Drs. Chrissi Miles and Kim Pinckney
The NJEA Consortium has published its macro-curriculum, a comprehensive framework created to help educators develop inclusive, peer-reviewed resources. Launched in June 2025, it is the result of a collaboration between the Consortium Design Team Ambassadors, the NJEA Professional Development and Instructional Issues Division, and other stakeholders.
Project background
The grant-funded project, Cultivating Community, Action, Justice and Understanding through the NJEA Consortium, began in April 2022. Its goal is to create educational resources that include mandated topics such as Holocaust, Amistad, LGBTQIA+, persons with disabilities, and Asian American Pacific Islander history, as well as the histories of other marginalized communities. The macro-curriculum provides a broad framework that outlines the main principles and goals for students’ learning.
A holistic approach
The curriculum is based on Grant Wiggins’ and Jay McTighe’s Understanding by Design framework, which emphasizes helping students make meaning and develop lifelong, transferable skills. The framework defines Transfer Goals—the skills and knowledge students should be able to apply independently in new situations.
The curriculum is organized around four core themes:
Self and Identity – This theme encourages students to understand themselves and appreciate diverse cultures. A key goal is for students to “develop insight into self-identity and the identities of others by analyzing the threads between and/or across global communities and cultures. Essential questions include: How might I better understand myself? How might I play a role in how my communities are shaped? How might we honor our own cultures and identities without diminishing those of others?
Institutions and Structure – This theme helps students recognize social injustices and understand power dynamics. The goal is for students to “challenge historical and contemporary institutions that have disproportionately oppressed non-dominant groups.” Essential questions include: Are all people treated equally? Why does inequity matter? How might we challenge inequities in all communities?
Equity and Equality – This theme fosters civic responsibility and active community participation. Students will “investigate and uphold fairness and justice by exercising democratic principles of community and citizenship.” A key question is: How and why do individuals and groups become actively inclusive—rather than bystanders—in the face of injustice?
Activism and Advocacy – This theme aims to cultivate critical thinkers who can advocate for social justice. The goal is for students to “learn from past movements to make principled and impactful decisions about when and how to take a stand against injustice and oppression.” Essential questions include: How might individuals and organizations build their capacity to take a stand against injustice and oppression?
Expert endorsement
Jay McTighe reviewed the macro-curriculum and praised the development team’s work. He noted that the three key elements—Transfer Goals, Associated Understandings and Essential Questions—are “clearly expressed and well aligned.” He added that the Transfer Goals are “appropriately aspirational, describing hoped-for students’ and citizens’ actions,” and that the understandings specify what a person needs to comprehend to achieve those goals.
A live discussion between Drs. Chrissi Miles, Kim Pinckney and Jay McTighe about the macro-curriculum is available on the NJEA Consortium Professional Development Portal via the QR code below.
How to use the curriculum
The macro-curriculum is a valuable tool for NJEA members designing effective learning experiences. Educators can use the provided Enduring Understandings as core ideas and the Essential Questions to guide student inquiry and frame lessons. This work provides the foundation for creating comprehensive, representative educational materials through meaningful professional learning and collaborative design.
Chrissi Miles, Ed.D. is the director of the NJEA Professional Development and Instructional Issues Division. She can be reached at cmiles@njea.org.
Kim Pinckney, Ph.D. is an associate director within the NJEA Professional Development and Instructional Issues (PDII) Division and the Consortium Coordinator. She can be reached at kpinckney@njea.org.