Cohort Facilitation Guide

Designing Lessons, Units, and Learning Activities

5hrstand-alone

This facilitation guide is designed for those leading cohort groups who are taking or have taken Danielson PD modules through Pennsylvania’s PD Center. Please be encouraged to steer your cohort group toward discussion that is most appropriate for your particular environment and needs.

In the table below, you will find guiding or essential questions related to the module content and applications in the left-hand column, and potential discussion points in the right-hand column. The last column of the table shares Pennsylvania-specific resources that might be of use or interest to the cohort group.At the end of this guide, you will findthe alignment(s) between Danielson’s Framework for Teaching and this module as well as correlations to the Framework for Leadership, should any groups wish to explore those connections further.

Guiding Questions / Possible/Guiding Responses
How can clear, goal-focused lesson and unit designs enhance instruction? /
  • Instruction is enhanced when teachers think purposefully about curriculum planning.
  • Utilizing UbD (Desired Results, Evidence, and Learning Plan) helps focus curriculum and teaching on the development and deepening of student understanding and transfer of learning.
  • Understanding is revealed when students transfer their learning through authentic performance and the ability to explain, interpret, apply, shift perspectives, empathize, and self-assess.

How can connecting learning goals with other content areas facilitate the transfer of knowledge? /
  • Interdisciplinary/cross-curricular teaching involves a conscious effort to apply knowledge, principles, and/or values to more than one academic discipline simultaneously. The disciplines may be related through a central theme, issue, problem, process, topic, or experience (Jacobs, 1989). The organizational structure of interdisciplinary/cross-curricular teaching is called a theme, thematic unit, or unit, which is a framework with goals/outcomes that specify what students are expected to learn as a result of the experiences and lessons that are a part of the unit.
  • Interdisciplinary/cross-curricular teaching is often seen as a way to address some of the recurring problems in education, such as fragmentation and isolated skill instruction. It is seen as a way to support goals such as transfer of learning, teaching students to think and reason, and providing a curriculum more relevant to students (Marzano, 1991; Perkins, 1991).
  • Interdisciplinary/cross-curricular teaching provides a meaningful way in which students can use knowledge learned in one context as a knowledge base in other contexts in and out of school (Collins, Brown, & Newman, 1989).
  • Interdisciplinary/cross-curricular teaching can increase students' motivation for learning and their level of engagement. In contrast to learning skills in isolation, when students participate in interdisciplinary experiences they see the value of what they are learning and become more actively engaged (Resnick, 1989).
  • Interdisciplinary/cross-curricular teaching provides the conditions under which effective learning occurs. Students learn more when they use the language arts skills to explore what they are learning, write about what they are learning, and interact with their classmates, teachers, and members of the community (Thaiss, 1986).
  • Reference:

How can assessment choices impact student learning? /
  • Researchers found that student motivation is positively related to student involvement in the assessment process (Stefanou, 2003).
  • Students tend to learn more and enjoy assessments when they are project-based or performance-based.
  • Traditional assessments, such as paper/pencil, multiple choice, true/false, and short answer provide little motivation for students (Segers, Nijhuis, & Gijselaers, 2006).
  • Standardized tests to not motivate students to learn (Stiggins, 1999).
  • Teachers must exercise good practice in assessing, utilizing those that match the purpose and intended outcome of the lesson (Struyven, et al., 2006).
  • Assessment tasks should involve processes that allow students to utilize cognitive processes, providing increased transfer of knowledge (Mayer, 2002).
  • Research shows that some students react positively to free choice, allowing more student-directed methods (Stefanou, 2003).
  • Performance based assessments are linked with mastery and performance goals (Brookhart, & Durkin, 2003).
  • Student-centered assessments result in greater academic success (Stiggins, 1999).

How can well-designed activities lead students to understand what you want them to know and be able to do by the end of the lesson/unit? /
  • The first principle of design for learning is that all learning involves some form of activity.
  • In the early stages learners need tasks that are carefully structured and paced.
  • Different learners may approach the same task very differently, an example of how learning cannot be fully ‘designed’ in advance. A well-designed task will allow learners to approach the activity in different ways, while working towards the same outcomes.
  • In real-world activities, the four elements are mutually inter-dependent. The task given, the roles played by participants, the ways in which tools and resources are used, and the outcomes produced emerge in the activity itself.
  • Consider these questions when designing activities:
  • What is the purpose for the learning activity?
  • Where does it fit in the learner’s overall experience in the content?
  • What new knowledge, skills, or attitudes will the learner gain?
  • How will they know when they have achieved the outcome?
  • How will they be assessed? Are the criteria clear and relevant?

What PA-specific online resources are available that enhance designing lessons, units, and learning activities? /
  • SAS Portal: assessment, curriculum framework, instruction, and materials and resources tabs)
  • PDE SAS Literacy Design Collaborative
  • PDE Mathematics Design Collaborative
  • PDE Math & Science Collaborative
  • Strategic Guiding Questions (p. 3, 1e)
  • PA Guiding Questions between Principals and Teachers (p. 3, 1e)

Primary alignment between Designing Lessons, Units, and Learning Activities and the Framework for Teaching:

  • 1e: Designing Coherent Instruction

Correlations between Designing Lessons, Units, and Learning Activitiesand the Framework for Leadership:

  • 1b: Uses Data for Informed Decision Making
  • 1c: Builds a Collaborative and Empowering Work Environment
  • 1d: Leads Change Efforts for Continuous Improvement
  • 2a: Leverages Human and Financial Resources
  • 2b: Ensures a High Quality, High Performing Staff
  • 2d: Establishes and Implements Expectations for Students and Staff
  • 2e: Communicates Effectively and Strategically
  • 3a: Leads School Improvement Initiatives
  • 3b: Aligns Curricula, Instruction, and Assessments
  • 3c: Implements High Quality Instruction
  • 3d: Sets High Expectations for All Students
  • 3e: Maximizes Instructional Time
  • 4c: Supports Professional Growth

* Modified from Guiding Questions: Conversations Between Principals and Teachers © Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2013.

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