Implementing the UbD Lesson

Implementing the UbD Lesson

Any difficulty that I encountered with this lesson was centered around the notion of assessment. Checking for understanding during a lesson and not just after the lesson is over has always been a weak point of my teaching style. After implementing this lesson in my class, I realize that my problems in this area are attributable to my pacing of my lessons. I tend to rush through lessons a little too quickly. As a result, I do not take the time to assess understanding along the way. When reading primary sources, for instance, we need to spend more time deconstructing and discussing what we read. I need to do a better job of recognizing that any more advanced objectives cannot be accomplished by my students without a firm grip on the content. In this case, the readings from Deuteronomy and the article on the Supreme Court case needed to be addressed in greater depth. I longer review of Hammurabi’s Code might have provoked the students to make even better connections to Mosaic Law.

The students did respond well to the lesson as they love tying the present to the past. The discussion on the Supreme Court case was lively, I think, because we had addressed the Ten Commandments previously in good depth. Again, the issue is in the students who are not participating in the discussion actively. They may be able to do the homework because they have listened intently to other students’ opinions. However, on what level have I challenged them to think for themselves?