UbD/DI- Chapter 7

In this chapter we read about and explore the ideas surrounding how to teach students to understand the material rather than simply learning the material, and why this is vastly important. We can also see how to develop and the students’ thinking and understanding of the important ideas and processes as well as approaches to help students help themselves when searching for ideas and meanings. Students are asked to do so many things within the classroom including thinking, questioning, rethinking, and reflecting. Teachers are also expected to uncover many new things such as stimulate these thoughts and ideas, ask probing questions, play devil’s advocate, evaluate, explain and justify. Teachers must uncover the content and present it to the students in an exciting way as well was ask the “essential questions” to foster the students’ thoughts. Essential questions are questions that promote thinking within the students. Having the “how and why” skills help to apply any material to your content area and enrich the important material. There are several key points for teachers to remember when using these essential questions: less is more, be sure students understand key vocabulary to explore the questions, use “kid language” as needed to make them more accessible, help students to personalize questions and share their own interests, post these questions around the classroom, and finally use follow-up strategies to further engage students.

There are also six important tools or facets of understanding which are to explain, interpret, apply, perspective, empathy, and self-knowledge. These six facets have proven to be useful within the classroom for generating ideas to “hook” students around a topic, thus engaging them in a deeper understanding and reflection of their work. There is no one step, ladder to engage and teach students. Learning the basics and working your way up to a higher level thinking is not always the order in which things should be accomplished. Obviously the basics are important however the interconnection of all these steps can lead to meaningful learning. The WHERETO framework provides a structure for teaching and helps students with their understanding. Each letter stands for: W- what and why, H- hook, E- equip, experience, R- rethink, revision and refine, E-evaluation, T- tailor, and lastly O- organized. All of these letters make up the understanding and teaching approach that guides the teacher through a series of lessons a larger unit of study.

This chapter allowed me to further understand the six facets of understanding as well as the WHERETO framework. Both of these approaches to teaching allow not only the students to become more engaged in the material but the teacher as well. It allows the teacher to be able to play with the idea or “old school” mind set that everything has to follow one set pattern. It allows for new ideas, new techniques and lets the teacher further engage the students. Both of these things can help improve various aspects of a student’s learning as well as their social and metal abilities.