Customer Reviews

Understanding by Design

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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.

"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.

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.

This book is excellent reading for teachers, school administrators, and school district managers who are truly interested and concerned with student achievement. Under a discussion of facets of understanding, readers are 'taught' to think like an assessor. An excellent book to use for professional book discussions by school faculities and district administrators. A Must Read for anyone interested in improving student learning or working with change within a school system.

You can tell the quality of ideas by the length of their tail. How long is their reach? Do the ideas branch into other ideas? Do they launch other books? Are people still talking about it 14 years later? Such is the case with Understanding by Design, which later became known as UbD. The concept has even made it into Wikipedia. The basic premise of the book is fairly simple--when it comes to curriculum planning, start with the end mind. Instead of walking your way through a textbook, the best teachers begin by clearly defining what they want their students to know and be able to do by the end of a curriculum unit. This book, however, is more than an idea. It is a combination of theory and practice with loads of helpful graphic organizers so that the concepts can be applied.

At times the book gets a little thick (I am thinking about the six facets of understanding section), but overall, there are several absolute rock star concepts that show why UbD became a best practice over the past decade. These concepts include: breaking down the difference between coverage and uncoverage when it comes to designing curriculum units (p. 131), how and when to use the different types of assessment along with an assessment continuum (p. 12-15), the WHERE framework to check your unit design (p. 129), and a great section on writing essential and unit questions (p. 31).

All in all, this book will is a must read for school leaders and teachers who want to ensure their students are receiving a high quality curriculum that is aligned with defined outcomes and contains a host high quality thoughtful activities.

You can probably get a used one on Amazon for penny---now that's value.