Understanding by Design

What Is Understanding by Design (UbD)? 

"The framework outlined in Understanding by Design (Wiggins & McTighe, 1998) offers a three-stage, backward design process to assist teachers in centering their curriculum and assessments on big ideas, essential questions, and authentic performances. This framework works for both curriculum design and school and district improvement efforts. Through this unified process, school teams

• Determine learning goals;

• Collect, analyze, and summarize evidence from multiple sources of data to determine how well students are doing on external accountability tests and the extent to which they really understand what they are learning;

• Consider the root causes of present achievement, and then—and only then—implement systemic actions to address root causes, promote enduring learning, and increase test scores.

In this way, schools can identify priorities, monitor results, and target actions that improve student learning." 

—from "Backward Design for Forward Action," Educational Leadership, February 2003