Performance Tasks for English Language Learners/Problem-Solution

Problem-Solution Performance Task

Instructions

This performance task template is based on Wiggins & McTighe's book, Understanding by Design. Create a new page in Wikiversity and copy-and-paste this template to get started. In this section include specific teaching and learning contexts that allow another educator to better understand the educational context with which this performance task was designed. Refer to this list of performance tasks for examples.

Essential Question

Add an essential question that provides the throughline for the entire performance task.

Goal

The goal of the performance task should be an authentic one and not an academic one. The goal of the performance task is closely related to the purpose of doing the task.

Role

What role is the learner going to take? A good performance task allows learners to assume relevant roles that are expected from a real-world experience.

Audience

Ideally, the performance task will involve an actual audience. When a performance task services a public good, an authentic audience becomes a key aspect of the educative experience. In less than ideal situations, an authentic audience is assumed or imagined.

Situation/Context

A good performance task is situational or contextualized so that the performance assumes given characteristics based on the relationships between the actors involved along with other key aspects to purposeful discourse: intention, persuasion, argumentation, resolving cognitive conflict, reaching a consensus, etc.

Purpose/Process/Product

It should be clear to learners why they are doing the performance task. Also, depending on educational context, a certain level of differentiated instruction is assumed: content, process, product, and environment.

Standards/Criteria

The criteria for doing a successful performance should be explicit from the beginning of the learning sequence. Rubrics, checklist, etc. can either be mandated by an institution or outside body, come from the instructor, and/or can result from a negotiation between learners and the instructor.

Learning Design Sequence

In this section, provide a sequence overview of the educative experience in way that leaves plenty of room for differentiating instruction so that learners remain a key part of the decision-making process as to what, how, and why they are learning. Learning design sequencing will depend on context: teacher profile and preference, profile of the learners, institution/school culture, objectives of the course, etc.