Departments

The Career & Technical Education (CTE) program offers students enrolled in Newton Public Schools opportunities to explore and develop vocational and technical competency skills in a variety of career & technical fields. Students will prepare for 21st-century careers and citizenship by learning how to think critically, problem solve, collaborate in teams, develop leadership skills, build effective oral and written communication skills, learn how to access, analyze, and synthesize information, and become innovative thinkers and designers. They will have the opportunity to explore career options and to develop an individual Career Plan designed to help them learn how to make informed choices now and for their future. Through a comprehensive sequencing of technical and academic courses, students will develop a solid foundation of knowledge and skills which is essential for a smooth transition into post-secondary education and the world of work. Upon graduation, students will be prepared and ready to pursue post-secondary education in two, or four-year colleges, vocational technical training institutes, apprenticeships, and enter the workplace.

Additional authentic career and technical opportunities include off campus experiential learning experiences and formal cooperative education work placements.

The History and Social Sciences program seeks to encourage informed democratic citizenship through the study of World and American History and the social sciences. We want students to:

• Appreciate the historical and cultural influences that shape their individual identities, our national identity, and the cultures and countries that share our planet.
• Understand and reason about successes, failures, triumphs and tragedies  in human history, particularly as they are reflected in the ideas and actions of the people we study.
• Prepare for adult lives of informed and active citizenship and civic engagement.  
• Learn to assess and interpret evidence, to understand change over time, to think logically and express themselves clearly.

Students are required to take a two-year World History sequence in grades nine and ten, and a year of American History in grade eleven. Seniors may choose from a variety of offerings in history or the social sciences.

The Newton North Library Learning Commons (LLC) 

The Newton North Library Learning Commons is centered around student learning and academic achievement.   

To support students, the library teachers:

• provide curriculum resources in a variety of formats. 
• teach information literacy and research skills to students.
• promote books that students will love to read.   

The LLC is both a physical and virtual space where students, either alone or as part of a group, can QUESTION, INVESTIGATE, PROBLEM SOLVE, INNOVATE, AND CREATE.

The study of mathematics improves skills like problem solving, visual attention and decision making, alongside teaching students about its real world applications. At Newton North High School, students study mathematics not just to fulfill course requirements but also as a tool for effective citizenship, as a universal language which helps them understand the world better.

Newton North High School supports students in these endeavors through courses that cater to a variety of interests and learning styles. All courses support students’ advancement in their knowledge of mathematical content and equally if not more importantly, their development and mastery of the Standards of Mathematical Practice. Based on the Common Core State Standards, our courses prepare students for state assessments and expose students to the content assessed on college entrance and Advanced Placement exams (when applicable). While progression through the content is an important part of the experience, our courses emphasize the importance of deepening students’ knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts and skills as well as their ability to thoughtfully communicate what they have learned.

Throughout their experience at Newton North High School, students will have opportunities to explore different branches of mathematics: algebra, geometry, statistics, computer science and calculus. Students explore these topics by working collaboratively, using inquiry based exploratory lessons and using technology in a variety of ways from emphasizing the visual aspects of mathematics to efficiently completing complex calculations.

Science Technology & Engineering Department Website

The Science, Technology, and Engineering Department strives for all students to attain scientific literacy - a basic understanding of the natural sciences, mathematics, technology, and their interactions.  To graduate from Newton North High School, a student must successfully complete a full year physical science course and full year biological science course.  While the graduation requirement is two years, most colleges require at least three years of high school science. We recommend that all students take Introductory Physics in the 9^th grade, Chemistry in the 10^th grade, and Biology in the 11^th grade. The department head must approve deviations from this sequence.

Students must earn a competency determination in Science and Technology/Engineering via the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS). To earn a competency determination in Science and Technology/Engineering a student must meet or exceed the Needs Improvement threshold scaled score of 220 on one discipline specific high school Science and Technology/Engineering MCAS test (Biology, Chemistry, Introductory Physics, or Technology/Engineering). Most students at Newton North High School take the Introductory Physics test in June of their freshman year.

Communicative Proficiency & Intercultural Competency: the World Language Mission

Newton’s World Language program seeks to promote communicative proficiency and intercultural competency while cultivating a love of and enthusiasm for the target language and culture. We believe that a “world view" is best established through the learning of another language in the way that it connects us with and fosters an understanding of “the other”. The development of communicative proficiency in the language empowers students to access the world in a broader context; the development of intercultural competency fosters respect for differences by guiding students to see the world not as a place confined by difference, but as one open society defined by the unique.

Students will be challenged to develop their proficiency in language in an interactive environment that emphasizes both oral and written expression. This environment will be wide-ranging in its linguistic and cultural spectrum, incorporating a number of literary texts, cultural practices and products, and themes that inform every day life in the modern world. Students will sequentially advance their skills in listening, speaking, reading and writing within the context of real-life situations and authentic texts in the target language. Through the use of a variety of resources and methodologies, students will see that language has many voices in its diverse expressions, and in its many authors. Proficiency will be further advanced by offering students contact with local and international language communities, including opportunities to travel and study abroad.

The study of world languages is an interdisciplinary pursuit that inherently compels students to consider their own language and culture in a new light as well as make connections with other disciplines. Consequently, students will develop a capacity to understand and interact with the world more completely both as adolescents and in their adult lives. As members of a global community, they will be able contributors to the promotion of communication and understanding across borders.