Backward Design Template
Subject/Topic: History/ Causes of World War One
Designed by Paul Ho
Identify Desired Results
What overarching understandings are
desired?
Students must understand:
 How war is a tool of diplomacy
 The socio-political and economic factors
within a country might cause an outbreak of
war.
What will students understand as a result of
this unit?
 Why did World War One break out in
1914?
 What were the main causes of World
War One?
 Was there one country to blame for
World War One?
 Why were the leaders unable to prevent
war from breaking out in 1914?
What are the overarching “essential”
questions?
1. Why did war break out in 1914?
2. How was the situation in Europe in the
1900s different from the 1800s?
What “essential” and “unit” questions will
focus this unit?
1. What is the meaning of nationalism,
militarism, imperialism in Europe during
the 1900s.
2. Define the concept of “underlying
causes”.
3. What is the Industrial Revolution? How
did it play a part in the causes of World
War One?
4. What is the concept of Imperialism? How
did it play a part in the causes of World
War One?
 Determine Acceptable Evidence

What evidence will show that students understand….

Performance Tasks, Projects

 IT project using Blabberize.com to get students to role play different political leaders in
Europe during the 1900s, explaining and justifying the reasons why they went to war in
1914.
 How to logically sequence their ideas and supporting evidence to write a structured essay
that is analytical, objective and succinctly explains the interdependence of factors/causes
of war.
 Students are able to correctly identify the 4 major underlying causes and explain them in
the context of how it is related or connected to each of the major European powers.
 Students must be able to weigh the relative significance of each factor in consideration to
its contribution in causing the outbreak of war in 1914.

Quizzes, Tasks, Academic Prompts

 Worksheet – Short Answers and Structured paragraphs (Teaching on the differences

between events and underlying causes of World War One)

Other Evidence (eg observations, work Student Self-Assessment

samples, dialogues)

 KWL worksheet
 Use of www.classjump.com  Personal Blog reflection.
discussion forum.
 JiTT Learning and class discussion on
the main theoretical/historiographical
points of view on who caused the war.
 Class practice worksheet on structured
essay questions.
 Plan Learning Experience and Instruction

Given the targeted understandings, other unit goals, and the assessment evidence
identified, what knowledge and skills are needed?
Students will need to know….. Students will need to be able to….

1. Bismarck’s theory of defensive 1. have good recall skills of content

alliances.
2. The concept of the Balance of Power
3. The “Scramble for Africa” – New
Imperialism
4. The Boer War
5. The Russo-Japanese War
6. The Franco-Prussian War
7. Kaiser Wilhelm’s “Daily Telegraph”
interview
8. The Balkan Crises 1908, 1912-1913.
9. The Moroccan Crises, 1905,1911
10. The concept of “encirclement”
11. The Triple Entente and the Triple
Alliance
12. The concept of “PanSlavism”
knowledge
2. make effective use of search engines
3. relate different historical events to the
underlying causes.
4. plan and produce a script for the role
play on blabberize.com
5. recognise the differences between a
cause and an event.
6. identify and explain the extent of
causality.
7. apply basic structured essay writing
skills

What teachings and learning experiences will equip students to demonstrate the targeted
understandings?

1. Visual Documentary on Youtube or instructional DVDs. Eg. “All Quiet on the Western
Front”.
2. Interactive simulation of the causes of World War One on a commercial education
website.Activehistory.co.uk.
3. Practice questions from previous years’ assessments and tests.