How do our students understand us or English language? Are they able to understand the language?
In this chapter the authors ask us about these questions to reflect on our practice, if we are aware of students understanding process , because there is a huge gap between knowing and understanding; there is a misconception between know, know how and understand.
Our understanding of the world is different from one person to another, so students have different ways to understand. We, as teachers, need to reflect on the best "ways" to encourage students' understanding. How to do this? Giving to the class different points of view on the same problem; making them analyse, summarise, evaluate, and through effective application. To understand is to have done something on ther right way.
Understanding is also to transfer our knowledge to use it in different contexts, going beyond the information given. We need an education focus on helping students in how to solve problems using big ideas and tranferable strategies, not just how to use specific facts, information and formulas.
Transfer is understand not just memorize, it is to apply, modify, adjust, and adapt an idea to the particulars of a situation. We transfer our previous knowledge and skills to a new situation.
According to Backward design, the priority is the goal to get student undertanding. If we design based on big ideas, we can make learning more effective Students should be pushed forward on their learning and be independent on this process, more than be dependent on our instruction.
