Understanding by Design
The curriculum will be designed in each of the four core subject areas using the backward mapping method known as Understanding by Design (UbD). This curricular mapping method focuses on the desired results of learning and designs instruction accordingly.8 In doing so, content is presented to students so that they know up front what the learning goals are and what they should be able to perform at the end of a particular curricular unit. This helps to avoid content being presented as a series of unconnected, unrelated ideas that students are unable to relate to or connect with any tangible facet of their lives. By constructing learning based on desired outcomes, with the ultimate assessment of understanding being performance-based, students are able to connect ideas to prior learning and to some tangible, real-world application.
It is the goal of the school to produce self-sufficient, independent thinkers that are ready to adapt to the ever-changing world of the 21st century. Students can only achieve this goal if they are taught how to ask appropriate questions, critically analyze possible outcomes, or seek solutions where they may not currently exist. Using the backward mapping method of Understanding by Design will engage the school’s students to think more critically about what they are learning, and help give them a context in which they can apply academic knowledge so that learning becomes a relevant, valuable part of their lives.
8Wiggins, G. & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding By Design. Alexandria: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.