Justification essay
This paper is a justification of the lesson plans and scope and unit outline designed for the business management course using the Understanding by Design (UbD) method. It explains how UbD can be used to ensure maximum effectiveness in the learning experiences of the students. The paper will also highlight the role of threshold concepts in promoting student understanding of the subject matter. Understanding by Design provides the teacher with a framework for curriculum planning, assessment and instruction. The two main ideas of UbD are an emphasis on teaching and assessment geared towards student understanding and transfer; and a backward instructional design, that is, one that starts with the desired results as opposed …show more content…
A concept map helps the students to activate their prior knowledge on the topic. The idea of threshold concepts is critical in ensuring that the students fully understand the subject (Zwaal & Otting, 2012, p.111). Threshold concepts are the ideas of a given field that have certain common features. The concept map drawn highlights four threshold concepts of business management, which have been identified as the nature of management, management process, management and change, and management approaches. The identification of these threshold concepts provides the teacher with an area of focus for their teaching (Cousin, 2006, p.5). Aside from this, the teacher also uses questions written on cards to determine the students’ prior knowledge on the topic. This is the second stage of backward design, which involves the determination of acceptable evidence. After assessing the student’s prior knowledge, the teacher introduces the first topic of the course. This is the beginning of the final stage of backward design. In this stage, the teacher plans learning experiences and instructions. The teacher determines the learning activities that will best ensure that the students gain a full understanding of the subject. In the lesson plans, some of the learning activities that the teacher uses include watching of online videos, having …show more content…
in which each letter stands for a question that teachers should think about when developing the teaching plans. W stands for what the students will be learning and its importance. Teachers must identify and clearly communicate to their students the lesson’s objectives. In the second lesson plan, the teacher advices the students on what the lesson is going to focus on and writes down the lesson goals on the whiteboard. H stands for how teachers can capture the attention of learners and engage them in the lesson (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p.5). The teacher uses video clips, some of which are comedic in nature, to capture and maintain the attention of the students. These videos are matched to the course content to ensure that the students gain a productive learning experience. E stands for how to equip students with the knowledge to master the course concepts. Teachers ought to use a mix of direct instruction, structured activities, and constructivist learning experiences to ensure that students gain the required level of understanding in the subject. In the lesson plan, the teacher has set aside time for direct instruction, and also uses structured activities such as the case study groups, in addition to constructivist learning experiences such as the problem-based case study. R stands for how to encourage student reflection on previous lessons
This paper is a justification of the lesson plans and scope and unit outline designed for the business management course using the Understanding by Design (UbD) method. It explains how UbD can be used to ensure maximum effectiveness in the learning experiences of the students. The paper will also highlight the role of threshold concepts in promoting student understanding of the subject matter. Understanding by Design provides the teacher with a framework for curriculum planning, assessment and instruction. The two main ideas of UbD are an emphasis on teaching and assessment geared towards student understanding and transfer; and a backward instructional design, that is, one that starts with the desired results as opposed …show more content…
A concept map helps the students to activate their prior knowledge on the topic. The idea of threshold concepts is critical in ensuring that the students fully understand the subject (Zwaal & Otting, 2012, p.111). Threshold concepts are the ideas of a given field that have certain common features. The concept map drawn highlights four threshold concepts of business management, which have been identified as the nature of management, management process, management and change, and management approaches. The identification of these threshold concepts provides the teacher with an area of focus for their teaching (Cousin, 2006, p.5). Aside from this, the teacher also uses questions written on cards to determine the students’ prior knowledge on the topic. This is the second stage of backward design, which involves the determination of acceptable evidence. After assessing the student’s prior knowledge, the teacher introduces the first topic of the course. This is the beginning of the final stage of backward design. In this stage, the teacher plans learning experiences and instructions. The teacher determines the learning activities that will best ensure that the students gain a full understanding of the subject. In the lesson plans, some of the learning activities that the teacher uses include watching of online videos, having …show more content…
in which each letter stands for a question that teachers should think about when developing the teaching plans. W stands for what the students will be learning and its importance. Teachers must identify and clearly communicate to their students the lesson’s objectives. In the second lesson plan, the teacher advices the students on what the lesson is going to focus on and writes down the lesson goals on the whiteboard. H stands for how teachers can capture the attention of learners and engage them in the lesson (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p.5). The teacher uses video clips, some of which are comedic in nature, to capture and maintain the attention of the students. These videos are matched to the course content to ensure that the students gain a productive learning experience. E stands for how to equip students with the knowledge to master the course concepts. Teachers ought to use a mix of direct instruction, structured activities, and constructivist learning experiences to ensure that students gain the required level of understanding in the subject. In the lesson plan, the teacher has set aside time for direct instruction, and also uses structured activities such as the case study groups, in addition to constructivist learning experiences such as the problem-based case study. R stands for how to encourage student reflection on previous lessons