Outline

   Mentor Notes

Topic: Keys to Understanding (Live) Enduring Understanding Quality instruction today differs from the didactic instructional approach that has served education for past decades. Through effective use of technology and systems thinking, educators can function as a learning organization that focuses on continuous improvement through the effective development, alignment, delivery and management of curriculum. Essential Question What is Knowledge Age Curriculum Management? How does Backward Design differ from typical instructional practices, and how can it improve planning, instruction and assessment?

Learning Event 1: Overview (@ 10 minutes)

Where are we headed? Your Mentor has prepared to lead your cohort through a comprehensive study of curriculum and instruction issues. He/she will lead your group through a review of the overview, assignments, formats, and grading criteria. If you have paid for the textbooks, they should be available from your Mentor. For easy navigation throughout this website, familiarize yourself with the graphic icons used throughout.
 

 

Indicates one of the Six Facets of Understanding developed by co-authors Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe. They assert that in order for learners to deeply understand a topic, it must be experienced from all six facets. Learners should be able to Explain, Apply, Interpret, and also gain Empathy, Perspective and Self-knowledge. The Six Facets of Understanding are included in Wiggins and McTighe's book, Understanding by Design. Download the PDF file Six Facets of Understanding to gain a deeper understanding of these six facets.

Learning Event 2: Introductions (@ 20 minutes)

Use Microsoft Word or any other word processor to answer the following questions. If you have a participant portfolio you can add this document to it.

Think of a time when you had a high-quality learning experience. What happened?

What did you learn? What did you find interesting about it? What motivated you?

What and who do you think made it powerful?

Learning Event 3: Vignettes and Understanding (@ 20 minutes)

 As we begin to explore the concept of quality in education, it is necessary for us to confront our existing mental models of quality instruction. These mental models are formed when we make connections between our previous experiences and our assumptions. Click on the icon beside this activity and review the definition of Mental Models.

In the Introduction of Understanding by Design, the authors present four vignettes. As you read each one, you will be viewing these illustrations through your own mental models of what does and does not create quality learning experiences.

Form four groups, read an assigned vignette, then discuss within your group any similarities you see between the assigned vignette and examples you have observed in your school. A member of each group should share highlights of the group discussion with the entire cohort.

Discuss the concepts presented in the remainder of Chapter 1 and think about the "Enduring Understanding" students in your classes need to grasp. Share those "Enduring Understandings" with your classmates.

   

Learning Event 4: Backward Design Process (@ 15 minutes)

"To begin with the end in mind means to start with a clear understanding of your destination. It means to know where you are going so that you better understand where you are now so that the steps you take are always in the right direction."
~ Stephen Covey

As you will see later in this solution, many of the ideas that are currently being embraced by business and industry are also being proposed for education. The concept of backward design is very similar to one of Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Successful People. Beginning with the end in mind is a concept that can be applied to personal mastery as well as school improvement. After briefly exploring the first three chapters of Understanding by Design, share your insights as to how beginning with the end in mind, or the backward design process, differs from traditional instructional planning. Discuss the concepts from the text that you thought were the most interesting.

During this solution you will begin designing a six week unit. Your unit will follow the backward design process proposed by Wiggins and McTighe. It will focus on leading your students to a genuine understanding, not simple recall of information and facts. During this solution you will analyze and apply enduring understandings, essential questions, and the six facets of understanding to the lessons you design.

Use the 'Audio' and/or 'Transcript' links below. If needed, download Real Media Player now.

			"It was exciting to see students research each of the enduring understandings from whichever period of history they were studying..."   Read more...

  Your Mentor will lead a discussion about Enduring Understandings. Share your thoughts about the following:

1. Review the chart on page 115 of Essential Questions from Understanding by Design and the chart on page 131 of Enduring Understandings. Write an Enduring Understanding for a subject you are currently teaching then share it with your cohort. After cohort members have begun sharing sample Enduring Understandings, your Mentor will lead a discussion on whether or not each submission is consistent with the definition of an enduring understanding. During the discussion, assist your peers by making suggestions to modify, if necessary, their submissions so that each submission meets the following criterion: Enduring Understanding – anchors a unit of study and provides a rationale for studying the unit. It is enduring because it represents the big ideas we want students to get inside of and retain after they have forgotten many of the details. It provides a larger purpose for learning the targeted content, and answers the question, "Why is this topic worth studying?"
   
2. Share any experiences you may have had in your teaching where you believed you were clearly addressing Enduring Understandings. The teachers that created the interdisciplinary ninth grade unit on English and U.S. History struggled at first with the concept of Enduring Understandings. Can you relate to their confusion, or is this a concept you embrace and regularly practice in your teaching? Do you believe there are any subjects that do not lend themselves to a focus on Enduring Understandings? Which subjects, and why?
    
3. How might a clear focus on Enduring Understandings answer the question, "Why do I have to learn this?"
    
4. Wouldn’t it be interesting for students and parents to see a comprehensive list of Enduring Understandings that will be addressed during a year’s study? Currently is any type of information like this being provided to your students and parents?

  Discuss with your Mentor the Essential Questions on pp. 105-106 and "What makes a question essential" on pp. 107-108. Next review "Tips for Generating Essential Questions" on pp. 118-119 and "Tips for Using Essential Questions on p. 121. Think of at least one Essential Question that could lead to the Enduring Understanding you stated earlier. Refer back to Understanding by Design for direction as you and your cohort discuss what makes a good Essential Question. Go back and edit your Enduring Understanding to include at least one Essential Question. Your finished product may look similar to this example:
 

Enduring Understanding	Technology is often a two edged sword used for progress and destruction.
Essential Question	How did the production of advanced technology (e.g. the atomic bomb) influence the end of World War II?

 

Learning Event 7: Six Facets of Understanding (@ 30 minutes)

Your cohort should break into six groups. Each group will take one of the Six Facets of Understanding and will review as a group the material on that facet provided in Chapter 4 of Understanding by Design. After a 15 minute planning period, each group should be prepared to perform a brief presentation (under five minutes) that describes and interprets the facet for other cohort members. To assist in future recall of the facets, and as an aid for visual learners, each group should design or develop a logo, an icon, or mnemonic device that represents some of the major concepts associated with the facet. Each group should also include a few examples from their teaching in which the facet could be used. You will notice a graphic icon beside many of the module activities throughout the remainder of this solution. In an effort to model the Six Facets of Understanding, the designers for this solution have labeled many of the activities with the facet of understanding that is being addressed. 

Click on the icon for a brief description of the facet. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the document.

Meet with your Content Area Coordinator to determine for which subject area and quarter you should focus on when designing the instructional unit and lessons. You and the Content Area Coordinator should agree upon the Preliminary Curriculum Design Scope. Your Content Area Coordinator will keep track of your preliminary ideas on the Checklist. You will be able to revise your preliminary plan after completing Modules 1 and 2. Be sure you reach agreement on the following three conditions:

1. Grade level and subject area for the unit or units to be developed, and an appropriate number of lessons for each unit
2. To what extent will the unit and lessons be integrated with other content standards?
3. Will you work as part of a team or independently? How will the work be divided among team members?
 

Learning Event 9: Communicating Electronically With Peers  (@ 15 minutes)

Vince Puzick created a D11 UBD wiki to use with the Spring 2008 class. Check it out and let us know what you think. he has it set up for the first 5 chapters of the UBD book -- basically it gets us through January's work. Some caveats-- you might need to click on Refresh a couple of times to get the page to load correctly; this problem doesn't happen to me at home. Click on the word "Sidebar" at the right-hand top corner of the page to see some "purpose setting questions" he wrote for each of the chapters. He would like the Sidebar to stay consistent for the whole group -- and then participants can make more content-specific contributions on each content page. Learning how to use a wiki is a skill that you can use with your students in the future. If you need to sign in with a password, it is UBD2008 and you must use all caps for UBD. This link will take you to the wiki and allow you to create and edit pages, add to discussions, and upload files.https://d11ubd.pbwiki.com/shared.php?aph=16a59b0c9ac3084875f644a2ad9626425c2bd33e

Research Modeled -- You have just participated in a research-based approach to learning  by discussion centered around written text. It is common practice for a teacher to assign long reading assignments before presenting thoughtful questions or a "teaser" to give learners a reason or desire to uncover what lies hidden in the text. Research demonstrates that learner retention of assigned readings increases if significant questions and discussion precede the reading assignment.

Your Mentor will guide your cohort members through a reflection on topics and concepts presented during this module. You will then be given an opportunity to provide feedback about your learning experience by rating the usefulness of Learning Events in helping you address the Essential Questions for this module.

Required Reading

Read Chapters 1-5 in Understanding By Design.

Before you read...
Do yourself and your students a favor. Read these chapters as if your students' academic future depends on how well you understand the concepts presented...because it does. The authors of Understanding by Design have merged many current educational trends into one coherent, logical system of instruction. It will revolutionalize the way you view teaching.

As you read Chapter 4, keep asking yourself, "How do the six facets merge Bloom's Taxonomy with other efforts to ensure students get rigorous instruction?"

Think back on mow many learning experiences you've encountered that focused only on the explain and interpret level.

Have you ever been in a learning session that led you to the point of self-knowledge, or knowing what you believe to be true and why?

Chapter 5 - As you read what makes a good Enduring Understanding and Essential Question, do you notice that some of the Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions in our current District 11 online curriculum don't seem to fit the description from the chapter? If so, good for you! Now, with your help, we can revise those to be excellent representations of EU's and EQs. Find a few in our subject area that don't seem to fit the ideal. We'll discuss them in Module 3.

© Quality Learning 2006. All Rights Reserved.