Key Concept 2:
Instructional Design
2.1 Candidates will be able to apply instructional design models (e.g., Understanding by Design or DDD-E) to improve lesson design.
In ET 620, we worked in a small group to improve a lesson from our curriculum using the DDD-E model. There are four main parts incorporated within the DDD-E model: decide, design, develop, and evaluate. First, we had to decide on an idea and plan out how the lesson would work based upon standards and objectives provided by BCPS and ISTE. Our plan was to have students write an original fable and illustrate it through a digital story. This idea was taken from the BCPS third grade ELA curriculum. During the design phase, we planned to have students begin drafting their storyboards using a model that the teacher would provide. Once they completed the design phase, they would move into the develop phase. During this phase, students would gather all of their notes and materials to create their final digital story, using the teacher-provided rubrics. At this time, they would also conference with the teacher. Finally, during the evaluation stage, students would read and review each other's fables and reflect on their own project one final time before turning it in to be graded by the teacher. At this stage the teacher would evaluate each student's work and reflect on the positives and negatives for use in the future. The DDD-E model helped to improve the original lesson design through the creation of the digital story. Students would not strictly be graded on just their writing, but on a combination of writing and presentation together. This provides students with multiple means of representation that cater to a variety of strengths a student may have.