Deepening Learning With Understanding by Design

Summary

This transcript explores how the Understanding by Design (UBD) framework has transformed teaching approaches at MRH. Teachers discuss how UBD emphasizes backward planning, focusing on big ideas and essential questions rather than just covering content. Through engaging, purposeful lessons, students are encouraged to construct their own knowledge. The curriculum includes hands-on activities, like testing soil for plant growth, that relate to real-world concepts. Teachers reflect on how UBD makes learning more meaningful and prepares students for the future by prioritizing deep understanding and critical thinking over rote memorization.

Takeaways

• 😀 UBD (Understanding by Design) allows for a more cohesive and purposeful approach to teaching by focusing on what students need to understand.
• 😀 The UBD approach helps teachers plan lessons backwards, starting with desired outcomes and assessments.
• 😀 By focusing on big ideas, UBD ensures that students learn more meaningful concepts that are applicable to real-life situations.
• 😀 UBD encourages teachers to structure their curriculum around enduring understandings, rather than just specific content and skills.
• 😀 UBD makes the classroom more student-centered, allowing students to take ownership of their learning.
• 😀 The process of constructing knowledge is emphasized in UBD, with students actively engaging in discussions and projects.
• 😀 Teachers in the school emphasize real-world connections in their lessons, which help students understand the relevance of what they’re learning.
• 😀 The Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions guide students to develop a deeper understanding of the content.
• 😀 UBD encourages teachers to move away from teaching facts and instead focus on preparing students for the future with big ideas and critical thinking.
• 😀 The teacher’s role in UBD is to create an environment where students can teach themselves and engage in their own learning process.

Q & A

What is Understanding by Design (UBD)?

Understanding by Design (UBD) is a curriculum planning approach where teachers begin with the desired end goals (big ideas and enduring understandings) and work backwards to design lessons and assessments. It focuses on ensuring that teaching is purposeful and aligned with student learning outcomes.

How has UBD changed the way teachers approach teaching content?

UBD has shifted teachers' focus from merely covering content to fostering deeper understanding. Teachers now aim to make learning more purposeful and deliberate by focusing on the big ideas and how to assess those ideas effectively.

What role do 'Enduring Understandings' play in UBD?

Enduring Understandings are broad, long-lasting concepts that teachers want students to retain after completing a unit. These concepts are not content-specific but focus on key ideas that can help students understand the world around them, such as 'Culture is a divisive and unifying factor.'

What are 'Essential Questions,' and how are they used in UBD?

Essential Questions are open-ended prompts designed to encourage students to think deeply about the big ideas of a unit. These questions guide students to explore and understand the broader concepts and themes, promoting critical thinking and self-reflection.

How does UBD encourage student-centered learning?

In UBD, the teacher shifts from being the central figure in the classroom to a facilitator of learning. This allows students to take ownership of their learning, engage more deeply with the material, and construct their own knowledge based on the lessons and projects.

How does UBD connect learning to real-world applications?

UBD emphasizes making learning relevant by connecting lessons to real-world scenarios. For instance, in a science unit, students might conduct soil tests to determine the best conditions for a community garden, applying their knowledge to solve practical problems.

What is the significance of the discussion on culture in the English unit described in the transcript?

The English unit focuses on the memoir 'I'm Down,' which explores the theme of cultural identity. Students engage with essential questions about how culture can be both divisive and unifying, helping them to understand the complexities of navigating multiple cultural identities.

What is the ultimate goal for students in a UBD framework?

The ultimate goal is for students to grasp deep, transferable concepts that they can apply in real-life situations. UBD aims to help students develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and self-reflection skills that prepare them for the challenges they will face after school.

Why is it important for students to understand 'big ideas' rather than just specific content in UBD?

Focusing on big ideas ensures that students gain a deeper understanding of fundamental concepts that have broader applications. It allows them to apply what they learn in various contexts, making the knowledge more meaningful and long-lasting, beyond memorizing facts.

How does UBD help with assessment and measuring student understanding?

UBD helps with assessment by starting with the desired outcomes and designing tests, projects, or assignments that align with these goals. It focuses on assessing how well students understand the big ideas, rather than just testing factual recall, ensuring that assessments reflect real-world applications.