  Key Knowledge and Skills

Stage I: IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS  Goals: focus on big ideas  Enduring Understandings  Essential Questions  Key Knowledge and Skills Standards: National/ State District Curriculum GLE’s Develop theme Goals – Connect to and meaningful to the individual facts and skills taught

Stage I: IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS  Goals  Enduring Understandings  Essential Questions  Key Knowledge and Skills Enduring Understandings Can Explain: provides thorough facts and data in their own words Can Interpret: translates to provide meaning Can Apply: transfers the skill in new situations Have Perspective: have critical and insightful points of view Can Empathize: ability to “walk in another’s shoes” Have Self-knowledge: aware of biases and what he does and does not understand Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay (1998)Understanding by Design

Knowledge vs. Understanding Knowledge The facts A body of coherent facts Verifiable claims Right or wrong I know something to be true I respond on cue with what I know Understanding Meaning of the 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 Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay (1998)Understanding by Design

Stage I: Identify Desired Results  Goals  Enduring Understandings  Essential Questions  Key Knowledge and Skills What makes a question essential? Thought provoking Open-ended Doorway through which learners explore key concepts, themes, theories, issues, etc. Draws upon prior knowledge Engages students in dialogue and debates Leads to other essential questions posed by students/ fosters inquiry Leads to understandings Leads to transfer of knowledge Goes to heart of things – the essence

Examples of essential and nonessential questions Essential Questions Who “wins” and who “loses” when technologies change? What distinguishes fluent foreigners from native speakers? Nonessential Questions How many minutes are in an hour? What is foreshadowing? Can you find an example in the story?

Stage I: Identify Desired Results  Goals  Enduring Understandings  Essential Questions  Key Knowledge and Skills Ask What students will know What students will be able to do

Backward Design Part II Determine Acceptable Evidence

Types of Acceptable Evidence: Performance task Constructed response Test and quizzes Anecdotal Self-assessment & goal setting Student work samples Observations (Informal or on smart board)

Performance Task: State Standards from DESE Finding online sources Computer skills Integrating technology

Assessment Types Traditional quizzes and tests paper/pencil selected-response constructed response Performance tasks & projects open-ended complex authentic Worth being familiar with Important to know & do Big ideas worth understanding Grant Wiggins & Jay McTighe

Constructed Response: Students answer worksheet type questions as they would on standardized tests

Tests and Quizzes: To check for knowledge and learning

Anecdotal: Rephrasing questioning to clarify any mislearning or misconcepts – Why isn’t the book on the shelf? It could be on the shelving cart, new book display, or on hold for someone.

Self-assessment & Goal Setting: Exit cards – do they know and understand PANDA? Ask when will they use PANDA. Can they transfer the knowledge of PANDA to using the public library online catalog or Amazon.com?

Evidence: Evidence should be: Valid Reliable Fair Sufficient Authentic

Two Ways to Think About Assessment Like an assessor Like an activity designer

Thinking Like an Assessor When thinking like an assessor, we ask: What would be sufficient and revealing evidence of understanding? Against what criteria will we consider work and assess levels of quality? Did the assessments reveal those who really understand from those who only seem to?

Like an Activity Designer: When thinking like an activity designer, we ask: What would be fun and interesting activities on this topic? What tests should I give based on the content I taught? How will I give a grade?

Self Assess Your Assessment How likely is it that a student could do well by: Making clever guesses Plugging in what was learned with accurate recall but limited understanding Producing nice products, but with limited understanding Failing to meet the goals/objectives despite having a deep understanding

Two Important Questions Could the performance be accomplished or the test passed without in-depth understanding? Could the specific performance be poor, but the student still understands the ideas in question? Goal: Answer “NO” to both!

Achievement by Design STAGE 3 Plan learning experiences and instruction

Design lessons--a guide W-Where are we headed and Why? H-How will we Hook the student? E-Experiences students will have; key ideas for them to Explore in interesting ways. R-Reflect, Rethink, Revise, Refine E-Exhibit work and self-Evaluate T-Tailor to learning styles O-Organize –sequence for engagement and effectiveness

The Key! EFFECTIVEEFFECTIVE and E N G A G IN G

Stand and Share What makes a lesson effective and engaging?

Effective and engaging on-line catalog demo using SMARTBoard Utilize PANDA to Explore the Library and to locate and identify information sources Students take turns using markers to identify number of hits, title, author, status, and call number

ACHIEVEMENT BY DESIGN RESOURCES (Big Ideas a monthly online newsletter as shared by Grant Wiggins.) esd.mb.ca/static/docs/ubd_overview.ppt - Understanding by Design power point Understanding by Design power point. Understanding by Design power point from Lee Summit. Achievement By Design (website for cooperative of three area school districts including: Maplewood Richmond Heights, Bayless and Parkway. Achievement By Design ACHIEVEMENT BY DESIGN RESOURCES (social studies curriculum was developed using the understanding by design philosophy) ACHIEVEMENT BY DESIGN RESOURCES understanding Wiggins, Grant and McTighe, Jay. Understanding by Design. ASCD, Wiggins, Grant and McTighe, Jay. Understanding by Design Professional Development Workbook. ASCD., 2004.

Alice, speaking to Cheshire Cat: “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?” “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat. “I don’t much care where,” said Alice “Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat. “____so long as I get somewhere,” Alice added as an explanation. “Oh, you’re sure to do that, “ said the Cat, “if you only walk long enough.” Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 1865 Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards. Soren Kierkegaard, Journals, 1843 Finalize with assessment….match questions and answers Do we have an enduring (although basic) understanding of Achievement by Design?