Understanding by Design The second pillar is Understanding by Design which has shown that learners understand more deeply when teachers aim to help students develop “a conceptual framework of concepts and ideas that facilitates meaningful learning.” (Wiggins & McTighe, accessed 2018
“The Understanding by Design framework is guided by research from cognitive psychology. A readable synthesis of these findings is compiled in the book How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 2002),” (McTighe and Seif, accessed 2018) Studies have found that successful curricula focus on “understanding the underlying concepts and then applying learning to new situations.” (Wiggins & McTighe, accessed 2018) This sort of “authentic pedagogy” in which students are expected to “explore connections and relationships so as to produce relatively complex understandings; to organize, synthesize, interpret or explain complex information; to elaborate on their understanding through extended writing or to make connections to the world beyond the classroom,” was determined to increase student achievement substantially and decrease the gap between high and low performing students. (Wiggins & McTighe, accessed 2018) Further, Wiggins and McTighe have found that “student achievement is strengthened when the curriculum is coherent, developmental, and allows for in-depth learning . . . students engage in . . . academic performance tasks that enable them to apply their learning; when they ask questions and develop strategies for problem solving, . . . (and engage in) meaning and understanding-based instructional strategies.” (Wiggins & McTighe, accessed 2018) With this pillar of Phenomenal Science, the program has been developed according to the six tenets suggested by Wiggins and McTighe: “based on the following key tenets: 1. A primary goal of education is the development and deepening of student understanding. 2. Evidence of student understanding is revealed when students apply knowledge and skills within authentic contexts. 3. Effective curriculum development reflects a three-stage design process called “backward design.” This process helps to avoid the twin problems of “textbook coverage” and “activity-oriented” teaching in which no clear priorities and purposes are apparent. 4. Regular reviews of curriculum and assessment designs, based on design standards, are needed for quality control, to avoid the most common design mistakes and disappointing results. . . . 5. Teachers provide opportunities for students to explain, interpret, apply, shift perspective, empathize, and self-assess. These “six facets” provide conceptual lenses through which students reveal their understanding. 6. Teachers, schools, and districts benefit by “working smarter”—using technology and other approaches to collaboratively design, share, and critique units of study.” (McTighe and Seif, accessed 2018
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AuthorPhenomenal Science Leadership Team Archives
February 2022
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