Understanding by Design [Paperback]

Grant Wiggins (Author), Jan McTighe (Author), Jay McTighe (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0871203138 | ISBN-13: 978-0871203137 | Publication Date: October 25, 1998

What is understanding and how does it differ from knowing? What do we want students to understand and be able to do? What enduring knowledge is worth understanding? How will we know that students truly understand and can apply knowledge in a meaningful way? How can we design our courses and units to emphasize understanding and "uncoverage" rather than "coverage"? Understanding by Design explores these questions and provides practical solutions for the teacher-designer.

The book opens by analyzing the logic of backward design as an alternative to coverage and activity-oriented plans. Though backward from habit, this approach brings more focus and coherence to instruction.

Authors Wiggins and McTighe propose a multifaceted approach, with the six "facets" of understanding. The facets combine with backward design to provide a powerful, practical framework for designing curriculum, assessment, and instruction.

Beyond its theories, Understanding by Design offers practical design tools, including criteria for selecting "big ideas" worthy of deep understanding, strategies for framing units of study around essential questions, a continuum of assessment methods for determining the degree to which students understand, and the WHERE framework, which enhances student engagement and "rethinking." The book concludes with a unit design template and standards to support quality control at the local level.

Understanding by Design will help educators enhance their understanding of understanding, so that the curriculum and assessments they design truly focus on enhancing the understanding of their students.

Product Details

• Paperback: 201 pages
• Publisher: Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development (October 25, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0871203138
• ISBN-13: 978-0871203137
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #48,941 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very insightful book, April 4, 2000

By 

Judi Franz (Irvine, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Understanding by Design (Paperback)

Understanding by Design introduces teachers to the three-stage "Backward Design Process," which advocates starting with the end - the desired results (goals or standards) - and then deriving the curriculum from the evidence of learning (performance) called for by the standard and finally, the teaching needed to equip students to perform.

The authors spend a good portion of the book attempting to define the concept of understanding. They present a "multifaceted view of what makes up mature understanding" which consists of six facets. They emphasize that the important point is to realize that "understanding is a family of related abilities." The six facets they use are: Explanation, Interpretation, Application, Perspective, Empathy, and Self-Knowledge. They go on to give examples of the range of understanding, from naive to mature, and how rubrics can assess for these different levels. They also emphasize that understanding is an iterative process, and that the same questions can be asked to students of all ages, with different expectations based on stages of maturity.

These facets play an important role in curricular design, and are woven into all stages of the design process.

I don't feel I'm capable of doing the book justice in this review - there is so much valuable information presented. The points and concepts are all illustrated with concrete examples. The book presents a comprehensive, cohesive plan and template for curricular design, based on solid theory. I am sure I will revisit this book often. It is well-written and easy to follow.

83 of 93 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ideology you can put to work, July 18, 2000

By 

Brandi S. Martin "lilsleepeye" (chicagoland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Understanding by Design (Paperback)

"The student ...(believes).. that there is neat and clean knowledge out there and it is my job to learn (i.e., memorize) and use it as directed. A key challenge in teaching for understanding is to make the student's view of knowledge ... more sophisticated by revealing the problems, controversies, and assumptions that lie behind much given and seemingly unproblematic knowledge."

I found this book on the way to another book, and I couldn't have been more delighted. Professional educators often feel the dichotomy between meeting national, state, and local goals and standards, and the real teaching that seems to have nothing to do with district benchmarks or standardized tests.

These authors propose a "backwards design process" that begins with the standards or outcomes desired, but then using these as guidelines to developing essential questions & understandings that actually matter beyond the classroom, then structuring the curriculum around these posed questions. They discuss the difference between covering the material, and using questions to `uncover' the material. They using first hand examples of practice and texts to clearly exemplify what they mean. I found it exciting, inspiring, and extremely helpful.

42 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wiggins and McTighe have written a great book!, February 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Understanding by Design (Paperback)

Wiggins and McTighe provide an outstanding framework for curriculum design and assessment in this book. As they explain, understanding is so much greater than simply knowing. Their six "facets" of understanding will enable students to really understand as the curriculum is "uncovered," rather than being "covered." Advocating that you "begin with the end in mind," the authors explain a design process that is backward to what most people do. You begin with the desired end result, followed by the development of assessment activities, asking "What would count as evidence of successful teaching?" Only after you do this do you begin to consider the design of units, activities, and actual plans. Helpful design tools that can be used throughout the process are also included. One of my favorites is the chart that contrasts the questions that would be asked if you were "thinking like an assessor" to those that would be asked if you were "thinking like an activity designer." I believe this book should be read by any educator concerned about students' understanding and interest in what is taught in school today.