Central Component

The Adventist EDGE initiative is made up of three components: Central, Enabling, and Supporting. Each area focuses on specific needs. The Central Component focuses on learning and directly relates to the instruction process of what is taught, how it is taught and how learning is measured. The Central Component is broken down into the following categories.

Curriculum
In Adventist EDGE schools curriculum is no longer out-of-context and textbook driven, but is authentic, relevant, meaningful and standard-based. The Curriculum section is dissected even further into Early Childhood Education, Elementary and Secondary areas.

Early Childhood

 Early Childhood Education curriculum design and materials are currently being developed by the North American Division in conjunction with The Review and Herald. These materials should be available during the 2010-2011 school-year.

Elementary
Elementary curriculum is comprised of, Southern Union Standards, Integrated Language Arts/Comprehensive Literacy, and Integrated Curriculum. The Southern Union standards describe what students who attend Seventh-day Adventist schools in the Southern Union should know and are able to do as a result of their education. Integrated Language Arts/Comprehensive Literacy has connected the core components of language arts: spelling, handwriting, phonics, and English to help students become better readers and writers. Integrated Curriculum offers a cohesive curriculum enabling students to see connections between the many fields of learning by integrating faith throughout the curriculum and building connections within a discipline/subject area. Integrated curriculum also includes other related areas including co-curricular activities and cooperation and collaboration with other teachers in disciplines/subject areas and grade levels..

Secondary
Secondary Curriculum is comprised of Integrated Classes, Differentiated Instruction, Technology, Standards Writing and Distance Education. Integrated classes allow the merging of subjects to gain class schedule time while developing skills and acquiring knowledge normally associated with separate classes. Differentiated Instruction affords academy teachers with masters degrees in a given subject area, and/or college professors the ability to teach dual credit course that fulfill graduation requirements for high school as well as provide full college credits. Technology in Adventist EDGE secondary environments is cutting edge. Students can acquire Microsoft Office certifications, web design, video editing and production skills. Standards are written for the core areas of language arts, math, science, and social studies. These standards are accessible online and teachers can utilize them to plan instruction and to select appropriate resources for delivering the curriculum. Distance Education is used to connect schools that want to enhance their curriculum by linking to other schools with teachers that have specific training for the classes they would like to participate in.



Distance Learning Program 

Instruction

Instructional delivery in Adventist EDGE schools is intentional and moves from the old model of instruction to a new model that enlists student collaboration and involvement in the learning process. It coaches all students toward success and mastery while presenting education that is authentic and relevant to their daily lives. The learning process no longer teaches to the middle, but actively finds ways to honor individual differences with lessons that are appropriate for learners on all points of the continuum.

The instruction portion of the Central Component is broken down into various strategies such as Cooperative Learning, Multiply Intelligences, Dimensions of Learning, Models of Teaching, Differentiated instruction and Other Research-based Strategies as well as Integrated Language Arts/ Comprehensive Literacy. The 4MAT framework has been selected in the Southern Union as the preferred delivery system for improving instruction in grades Prek-12. It is based on the natural cycle of learning and learning style theory. The 4MAT framework supports all brain research strategies and best practices

There are other research-based strategies which are outlined in the Journey to Excellence that can be selected for use in the Southern Union once teachers are competent in the following areas:

• use of the 4MAT framework and/or differentiated instruction and cooperative learning structures
• EDGE 4MATION professional development collaborative group infrastruction.

Comprehensive Literacy instruction in the Southern Union includes the following components: Reading and Writing. The frameworks that have been identified for use to support effective implementation of a Comprehensive Literacy curriculum are Readers Workshop and Writers workshop. See the Adventist EDGE Handbook for a detailed explanation of Comprehensive Literacy Instruction.
Assessment

The Adventist EDGE initiative has identified assessment as a critical element of a learner-centered curriculum, therefore its process must be altered and enhanced to include the kinds of assessment that form a complete overview of student achievement. These include both formal and informal sessions, standardized test results and criterion-referenced results, “on the way” and “at the gate” assessments, snapshots (quizzes and test) and videos (progress over time), verbal and non verbal evaluations, as well as performance requirements and portfolios.

FOR A DETAILED EXPLANATION, INCLUDING AN OUTLINE OF DESIRED OUTCOMES AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS ON THE CENTRAL COMPONENT OF THE ADVENTIST EDGE INITIATIVE, SEE THE ADVENTIST EDGE HANDBOOK WHICH CAN BE PURCHASED IN THE EDGE STORE. CLICK ON THE PUBLICATION TO THE RIGHT.