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Source: Understanding by Design
by Jay McTighe & Grant Wiggins, © 2004
Crafting Essential Questions
Union Chapel Retreat November 16-18, 2012
A Voice from the FieldTeacher Talks About Essential Standards
Goals What is an essential question?How do I write effective ones?
An Essential Question isOne that lies at the heart of a subject or a
curriculum & promotes inquiry & uncoverage of a subject.
Essential QuestionsHave no simple “right” answerProvoke & sustain inquiryAddress conceptual or philosophical
foundationsRaise other important questionsNaturally & appropriately recurStimulate vital, ongoing rethinking
ExamplesWhat is a true friend?To what extent does art reflect culture or
shape it? Is everything quantifiable?To what extent is DNA destiny? In what ways is algebra real and in what
ways is it unreal?To what extent is US history a history of
progress?
ExamplesMust heroes be flawless?Who is entitled to own what? Is the subjunctive necessary?What makes writing worth reading?Does practice makes perfect?What is healthy eating? Healthy living?
What makes a question “essential”?Recurs throughout all our livesRefers to core ideas & inquiries within a
disciplineHelps students effectively inquire and
make sense of important but complex ideas, knowledge, know-how
Engages a specific & diverse set of learners
Intent, not language, is the key:Why we pose the questionHow students are to tackle itWhat learning activities & assessments we
expect
Types of Essential Questions Overarching: Frame courses and
programs of study around truly big ideasTopical: Are unit specific but still promote
inquiry
GOOD TEACHING USES BOTH!
Overarching Essential Questions More general, more broadPoint beyond specific topics or skillsPromote transfer of understanding
Examples of Overarching EQCan a fictional story be “true”?How do a region’s geography, climate,
and natural resources affect the way people live and work?
How does technological change influence people’s lives? Society?
How does what we measure influence how we measure?
Examples of Overarching EQHow do we classify the things around us?Do artists have a responsibility to their
audience? To society?How does language shape culture? Is pain necessary for progress in athletics?
Topical Essential QuestionsUnit specific - used to guide individual
unitsPromote inquiryResist simple answersRequire explanation & justification
Examples of Topical EQHow might Congress have better
protected minority rights in the 1950s & 1960s?
Should we require DNA samples from every convicted criminal?
Is Holden Caulfield a “phony”?
Examples of Topical EQWhat is the value of place value?What is electricity?How do we hit with greatest power without
losing control?
Leading QuestionsMeant to culminate in a fact or completely
settled conclusionNo sustained inquiry or argument
intended or necessaryUnderscores an important point we want
students to noteWe need these, too, BUT...
THEY CANNOT BE THE FOUNDATION OF OUR CURRICULAR DESIGN.
Where to start?Determine the “big ideas”
Common Core and Essential StandardsCourse texts/Resources
What are Big Ideas?Core concepts, principles, theories, &
processes that should serve as the focal point of curricula, instruction & assessment.
Big IdeasAre important and enduringAre not obviousMay be prone to misunderstandingPrioritize contentAre transferableAre the building material of
understandingsManifest in various ways within disciplinesAct as “conceptual velcro”
Finding Big IdeasClarify Content Priorities
Worth being familiar withImportant to know and doBig ideas & Enduring Understandings
Finding Big IdeasUnpack the NCSCS (CC/ES)
Circle key nouns, adjectives, & verbsDraft implied or stated big ideas based on
those key words.Critically analyze the course text
Work “backward” to determine what big ideas and/or EQ the text addresses
Big Ideas can beConceptsThemes Issues/DebatesProblems/ChallengesProcessesTheoriesParadoxesAssumptions/Perspectives
From Big Idea to EQ Identifying EQ & Understandings
Start with Big IdeaAnswer questions related to Big IdeaGenerate EQ & desired understandings
Making the Connection
Big Idea
Understanding
Essential Question
Topic or Content
Standard
ExampleStandard: The learner will be able to read, respond
to, and critique historically and culturally significant works of literature in order to understand their importance and relationship to past and present cultures.
Overarching EQ:Does literature primarily reflect culture or shape it?
Topical EQ:What does Romeo & Juliet teach us about Shakespeare’s view of destiny? How does it compare to yours?
Where to get more informationOther training sessions--may be
department, planning period in-service, Curriculum Depot
Understanding by Design by Jay McTighe & Grant Wiggins
Questions?