Understanding by Design

There is a difference between learning and understanding. Some students may only regurgitate information and seemingly useless facts without having the capability to apply that knowledge to appropriate situations. As teachers, it is our job to not only teach information, but to make sure that students are learning and understanding it.

Because of the Common Core, there are a lot of topics to be covered in different academic fields, cutting back on the teacher’s decision of content to be covered. However, we need to be able to use the Common Core and other standards to build a framework for instruction. In order for students to understand content that is being covered, we need to design appropriate units and lessons to optimize student achievement (it won’t happen just by chance), which is where we bring in Backward Design.

Backward Design is an educational framework that starts at the end. The first thing educators need to figure out is what their students are expected to know and be able to do at the end of a unit. By starting with the standards that need to be met, teachers can create educational goals and identify what type of results they are looking for to show that understanding has been attained. Next, we need to figure out what will show us that the students understand what they have learned through different types of assessment. Varying assessment will allow for deeper thought and application by the students. Tests and quizzes usually test immediate knowledge and recollection, while academic prompts and projects/tasks allow for students to analyze situations and use appropriate methods to apply their knowledge. Once you have figured out what is acceptable evidence of learning and understanding, then you can plan instruction and academic activities to promote that learning and understanding.

In order to reach certain goals for a unit or lesson, it is important to create essential questions. These questions are open-ended and promote thought and inquiry into a certain topic. Nonessential questions seek direct answers, whereas essential questions seek depth and understanding in order to find a solution. It is key to know what is important in a unit and determine what types of questions to ask in order to reach that so-called “instructional priority.”

How can you tell what is an “instructional priority” when covering wide content areas? If Common Core is requiring teachers to cover a wide range of topics, who is to say what is important and what it not? Covering content that is “a mile wide and an inch deep” will create gaps in learning and skill achievement, which it seems like Common Core and other standards are staring to create. Plus, it seems like Common Core and the ongoing list of national and state standards are putting strain on teachers, limiting what they can teach, ultimately affecting how we can teach. As if high-stakes testing isn’t enough strain on everyone in the schools, why not add on one more thing to make learning and teaching such a difficult task. Sure, Backward Design sounds like a hopeful strategy, but it only seems necessary because there are so many standards that need to be met in the school.