Understanding by Design

“In teaching students for understanding, we must grasp the key idea that we are coaches of their ability to play the ‘game’ of performing with understanding, not tellers of our understanding to them on the sidelines" (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p. 17).

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Understanding by Design is a backward design process focused on student learning and understanding. To focus on the learning, Wiggins and McTighe argue that teachers must consider the learning outcomes first, and not just the content standards, but the knowledge and skills they want their students to have when they complete the course. To know where you are going and why must be established before you can map your route. In contrast, when teachers begin with how to teach the content, then develop assessments and try to make connections to learning goals, they are focused on the teaching. There is no guiding purpose to the learning activities and students may not understand where they are going and why. UbD provides a framework for prioritizing learning with intentional design.

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The UbD template is divided into three stages: (1) establish desired results, (2) determine assessment evidence, and (3) plan learning experiences and instruction. Each stage of the template includes a set of design standards which help guide the process and serve as quality control. As part of my innovation plan, I used the UbD template to design an ePortfolio unit for my World History course. In stage 1, I focused on the “big ideas” of the course - what enduring understandings and transferable skills do I want my students to leave with? In addition, I identified the existing content standards that would help me align assessments to the learning outcomes. In stage 2, I focused on developing authentic performance tasks that would help students develop the reading, thinking, and writing skills to meet the learning goals. In stage 3, I focused on activities and experiences that would harness the power of blended learning to allow students to explore, inquire, collaborate, and reflect on their learning. A useful component of stage 3 is the WHERETO acronym. WHERETO ensures that you have clarified the sequence of teaching and learning experiences that will enable the learners to achieve the learning outcomes. At the beginning of Stage 3, I have included what each letter stands for and coded each learning activity in my design as it relates to each letter. Wiggins and McTighe stress that WHERETO should not be used as formula for building lessons, but as a tool to check for the elements of intentional design (2005).

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The UbD design process was not as straight forward, or backward if you will, as I had anticipated. After initially completing the template, in order, with some key items, I found myself moving between stages, refining, clarifying, and aligning the activities, assessments, and goals. By starting at the end, I found it easier to keep the overall purpose clear and harder to include an activity just for the sake of it. In addition to helping me create a significant learning environment, the UbD framework will help me have greater impact with my innovation plan. Using UbD will ensure that I stay focused on the learning of blended learning and not focused on the technology. As I practice and become more familiar with the process, I am sure the template will become easier to complete. My impression is that the UbD template will become a valuable tool for a cycle of improvement. 

Similar to Fink's Integrated Course Design, UbD uses a backward design approach. However, the UbD template is more detailed than the 3-column table and provides a more in-depth script of a lesson or unit. The 3-column table resulted in a broad view of my course, and I could quickly check for alignments of outcomes, assessments, and activities. I liked Fink’s Situational Factors and Taxonomy of Significant Learning components. They were helpful in considering a holistic course design as opposed to designing just a lesson or unit. Both the 3-column table and UbD are valuable in developing an environment that is focused on the learning. Incorporating both approaches into planning would ensure the most effective course and lesson designs.