NAF’s New Curriculum Announcing The Rollout of New Courses

Six New Courses Now Available AOF: Principles of Finance Financial Services AOHT: Principles of Hospitality & Tourism Geography & World Cultures AOIT: Principles of Information Technology Digital Video and Digital Media

NAF Academy Members Are Invited to Become Curriculum Fellows  Curriculum Fellows Obtain:  Stipends  Kinkos photocopying vouchers for curriculum materials  Attend a regional meeting with other Curriculum Fellows to provide feedback on the courses.  Have selected work featured in a new NAF Curriculum Book to be published by the Pearson Foundation  In return, Curriculum Fellows:  Use the new course material  Provide detailed feedback for improvements in the courses  Share exemplars of student applications.  Attend a region meeting and participate in several web conferences.

How New Courses Will be Rolled Out  Both new and existing courses will be on the NEW NAF Curriculum Webpage.  Teachers have the choice of using the new material or existing material for

The New NAF Curriculum Webpage!

New Curriculum Features  Content advice from NAF teachers, Advisory Board Members, & Industry Partners.  Linkages to national educational standards  Two projects per course.  Detailed unit plans with lessons, student resources, teacher resources, and student readings.  Scan Skills that encouraging teamwork and communication skills

And That’s Not All  Integration of literacy strategies to improve student reading comprehension, vocabulary & writing.  Ideas for curriculum integration.  Extension activities.  Assessment tools.  Career options lessons.

And More to Come Revisions of the six new courses based on feedback from the NAF Curriculum Fellows Nine new courses for piloting in New interactive features on the NAF Curriculum Webpage.

Academy Assumptions  Begin creating new courses by focusing on courses that NAF Academies need most.  Assume that every course sequence begins with a “principles” course, which serves as a foundation for further study.  Following principles course, each field of study has three “essential” courses which students take next.  Following these four initial courses, students take additional NAF courses.

Course Assumptions  Courses designed to address key standards drawn from National standards  Courses designed to introduce key course themes while at the same time:  Courses to share general structure: Objectives, Springboard, Activity Sequence, Closure  Courses to be structured in a way that assumes 60 “class sessions” for instruction, 20 for project time (and 10 additional days)  Courses to be supported with Unit and Lesson Plans, and with Resource Materials for teachers and students, and reader- support for teachers.

Five Characteristics of a NAF Graduate  College Ready  Career Oriented  Effective Communicator  Problem Solver  Engaged Learner

Key Features of NAF Curriculum  At least two projects per course.  Plus one culminating demonstration of learning.  Inquiry-based instructional practices that promote rigor & relevance.  Evidence of student learning written, oral, visual, or technological form.

Criteria for Driving Questions: Source: Mapping the Big Picture: Integrating Curriculum & Assessment K-12 (Heidi Hayes Jacobs. 1997, ASCD)  Driving questions are the essence of what you believe students should examine and know.  Are used as a curriculum planner.  Used as an activity organizer.  Are designed to promote rigor (ambiguity, complexity, provocativeness, emotion).  Can be developed by both teachers and students.