Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency
Course Syllabus
Course Title: Learning by Design
Instructor: Bruce Bufe
Contact Information: 344-6414 and bbufe@aea9.k12.ia.us
Location: Marquette, Bellevue, Iowa
Submitted August 2, 2011
Dates
Times
August 15, 2011
12:30 to 3:30
October 31, 2011
12:30 to 3:30
January 3, 2012
12:30 to 3:30
February 3, 2012
12:30 to 3:30
April 5, 2012
12:30 to 3:30
Other
All assignments due by: May 15, 2012
Dates grades will be posted: May 22, 2012
Course description: The purpose of this course is to strategically plan instruction and
assessments for deep understanding and higher order thinking. Using a common unit
planner, participants will design a unit which integrates, based on a staff survey of
student needs, higher order thinking, writing to learn, formative assessments, and
components of the Five Characteristics of Effective Instruction as outlined in the Iowa
Common Core.
Course outcomes and evaluation:
Outcome 1: Participants design unit essential understandings and essential questions
which develop deep understanding of essential concepts and require higher order
thinking.
Evaluation 1: Three to five unit essential understandings and their supporting essential
questions state complex concepts and are written as clear declarative statements.
Outcome 2: Participants integrate into the unit planner higher order thinking lessons that
support the unit essential understandings and essential questions.
Evaluation 2: Based on Bloom’s taxonomy, there is a clear connections between the unit
essential understandings and questions and the activities to develop higher order thinking.
Outcome 3: Participants will plan writing to learn activities that develop and support the
unit essential understandings.
Evaluation 3: A variety (more than three) writing to learn strategies are used throughout
the unit to deepen students’ understanding of the unit essential understandings.
Outcome 4: Participants will strategically plan and embed formative assessments
throughout the unit.
Revised: 11-21-2008
Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency
Course Syllabus
Evaluation 4: Formative assessments are aligned both with the unit essential
understandings as well as the unit summative assessment and/or unit project. In addition,
there is evidence of a variety of formative assessments being used.
Outcome 5: Using the unit summative assessment(s) and/or unit project, participants
will assess student performance and evaluate the impact of the unit planner and their
strategic planning.
Evaluation 5: Participants will submit a one-page evaluation of student performance and
how the unit planner impacted student achievement.
Grading criteria:
Assignment
Due Date
Outcome 1:
August 15, 2011
Complete writing
the unit essential
understandings
and essential
questions
Outcomes 2 and 3: October 31, 2011
Complete plans to
integrate higher
order thinking and
writing to learn
into the unit
planner.
Outcome 4:
January 3, 2012
Complete plans to
integrate formative
assessments into
the unit planner.
Grade
Pass – Fail
Other
OR
A,B, C, D score
Pass – Fail
OR
A,B, C, D score
Pass – Fail
OR
A,B, C, D score
Outcome 5
Based on unit
summative
assessment(s) and
or unit project,
assess and evaluate
student
performance.
April 3, 2012
Pass – Fail
OR
A,B, C, D score
Note: 100% attendance is required to pass any course offered through the
Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency.
Participants taking the course for Re-licensure must earn an “A” or “B” to pass the
course. All the course work needs to be completed.
Revised: 11-21-2008
Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency
Course Syllabus
Teacher impact statement: The intent of this course is to provide teachers with a unit
planner that supports the Iowa Core and that strategically plans for higher order thinking,
writing to learn, and formative assessments.
Student impact statement: Students will engage in higher order thinking as they explore
and develop their understanding of the unit essential understandings. Students will use
writing as a tool for learning to explore the unit understandings. Student progress will be
monitored and assessed throughout the unit based on a variety of formative assessments.
Teaching Standard
3 Demonstrates competence in planning
and preparing for instruction.
Leadership Standard
4 Uses strategies to deliver instruction
that meets the multiple learning needs of
students.
5 Uses a variety of methods to monitor
student learning.
Outline of course content:
Date or Session
August 15, 2011
October 31, 2011
January 3, 2012
February 5, 2012
April 5, 2012
Content
Unit planning:
Strategic planning for
instruction and assessment.
Identifying and designing
essential understandings
and questions.
Higher Order Thinking
Designing and integrating
higher order thinking into
unit design.
Writing to Learn
Developing essential
understandings and student
engagement through writing
to learn.
Formative Assessments
Strategic planning for
formative assessments
which motivate and assess
student progress.
Evaluation
Other
Revised: 11-21-2008
Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency
Course Syllabus
Evaluating student
performance based on unit
formative and summative
assessments and/or a unit
project.
Iowa Professional Development Model (IPDM):
Theory: Instructional design, teaching for deep understanding, planning for formative
assessments, writing as a tool for learning.
Demonstration: Using short informational articles, the instructor will model and
demonstrate designing essential understandings; diverse writing strategies to deepen
conceptual learning and to assess students’ developing understanding
Practice: Collaboration (coaching, feedback, reflection): Teachers will work in grade
level or content area teams either to design common units or to share and collaborate on
unit design.
Course materials: No textbook. Various professional articles may be selected
depending on the needs and interests of participants.
Other:
COURSE RUBRIC
TITLE of the Course:
Name:
OUTCOMES
BEGINNING
Score:
DEVELOPING
Score:
ACCOMPLISHED
Score:
EXEMPLARY
Score:
Outcome 1:
Completion of
the unit
essential
understandings
and essential
questions
1
2
4
8
Essential
understandings
state or express
simple facts or
state an activity
or skill rather
than a complex
concept.
Essential
understandings
state a concept
as a declarative
sentence.
However, the
supporting
essential
questions
require literal
and factual
responses.
Essential
understandings
state a complex
concept as a
declarative
sentence.
Supporting
essential questions
need minor
revision to increase
the level of higher
order thinking.
Outcome 2:
Integrated into
the unit
planner,
2
4
Although
higher order
The connection
between the
8
A variety of
strategies and
lessons are
All essential
understandings
state a complex
concept as
declarative
sentences, each
essential
understanding
essential
questions
requiring
higher order
thinking.
12
SCORE
Total:
A variety of
strategies and
Revised: 11-21-2008
Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency
Course Syllabus
participants
plan higher
order thinking
lessons which
support the
unit essential
understandings
and essential
questions.
questions and
lessons are
present there is
not a clear
connection to
the unit
essential
understandings.
unit essential
understandings
and essential
questions is
apparent but
essential
questions probe
and require
mainly factual
responses.
4
designed to support
Bloom’s
taxonomy.
However, some
revision is needed
to bring all
activities to higher
levels of thinking.
Outcome 3:
Participants
will plan for
writing to learn
activities which
develop and
support the
unit essential
understandings.
2
Writing to
learn activities
probe for facts
and literal
information
rather than
probe deeper
understanding
requiring
higher order
thinking.
8
Writing to learn
Writing to learn strategies are
activities
aligned to higher
require some
order thinking and
higher order
require students to
thinking but
develop
activities need
understanding of
further revision the unit essential
to include
understandings.
analysis,
synthesis, and
evaluation.
Outcome 4:
Participants
will
strategically
plan to embed
formative
assessments
throughout the
unit.
2
6
Alignment is
unclear
between the
formative
assessments
and the unit
essential
understandings
and unit
summative
assessment
Additional
revision is
needed to make
clear the
alignment
between
formative
assessments
and the
essential
understandings
and unit
summative.
10
Alignment is clear
between the unit
formative
assessments and
the unit essential
understandings and
unit summative
assessment and/or
unit project.
lessons are
designed to
support
creative,
analytical, and
evaluative
thinking
12
Writing to
learn tasks
require higher
order thinking
requiring
students to
develop deep
understanding
and personal
connections
and reflection
of the essential
understandings.
14
A variety of
formative
assessments are
aligned to both
the unit
essential
understandings
and the unit
summative
assessment
and/or unit
project
Comments:
Revised: 11-21-2008