Using UbD to Design Tech Infused Curriculum Theory, Process, and Tools
Elizabeth Helfant
Certified Geek with UbD Understanding
Elizabeth Pinkertom
Certified UbD Trainer with Geek Understanding
Screen Technology By Rudy on flickr
Technology, Pedagogy, Content Knowledge
What lives in each circle?
How do I live in the center?
Why do I live in the center?
TPCK Model
Pedagogical knowledge (PK) can be defined as general knowledge and skills related to teaching. Such knowledge includes knowledge of general teaching methods (such as discovery learning, collaborative learning, problem-based learning, etc.), knowledge of learners including developmental issues for children, classroom management skills, understanding how to motivate students, and so on.
Content knowledge (CK) , on the other hand, is knowledge of the facts, concepts, and skills that exist in a particular domain. This knowledge is independent of pedagogical knowledge. For example, a scientist or historian can know a lot about their domain but not know how to teach it well to others.
Technological knowledge (TK) is the knowledge required to understand and use various technologies. In this class we will simply define technologies as tools. In this class we primarily focus on learning about digital technologies (i.e., typically some kind of hardware or software). There is a wide range of different levels of TK. At a very basic level, TK might include an awareness of different programs and what they allow people to do. Basic TK might also include understanding of different file formats (like .jpg is an image or .doc is a MS Word document) or operating systems (like Windows Vista or MacOS X Leopard). More advanced TK might involve knowing how to download and use particular software programs or how to use a programming language to create a new piece of software. From:http://open.byu.edu/ipt287/resources/unit-3-technology-integration/tpack-introduction/
Using Technology with Marzano’s Best Practices
Web 2.0 Tools that Work
21 st Century Pedagogy
Curriculum as DNA LegoDNA by mknoles on flickr
Literacies and Skills as Blocks
Basic Literacy
Discipline Specific Literacies
Traditional Literacies
Reading
Writing
Arithmetic
Technology
Wagner’s Disciplined Mind
Information Literacy
Information Overload
Considerations
Is it Reliable?
Is it Relevant?
Is it Biased?
Is it copyright protected?
Various formats of information (hypertext, multimedia)
Visual/Media Literacy
The Power in Images
Digital Citizenship/Ethical Literacy
Intercultural Literacy
Network Literacy
Attention Literacy (Executive Function)
Bloom’s Digital - Revised
The 3 C’s
Connect
Collaborate
Create
Deciding on a Unit
What’s a unit that you’d like to rewrite to make it fantastic?
Overview
Share with a neighbor…
1)Who was the most effective teacher you ever had? What made him/her so?
Share examples, then generalize: “the best teachers…”
2)When was a time you made significant progress/improvement as a learner? What was it that made that possible?
Share examples, then generalize: “the greatest learning happens when…”
Common Responses:
Upfront explicit goals and performance requirements
Models and modeling provided
The bigger picture, the “why”, is made clear
Working back and forth from whole to part
A genuine challenge/problem frames the work that stretches you- real, meaningful tasks
Work culminates in real or realistic application
Trial and error, reflection and adjustment are needed and expected
Constant helpful feedback opportunities
Safe environment for trying out, getting feedback, adjusting
Understanding by Design
Look at two questions:
What is good design?
What is understanding?
A set of ideas and tools that are an embodiment of
common sense
“ best practice” in design
what we know about learning
Two questions:
What is good design?
Best done “backward” from the desired result
What is understanding?
Transfer of knowledge- long term goal and key evidence of understanding
Use of Big Ideas to focus the work along with the transfer tasks
Why the Need for Understanding?
In even our best students and their work, we see frequent…
Amnesia
Misunderstandings
Rigid knowledge, no transfer of learning
Does this sound familiar?
What is Transfer of Learning?
The use of knowledge and skills (acquired in earlier context) in a new context . It occurs when a person’s learning in one situation influences that person’s learning and performance in other situations.
Transferability is Understanding
Understanding reveals itself as transfer: an appropriate and affective use of knowledge and skill, on one’s own; using good judgment, with minimal cues and prompting, in various important situations, about which content is needed when and why .
Example: NAEP 8 th Grade Test Item
“ How many buses does the army need to transport 1,128 soldiers if each bus holds
36 soldiers?”
Answer from 30%:
“ 31 buses, remainder 12”
-remainder 12
Example: Earth
Common Answer
What teachers have done…
Identify content
Brainstorm activities, lessons, learning plan
Come up with an assessment
This can occur without checking for alignment
3 Stages of Backward Design
3 Stages
1) Indentify desired results
2) Determine acceptable evidence ( assessment )
Then and only then-
3) Plan learning experiences and instruction
Checking for alignment between stages
Stage 1: Desired Results
Established Goals
Understandings
Essential Questions
Knowledge
Skills
Established Goals
Standards
Course and Program Objectives
Learning Outcomes
What relevant goals will this design address?
“ Unpack” the goals to find the big ideas, understandings, essential questions, key knowledge and skills.
Understandings
Big Ideas
Transferable
Inference (not fact)
Conceptual foundations for basic skills
Generalizations
What specific understandings are desired?
What misunderstandings are predictable?
Specifically frame the Understandings-
“ The student(s) will understand THAT …”
Finding the Big Ideas:
Look at…
Concepts
Issues/Debates
Processes
Paradoxes
Themes
Problems/Challenges
Theories
Assumptions/Perspectives
… Surrounding a topic
Focusing in On Understandings- Nutrition
Familiar:
General eating patterns and menus from the past
Different conditions requiring dietary restrictions
Important:
Types of food in each of the food groups and their nutritional value
The USDA Food Pyramid guidelines
Nutritional information on food labels and how to interpret
Big Ideas:
Balanced Diet
Nutritional Needs
Understandings:
The students will understand that…
“ You are what you eat.” Your diet affects you health, appearance and performance.
People have different dietary needs based on age, activity level, weight and various health considerations.
Essential Questions
Open ended
Thought provoking, engaging and focused inquiries
Conceptual or philosophical issues, problems and debates
Leads to other questions
Naturally recurring
Stimulants for vital ongoing rethinking of big ideas and prior knowledge
Select and develop Essential Questions to guide inquiry into big ideas.
What provocative questions will foster inquiry, understanding, and transfer of learning?
Creating Essential Questions
What questions are raised by this idea or topic?
What, specifically, about the idea or topic do you want students to come to understand?
Ask yourself:
Why study _____? So what?
What makes the study of _____ universal?
What’s the Big Idea implies in the skill or process of _____?
What larger concept, issue or problem underlies _____?
What couldn’t we do if we couldn’t understand _____?
How is _____ used and applied in the larger world?
What is a real-world insight about _____?
What is the value of studying _____?
Essential Questions: Music Theory
Why study music theory?
It is engaging
What makes the study of music theory universal?
It involves feelings and emotion
Essential Questions:
What makes music engaging?
How does music convey feeling and evoke emotion?
How are “form” and “function” related in biology?
How do effective writers hook and hold their readers?
Who “wins” and who “loses” when technologies change?
What distinguishes fluent foreigners from native speakers?
How would life be different if we couldn’t measure it?
How many legs does a spider have? How does an elephant use his trunk?
What is “foreshadowing”? Can you find an example of it in the story?
What is the original meaning of the term, “technology” (from its Greek root, techne)?
What are some French colloquialisms?
How many minutes are in an hour? How many hours are in a day?
Essential Questions
Nonessential Questions
Now you try-
What is the relationship between popularity and greatness in literature?
When was the Magna Carta signed?
Crustaceans- what’s up with that?
Which president of the United States has the most disappointing legacy?
When is an equation linear?
To what extent are common sense and science related?
“ Unpacking” Goals
Understandings:
Audience and purpose influence literary techniques.
Different genres have unique organizational patterns.
Essential Questions:
What am I trying to achieve through my writing?
Who am I writing for?
How do great writers hook and hold their readers in different genres?
Language Arts-
All students will write in clear, concise, organized
language that varies in content and form for
different audiences and purposes. (New Jersey Language Arts Standard 3.3)
What key knowledge and skills will students acquire as a result of this unit?
What should they eventually be able to do as a result of such knowledge and skills?
Knowledge specifically framed as, “Students will know …”
Skills specifically framed as, “Students will be able to …”
“ Unpacking” Goals
Know:
Visual art design elements (list of basics).
Visual art design principles (list of basics).
Ways artists employ various technologies.
Relevant historical and cultural information about various periods.
Be able to:
Analyze and interpret works of art.
Compare works of art from different periods and cultures to determine the distinguishing visual characteristics.
Communicate their analyses and interpretations verbally and visually.
The students will recognize the visual arts as a
basic aspect of history and human experience.
(Baltimore County, Public Schools)
Stage 1 Review: Science Topic or Content Standard The student will understand biological adaptation.
Stage 2: Assessment
Performance Tasks and Rubrics
Other Evidence
Self-Assessment
To what extent do the assessments provide valid, reliable and sufficient measures of the desired results?
Assessment Methods
Traditional Tests/Quizzes-
Worth being familiar with
Important to do and know
Performance Tasks and Projects-
Important to do and know
Big Ideas and Understandings
Collect Diverse Evidence from Assessments
Informal checks for understanding- ongoing assessments such as questioning, observations, dialogue, examining work, think alouds
Tests and Quizzes- simple, content focused items
Academic Prompts- open ended questions, problems that require students to think critically, not just recall knowledge, and to prepare a specific academic response, product or performance
Performance Tasks- complex challenges that mirror the issues and problems faced by adults, ranging from short-term to long term tasks, multistaged projects, they yield one or more tangible products and performances.
Performance Tasks: Construction using GRASPS
The students need:
G oal
R ole
A udience
S ituation
P roduct/Performance/Purpose
S tandards and Criteria for Success
Performance Tasks: Assessing for Understanding
Ask students to use…
Explanation
Interpretation
Application
Perspective
Empathy
Self-Knowledge
in their performance tasks.
Known as the Six Facets of Understanding
“ Unpacking” Goals
Performance Task Ideas:
Have students create a mathematical model for a selected real-world situation (e.g., seasonal temperatures).
Have students critically review a mathematical model for its appropriateness to a given situation (e.g., the Mercator Projection for representing the globe in two-dimensions).
All students will connect mathematics to other
learning by understanding the interrelationships
of mathematical ideas and the roles that
mathematics and mathematical modeling play in
other disciplines and in life. (New Jersey Math Standards 4.3)
Collection of Assessment Evidence: Nutrition revisited
Performance Task:
You Are What You Eat- Students create an illustrated brochure to teach younger children about the importance of good nutrition for healthful living. Offer students ideas for breaking bad eating habits.
Chow Down- Students develop a three-day menu for meals and snacks for an upcoming Outdoor Education camp experience. They write a letter to the camp director to explain why their menu should be selected (by showing that it meets the USDA Food Pyramid recommendations, yet is tasty enough for students). Include at least one modification for a specific dietary condition (diabetic or vegetarian) or religious consideration.
Other Evidence:
Quiz- The food groups and the USDA Food Pyramid
Prompt- Describe two health problems that could arise as a result of poor nutrition and explain how these could be avoided.
Skill Check- Interpret nutritional information on food labels
Student Self-Assessment and Reflection:
Self-assess brochure, You Are What You Eat .
Self-assess the camp menu, Chow Down .
Reflect on the extent to which you eat healthy at the end of the unit (compared to the beginning).
Stage 3: Learning Plan
Instructional strategies and learning experiences needed to achieve the desired results (Stage 1) as reflected in the assessment evidence to be gathered (Stage 2).
UbD refers to WHERETO in designing an effective and engaging learning plan-
W here/ W hy/ W hat
H ook
E xplore/ E xperience/ E quip
R ethink/ R ehearse/ R evise/ R efine
E valuate
T ailored
O rganized
Tech collaboration with UbD
What is Transfer of Learning?
The use of knowledge and skills (acquired in earlier context) in a new context . It occurs when a person’s learning in one situation influences that person’s learning and performance in other situations.
Transferability is Understanding
Diagnostic Assessment and Technology
Collect Diverse Evidence from Assessments Technology and the Research Process Making Learning Transparent Increasing Formative Assessment and Feedback
Zoho Shared Notebook Exercise Workbook wih Audio and Video Ability to Share Also good for Research Notebook
Diigo and Delicious
Performance Tasks: Construction using GRASPS
The students need:
G oal
R ole
A udience
S ituation
P roduct/Performance/Purpose
S tandards and Criteria for Success
Project Based Learning
US Museum
Wiki
Final Project
Adv History Documentaries
Blip.tv
Global Climate Change Symposium
Sudan Documentary
Comic Life Graphic Novels
Frederick Douglas Oratory Contest
The Six Facets
Explanation
Interpretation
Application
Perspective
Empathy
Self-Knowledge
Reflection- The Sixth Facet
Scribe Blogs
Teaching Collaboration
WHERETO
Creating the Learning
Plan W here/ W hy/ W hat -
H ook
E xplore/ E xperience/ E quip
R ethink/ R ehearse/ R evise/ R efine
E valuate
T ailored
O rganized
WHERETO
Plan W here/ W hy/ W hat –
Plan collectively with Google Docs or Wiki
Post Expectations Clearly Online
H ook
Consider Multimedia as a hook
Consider Nonfictions – guided annotation reading
WebNotes or Diigo
WHERETO
E xplore/ E xperience/ E quip
Deliver information on Skills via Online Video-
Lab Skills on Video or Voicethread
R ethink/ R ehearse/ R evise/ R efine
Ustream Presentations for reflection and critique
Use OneNote Tags as Reflection Study Tool
WHERETO
E valuate (self-Evaluation)
DyKnow Polls
PollEverywhere
Blogs
Google Forms
T ailored
Use Creative Tools – Vary Them
Photostories, Graphic Novels, WikiBook, Mixbook
O rganized
Template
Works Cited
Understanding by Design, Professional Workbook Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins
Understanding by Design, Advanced Summer Institute Binder. Authentic Education
Resources:
Understanding by Design, Expanded 2 nd Edition by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe
Understanding by Design, Professional Workbook by Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins
Understanding by Design, Advanced Summer Institute. Authentic Education
Understanding by Design, Train the Trainer Summer Institute. Authentic Education
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