Chapter 8: Grading and Reporting Achievement

The eighth chapter of UbD discusses grading in a differentiated classroom. The book argues that students should not be graded in such a manner that one child is competing against another. Instead in order to make sure the student is getting accurately graded; they should be evaluated on progress towards their goals. Using an average grade seems to be the standard process in classrooms but this book recommends not doing that. In my future class I will have a point system for grading in that each student is only aware of their own points. Assignments will be worth a certain number of points and students will have options as to which assignments they will do. I agree that an average grade is not a great way to give grades. It leaves out the human aspect of bad days. If a student has a bad day on the day of the biggest test in a semester they may perform poorly. That is not necessarily a reflection of their learning, more so it is an effect of having a bad day on test day.

Chapter 9: Bringing It All Together: Curriculum and Instruction through the Lens of UbD and DI

This chapter gave an overall description of what the backward design is all about. It showed the steps and reinforced the importance of all the steps. The chapter also talked about remaining flexible. This is important to my future class because I never want to be that teacher that is stuck in the past. When we forget that we are there for the kids we will be terrible teachers. That is why you need to remain flexible and change your lessons to fit the students that are in your class, not try to fit your students into the lesson you made last year.

Chapter 7: Teaching for Understanding

This chapter is by far my favorite of the book yet. Simply because it is calling out the education system of how and what they are teaching. It argues that covering material is a terrible way to look at a school day and we should be teaching students so they understand what is supposed to be learned. The book also states that understanding and higher level thinking is not reserved for those students that have mastered the basic skills. This is the theory and model I want to build my classroom around. I want students to think, and know how to think. They may need a calculator to figure out 10 times 5 but if they are aware of what they need to tell the calculator to do and why I think they are far better off in terms of math and life. Understanding the material is far more important than being able to spout random facts.

Chapter 6: Responsive Teaching with UbD

Chapter 6 was comprised of ways that teachers can be better teachers. It even addressed the common gripe teachers make when they are told to try something new of, “I don’t have time for that”, and made the argument that if they created lessons with differentiation in mind there would not be a time crunch in the classroom. The part I will take away from this chapter into my classroom has to be the idea of making sure students know what is being done and what is expected from them. I know that students in classes I have been in will ask after the assignment is given out, what they are supposed to do, it is important for the teacher to clearly define what is expected of the students.

Chapter 5: Considering Evidence of Learning in Diverse Classrooms

The fifth chapter of Understanding by Design focuses on assessing students for understanding. Knowing the three types of assessment will help me design lessons for the students and also allow me to fairly check their learning. While the summative and diagnostic assessments are powerful measuring tools, I think that formative assessment in a math class is by far the most accurate way to tell how the students are progressing. I will need to be able to assess on the fly where my students are so I do not introduce other concepts before they are clear on the previous building block ideas. Another concept I learned that will be useful in my class is the four requirements of feedback. It will be important that the students are aware of exactly what they can improve and what they are doing correctly. Being aware of exactly where they are will allow the students to own their learning and progress further at their pace.

Chapter 4: What Really Matters in Planning for Student Success

The focus of this chapter was the skills needed by a teacher in order to maximize the student’s success as a learner. There were two lines that rang true to my heart when it comes to thoughts about school and learning. The first is, “We are also teachers of human beings” (pg 39). The other is, “There is a kindergarten version and a PhD version of the big ideas of a discipline” (pg 42). The rest of the chapter was spent explaining the nine abilities a teacher should have to create a classroom that successfully differentiates instruction. But those two ideas are by far the most important to me, the students in a class are learning the beginning parts of their persona, who they will become is starting to form in our lessons. It does not matter what skill level the students are at with the content, it is up to the teacher to make sure the students are forced to think and become better learners.

Chapter 3: What Really Matters in Learning (Content)

Chapter three of Tomlinson and McTighe’s Understanding by Design discussed the struggle of teachers to know what content to cover when they are flooded with expectations. The major part that shocked me was the study done showing students would need nine more years of school to cover all the standards of an average state curriculum. It seems that administrators and politicians do not understand that they need to remove some requirements if they are going to add more. Another major part of this chapter that will be helpful was the discussion of planning for assessment. This will be important for me and my students so we are not stuck covering the same materials if the class already understands the material. Assessment is one of my major concerns; in math it is important to make sure you are in tune with the progress and speed of the class.

Chapter 2: What Really Matters In Teaching (The Students)

This chapter addresses the idea that while it is easy to teach by idea, when you actually have students involved it becomes more difficult. The example of the students with internal struggles going on in their lives is important for me to remember as I teach in Maine. There is a very high rural poverty population in our area and with that comes students that have big internal battles. I would like to think I could create a learning environment that allows students to feel safe and work without worry, but just like the girl who was sabotaging her grades so her parents would get back together, some students will have other ideas in mind. This chapter was good to read because it is the first time that I have read what I assumed but was unclear of. As a teacher you do not need to have differentiated instruction for all students all the time, but rather need to use methods that will cross many different types of learners to get your curriculum covered.

Chapter 1: An Essential Partnership

The first chapter talks about the relationship between differentiated instruction and understanding by design being a partnership. It explains that only performing one of these techniques is not enough to make you an effective teacher. You need to be able to accurately assess who is in your class and how they learn and then continue to monitor them to make sure your lessons are staying relevant to their skills. I completely agree with the idea presented in the chapter that students do not need to be a master of the basics to be able to think. That is an important part for me to remember as I become a teacher. Getting a student to think is a major part to getting them to learn.