Achievement by Design (AbD)

with Highlights of the work of

Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe

What is AbD?Backward Design Planning:

o Designing lessons with the end in mind (unit begins at the end)

o Teaching for lasting/enduring and transferable understandings

o Requiring students to apply and demonstrate their learning

Why AbD important? The teacher’s job is to “uncover” the big ideas

contained in content standards and to ensure they are understood, not to provide merely fun activities or cover a textbook or cover a textbook’s content.

– Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay (1998)Understanding by Design

3 Stages of Backward Design Planning Process

1. Identify desired results

2. Determine acceptable evidence (assessment)

3. Plan learning experiences and instruction

Stage I: IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS

Goals: focus on Big Ideas Enduring Understandings Essential Questions Key Knowledge and Skills

Stage I: IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS

Goals: focus on big ideas

Enduring Understandings Essential Questions Key Knowledge and Skills

• Standards: National/ State• District Curriculum• GLE’s• Develop theme • Goals – Connect to and

meaningful to the individual facts and skills taught

Stage I: IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS

Goals

Enduring Understandings

Essential Questions Key Knowledge and

Skills

Enduring Understandings Can Explain: provides thorough

facts and data in their own words Can Interpret: translates to provide

meaning Can Apply: transfers the skill in

new situations Have Perspective: have critical

and insightful points of view Can Empathize: ability to “walk in

another’s shoes” Have Self-knowledge: aware of

biases and what he does and does not understand

Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay (1998)Understanding by Design

Knowledge vs. Understanding

Knowledge The facts A body of coherent facts Verifiable claims Right or wrong I know something to be true I respond on cue with what I

know

Understanding Meaning of the facts The “theory” that provides

coherence and meaning to those facts

Fallible, in-process theories A matter of degree or

sophistication I understand why it is, what

makes it knowledge I judge when to and when not to

use what I know

Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay (1998)Understanding by Design

Stage I: Identify Desired Results

Goals Enduring

Understandings Essential

Questions Key Knowledge and

Skills

What makes a question essential?

Thought provoking Open-ended Doorway through which learners explore key

concepts, themes, theories, issues, etc. Draws upon prior knowledge Engages students in dialogue and debates Leads to other essential questions posed by

students/ fosters inquiry Leads to understandings Leads to transfer of knowledge Goes to heart of things – the essence

Examples of essential and nonessential questions

Essential Questions Who “wins” and who

“loses” when technologies change?

What distinguishes fluent foreigners from native speakers?

Nonessential Questions How many minutes are in

an hour? What is foreshadowing?

Can you find an example in the story?

Stage I: Identify Desired Results

Goals Enduring Understandings Essential Questions

Key Knowledge and Skills

Ask What students will

know What students will be

able to do

Backward Design Part II

Determine Acceptable Evidence

Types of Acceptable Evidence:

Performance task Constructed response Test and quizzes Anecdotal Self-assessment & goal setting Student work samples Observations (Informal or on smart board)

Performance Task:

State Standards from DESE Finding online sources Computer skills Integrating technology

Assessment TypesTraditional quizzes and tests• paper/pencil• selected-response• constructed response

Performance tasks & projects• open-ended• complex• authentic

Worth being familiar with

Important to know & do

Big ideas worth

understanding

Grant Wiggins & Jay McTighe

Constructed Response:

Students answer worksheet type questions as they would on standardized tests

Tests and Quizzes:

To check for knowledge and learning

Anecdotal:

Rephrasing questioning to clarify any mislearning or misconcepts– Why isn’t the book on the shelf?

It could be on the shelving cart, new book display, or on hold for someone.

Self-assessment & Goal Setting:

Exit cards – do they know and understand PANDA?

Ask when will they use PANDA. Can they transfer the knowledge of PANDA

to using the public library online catalog or Amazon.com?

Evidence:

Evidence should be: Valid Reliable Fair Sufficient Authentic

Two Ways to Think About Assessment

Like an assessor Like an activity designer

Thinking Like an Assessor

When thinking like an assessor, we ask: What would be sufficient and revealing

evidence of understanding? Against what criteria will we consider work

and assess levels of quality? Did the assessments reveal those who really

understand from those who only seem to?

Like an Activity Designer:

When thinking like an activity designer, we ask: What would be fun and interesting activities

on this topic? What tests should I give based on the

content I taught? How will I give a grade?

Self Assess Your AssessmentHow likely is it that a student could do well by: Making clever guesses Plugging in what was learned with accurate recall but

limited understanding Producing nice products, but with limited understanding Failing to meet the goals/objectives despite having a

deep understanding

Two Important Questions

Could the performance be accomplished or the test passed without in-depth understanding?

Could the specific performance be poor, but the student still understands the ideas in question?

Goal: Answer “NO” to both!

Achievement by Design

STAGE 3

Plan learning experiences and instruction

Design lessons--a guide

W-Where are we headed and Why? H-How will we Hook the student? E-Experiences students will have; key ideas for them

to Explore in interesting ways. R-Reflect, Rethink, Revise, Refine E-Exhibit work and self-Evaluate T-Tailor to learning styles O-Organize –sequence for engagement and

effectiveness

The Key!EFFECTIVE

and

ENGAGING

Stand and Share

What makes a lesson effective and engaging?

Effective and engaging on-line catalog demo using SMARTBoard

Utilize PANDA to Explore the Library and to locate and identify information sources

Students take turns using markers to identify number of hits, title, author, status, and call number

ACHIEVEMENT BY DESIGN RESOURCES

http://www.authenticeducation.org/bigideas/ (Big Ideas a monthly online newsletter as shared by Grant Wiggins.)

esd.mb.ca/static/docs/ubd_overview.ppt - Understanding by Design power point

http://tinyurl.com/21zxx8 . Understanding by Design power point.

http://tinyurl.com/37emzh . Understanding by Design power point from Lee Summit.

Achievement By Design (website for cooperative of three area school districts including: Maplewood Richmond Heights, Bayless and Parkway.

ACHIEVEMENT BY DESIGN RESOURCES (social studies curriculum was developed using the understanding by design philosophy)

Wiggins, Grant and McTighe, Jay. Understanding by Design. ASCD, 2003.

Wiggins, Grant and McTighe, Jay. Understanding by Design Professional Development Workbook. ASCD., 2004.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Cheshire_Cat_Tenniel.jpg

Alice, speaking to Cheshire Cat:“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.“I don’t much care where,” said Alice“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.“____so long as I get somewhere,” Alice added as an explanation.“Oh, you’re sure to do that, “ said the Cat, “if you only walk long enough.” Lewis

Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 1865

Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards. Soren Kierkegaard, Journals, 1843

Finalize with assessment….match questions and answers

Do we have an enduring (although basic) understanding of Achievement by Design?