The chapter pays particular attention to the fact that most teachers start curriculum planning using textbooks instead of identifying what the learning goals will be. Backward design proposes a change in the starting point, i.e. Teachers should start with the learning outcomes and then plan the curriculum by choosing activities and materials that help students to achieve the learning goals.
Although most of us know that is -a must- to have a clear idea of what our students have to accomplish, it’s also true that time constraints prevent us from dedicating the required time to what has been presented in this chapter as Backward Design. This leads to the question of whether educational institutions are willing to give us the necessary time to plan following the suggested three- stage design, as well as teaming up with our colleagues.
In the suggested model, my concerns are: the fact that it seems quite rigid and the effectiveness of assessment evidence. The former relies upon my teaching, where I have learned that flexibility is a key component to succeed in fostering the desired results. The latter reveals some weaknesses, especially the needed time you have to devote to create the material and the assessment of students’ achievement. This is quite relevant at undergraduate level where each term only lasts 4 months.
All in all, this chapter has aroused my interest of the importance in changing our content-focus design to a more results- focus one.
