Chapter 4 UbD DI

The beginning of chapter 4 discusses teaching for understanding which means “to provide the sort of intellectual diet that yields thoughtful, capable, confident learners-and citizens.” The idea behind this is that we are not just teachers of academic students, we are teachers of human beings. There are nine skills that define the type of teacher that helps all learners, the thought being that the more professional a teacher is in all of the areas, the more successful students are likely to be as learners. I liked the quote, “It is not helpful to struggling students to do less of what they do not grasp. Nor is it helpful to advanced students to do more of what they already understood before they began the task.” I feel that is not always the belief for some teachers. Making sure the student understands what is being taught is the key to this chapter. A teacher needs to be clear about understandings of a unit in order for the student to learn. The chapter ended with discussing how a teacher can expand their teaching strategies. When a teacher uses different teaching strategies, tasks become more engaging.