PSD adopts curriculum enhancement through UbD
Posted on Wednesday the 09th of June 2010
Covey (1994) said, "To begin with the end in minds means to start with a clear understanding of your destination."
Fully aware of this principle in education, the school administration introduced the latest thrust of the Department of Education (DepEd) to enhance the curriculum by introducing Understanding by Design during the in-service training (INSET) held on June 1-10 at the school gym.
Dr. Alexander S. Acosta shared his expertise in training the teachers on the new program. The theme was, "From Teaching for Achievement to Teaching for Understanding: Promoting Lifelong Learning".
The framework outlined in Understanding by Design offers a three-stage, backward design process to assist teachers in centering their curriculum and assessments on big ideas, essential questions, and authentic performances.
Dr. Acosta served as the resource speaker of the week-long training which required teachers to go over the topics and unitize and decongest them for a more meaningful learning. He emphasized that mastery and quality of learning should be preferred to quantity of topics covered.
Opposed to the traditional teaching, UbD centers on performance based assessment and cater to a wide variety of evidence of learning. Composed of three stages: desired outcome, assessment evidence, and learning plan, UbD was designed for teachers who would really take time to create lesson calendars and set activities to ensure learning. In this way, schools can identify priorities, monitor results, and target actions that improve student learning.
Despite the laborious transition and the felt apprehension, teachers and heads participated in the workshop and presentations held, each one was hoping that UbD would make a difference in the lives of students this year.
UbD was introduces by Jay McTighe and Grant P. Wiggins in 1998 and was adopted in 22 pilot schools in the Philippines including PSD in the Middle East Philippine Schools Overseas. As of writing, DepEd conducts intensive mass trainings to public and private school teachers for its implementation.
