Many educators heard and use UbD. However, more than often teachers are not trained well in designing high quality UbD units. In may latest review of teacher generated UbD units, I found that most of them lack the ability to understand the stages well. In this workshop, teachers are re-introduced to UbD in terms of unit planning focusing on key determinant issues in UbD unit planning. Teachers are then engaged in redesigning their unit plans in light of the new findings.

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Ammar Merhbi
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UNDERSTANDING
BY
DESIGN High Quality
Units for Student
Achievement

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Ammar Merhbi
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Our Essential Question:
Why use UbD? What is it
and what’s it good for?

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To begin with the END in mind means to start
with a clear understanding of your destination.
It means to know where you're going so that
you better understand where you are now so
that the steps you take are always in the right
direction.
 Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective
People

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Stage 1 — Identify Desired Results
What are the established goals?
What "big ideas" do we want students to come to
understand?
What essential questions will stimulate inquiry?
What knowledge and skills need to be acquired given
•the understandings and related content standards?
•What focus questions will guide students to targeted
•knowledge and skills?

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Getting to the "Big Ideas"
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Understandings and Big Ideas
Concepts
Themes
Issues or Debates
Problems or Challenges
Processes
Theories
Paradoxes
Assumptions or Perspectives
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Understanding — 6 facets
Explanation
Interpretation
Application
Perspective
Empathy
Self Knowledge
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Coming up with Essential Questions
Why study ? So what?
What makes the study of ____ universal?
If the unit on is a story, what's the moral of the
story?
What's the Big Idea implied in the skill or process
of ?
What larger concept, issue, or problem underlies?
What couldn't we do if we didn't understand?
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Sample Essential Questions
Arts
o How does art reflect, as well as shape,
culture?
Economics
o What determines value?
Foreign Language
o What can we learn about our own
language and culture by studying
another?
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Sample Essential Questions
Geography
o How does where we live influence how we
live?
Government
o How should we balance the rights of
individuals with the common good?
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History
o Whose story is it? Is history the story
told by the winners?
Literature
o Can fiction reveal truth?
Sample Essential Questions
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Mathematics
o When is the "correct" answer not the best
solution?
Science
o How are "form" and "function"
related in biology?
Sample Essential Questions
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•Everyday lesson plans will focus on acquiring necessary knowledge and skills
•Knowledge •Skills
 Communication skills
 Critical thinking skills
 Research
 Study skills
 Group, interpersonal
 Vocabulary
 Terminology
 Definitions
 Factual info.
 Formula
 Critical details
 Important events
 Sequences and
timelines
Knowledge and Skills
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Students should be presumed innocent
of understanding until proven guilty
by a preponderance of evidence.
Stage 2 Evidence
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What is sufficient and telling evidence of
understanding?
Keeping the goals in mind, what performance tasks
should anchor and focus the unit?
What criteria will be used to assess the work?
Will the assessment reveal and distinguish those who
really understand versus those who only see to
understand?
Guiding Questions
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Album Vs. a Snapshot
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Assessment Methods
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GRASPS
G Goal
R Role
A Audience
S Situation
P Product, performance,
purpose
S Standards for success
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Performance Assessment Design
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GRASPS
The City Tourism Office has hired you to
plan a tour of your state for a group of
six foreign exchange students (who speak
English) to help them understand the
city’s history, geography, economy and
culture. Plan your tour so that the visitors
are shown sites that will teach them about
the city and show the ways that it has
influenced the nation’s development. You
should prepare a written tour itinerary,
including an explanation of why each site
was selected. Include a Google Map
tracing the route for the four-day tour and
a budget for the trip.
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Performance Assessment Design
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What instructional strategies and learning activities
are needed to achieve the results identified in Stage 1
and reflected in the assessment evidence specified in
Stage 2?
Stage 3 – Instructional Plan
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Where is the unit heading and why?
Hook and hold students' attention.
Equip students with necessary
experiences, tools, knowledge to meet
goals.
Allow students to rethink ideas, reflect on
•progress, and revise their work.
Allow opportunities for students to
evaluate progress.
Tailor to students needs
Organize to optimize understanding
•WHERETOKey Consideration in Planning
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Performance Task
Groups of 3, 2, or Individual
Use Handout for Guidance
Read Success Criteria in
Rubric
Timed so please pace
yourselves
Demonstrate Understanding of Ubd
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