Final Reflection on Learning by Design

Contemplating Understanding by Design over coffee….
UbD is a common sense approach to any project---whether you’re planning a wedding, a curriculum unit or you planning to build a shopping center. The process of UbD/backward mapping is a valuable tool.

I had a hard time initially wrapping my brain around the text, but that’s because I started reading the book thinking only k-12 and since I have no experience in k-12 I naturally couldn’t relate to the reading. Once, I put aside that idea and thought about k-12, and thought about UbD and it’s implications in other parts of my work, it started to make sense.

If you take the UbD template and use it as a project management tool, it’s a guideline:
Stage 1 – Desired Result – Essential Questions > gaining understanding of participants in the overall project goal is critical.
Stage 2 –Assessment Evidence > Designing evaluative Cycles - calibrating members understanding and progress
Stage 3- Learning Plan > the actual project design – the work flow.

Similar to the classroom, the workplace has a diversity of learners (understanding). In project planning or workflow design, the models of differentiated instruction can also be applied. Identifying and understanding each team member’s strength in creating workgroups assures productivity. It also allows a project manager to design the project in a way that clearly communicates the goal, structure and timeline. Simple example, if Jack doesn’t pay attention to emails or work well with text, it’s a given that after a memo, email or project timeline is sent, that his supervisor may then pull jack and verbally communicate those expectations.

Eureka!
UbD = action research- Hypothesis -> lit review -> cycles, research, assessment -> results