Designing Concept-Based Learning Units for Educators

Traditional rote memorization often leaves students with disconnected facts rather than deep understanding. Transitioning to a concept-based curriculum allows you to teach for transfer, helping students apply big ideas to new and unfamiliar contexts. This text-based course guides you through the entire design process, ensuring your lessons promote lifelong intellectual inquiry. You will learn to restructure your curriculum around central concepts and transferable ideas, moving beyond simple subject-matter coverage. We cover modern educational design frameworks, including backward design principles and formative assessment integration, to ensure your units are cohesive and effective. What you'll learn: - Understand the core differences between fact-based and concept-based curriculum models - Identify and draft powerful macro- and micro-concepts for your specific subject area - Formulate clear conceptual relationship statements that guide student inquiry - Design authentic performance tasks and formative assessments aligned with your conceptual goals - Structure inquiry-based learning experiences that scaffold student understanding - Integrate modern reflective practices to help students self-assess and track their own conceptual growth This comprehensive text-only guide begins with foundational definitions of concept-based instruction before walking you step-by-step through the planning, drafting, and refining of your first unit. You will learn how to turn standard-driven goals into deep, inquiry-based learning experiences. This course is designed for K-12 educators, instructional designers, and curriculum developers of any subject area who want to transition to a conceptual teaching model. No prior experience in curriculum design is required. Start transforming your teaching practice and design your first concept-based unit today.