Chapter 3 UbD

            Content overload is a major problem with social studies teachers. Not only is history being made each day, but covering the history of the world is impossible. Another problem is the standards. Establishing a standard that is not excessively broad, but not incredibly specific can be a challenging endeavor. Backwards design serves as a method to alleviate these challenges. Backwards design divides a unit into three stages. The first being identifying an end goal that meets the content standards. The second being assessing evidence that confirms that the end goal has been met. The final stage is making our lessons engaging while keeping the end goal in mind.

            The concepts of backwards design allow for more flexibility in planning a large unit. A single overarching goal makes planning activities and assessments easier. This allows teachers to engage in interesting activities that relate to the end goal. This also avoids instruction becoming activity-oriented. Backwards design also puts less reliability on the textbook. The textbook may still be used, but it prevents teachers from teaching straight from the book.

            Backwards design allows teachers to decide which time periods they emphasize. The teacher can gauge how much knowledge their students have on the period in question. If they prove they have met the standard more time can be delegated to other time periods. The end goal of each unit should be to demonstrate how the effects of one time period influenced the next, as well as history as a whole. Within each unit, activities relating to the end goal can be planned to engage the students.