Unit 1: Explore pedagogy and value of NGSS Science Practices and Design Based Learning

Learning Objectives

Identify examples of the 8 NGSS Science Practices from digital resources such as videos or lesson samples
Recognize characteristics of effective Design Based Learning Tasks from digital resources such as videos or articles
Develop a persuasive summary for near peers to justify the relevance of Design Based Learning for developing NGSS practices for 21st century learning

Lesson 1: What are the NGSS Practices and why are they important?

Intro	Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Practices are one component of the 3 Dimensional Science curriculum (pictured to the right). The practices are 8 specific skills that relate to every science subject and grade level. It is important to clarify that one lesson need not cover more than just a single practice at a time. However, schools interested in future ready skills for science class and wide variety of STEM careers should create opportunities for students to use each NGSS practice multiple times of a year.
Learn	Explore the following links and videos to find real examples and create definitions for all 8 NGSS practices. Explore as many or as little as you need to complete the graphic organizer (individually) to track your understanding. There are text and video options so you can choose how you would like to complete this assignment. Appendix F of the Practices from NGSS - lists the practices and provides rationale as well as operational definitions across the grade levels Quick overview of the practices from NSTA - provides basic definitions of each practice with links to deeper rationale and relevant standards for each one Quick summary table of science practices with examples - presents concise definitions with classroom examples Videos of each practice at different level from Wonder of Science - explores multiple levels of complexity for each practice with potential examples Video of modelling and argumentation from Teaching Channel - shows a real classroom example of some of the science practices
Do	Complete the graphic organizer in the student work packet pg 1. to track your understanding. You will need to make a copy of the view-only document so you have your own to type in.

Lesson 2: What is Design Based Science and why is it important?

Intro	Design Based Learning (DBL) or Design Based science (DBS) has been defined multiple times in slightly different ways. Some proponents believe DBS involves engineering projects and full builds every time. This course invites you to explore perspectives that any student driven design work or student created artifact can follow characteristics of design based learning. The iterative cycle of design should be included more regularly in all science classes because problem solving and feedback incorporation are crucial career and life skills.
Learn	Explore the following links and videos to develop your understanding of what makes a lesson classify as Design Based Learning. Explore as many or as little as you need to complete the graphic organizer and feel confident to work on the Communicate Task. Krajcik 2017 Article about Design in STEM Education - presents an iterative design process and the rationale or benefits why it should be included in any STEM classroom Fortus 2005 Article and Design Based Science Cycle - explains steps of a typical learning cycle in a DBS classroom and provides a classroom case study Kolodoner 2003 Article about Learning by Design TM (scroll to section about Connecting Design Activities to Science Content) - discusses findings of a project-based inquiry approach to science learning in a middle school classroom Fried 2020 Article about DBL in Biology - discusses findings of a Design Based Learning approach an evolutionary biology undergraduate course Video on need for DBL from NY Hall of Science - shares opinions on the rationale for the DBL approach for 21st century learners Video on Design Cycle from Edutopia - showcases examples in action of DBS classrooms with teacher and student interviews
Do	Complete the graphic organizer (in the student work packet) to track your understanding.
Communicate	Develop a persuasive summary for near peers to justify the relevance of Design Based Learning for developing NGSS practices for 21st century learning. Use the guidelines in the student work to structure your thinking. Share your ideas in practice! This persuasive summary could easily be used in a department meeting, faculty meeting, or in house-PD. To share your ideas with others upload it to this community google folder.

Reflect on your accomplishments of the Learning Objectives.

Identify examples of the 8 NGSS Science Practices from digital resources such as videos or lesson samples
Recognize characteristics of effective Design Based Learning Tasks from digital resources such as videos or articles
Develop a persuasive summary for near peers to justify the relevance of Design Based Learning for developing NGSS practices for 21st century learning

If you reflect that you need more time with these objectives, explore the resources you may have skipped and/or add more detail/examples to your assignments.

Continue to Unit 2 or return to the home page.