NMHS Teacher Helped Develop New 9/11 Curriculum

NMHS Teacher Colleen Tambuscio was one of only 17 educators in New Jersey who participated in the writing and piloting of a new curriculum entitled Learning from the Challenges of Our Times: Global Security, Terrorism, and 9/11 in the Classroom.

The curriculum was developed by the 4 Action Initiative, a group consisting of Families of September 11, Liberty Science Center and the NJ State Commission on Holocaust Education.

Nicolette Perna, a social studies teacher at New Milford High School piloted several lessons in her high school history courses and offered ideas for improvement to the curriculum committee.

The curriculum was unveiled at an official ceremony on July 14 at Liberty Science Center, making this vital educational resource available to educators across the state and around the country.  

Initially conceived of by Maryellen Salamone, a co-founder of Families of September 11, the curriculum provides opportunities for teachers to help students to explore one of the most challenging issues facing the world today, giving youngsters the tools needed to take positive action through service to others.

For Tambuscio, the lessons contained in the curriculum are important. “Terrorists use fear to try and disrupt lives, but this curriculum shows students what they can do to combat it through understanding and volunteerism to make the world a better place.”

Phil Kirshner, chair of the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education, said,” Curriculum authors and educators developed rich lesson plans, each drawing on new and existing curricula covering multiple subject areas (history, the arts and sciences) ranging from human behavior to activities that help students understand how they can contribute to their communities and the global society.”

Lesson plans include:

Human Behavior

From Playground to World Stage: Aggression, Hostility and Violence 

Development of a Historical Context of Terrorism,

9/11/01: A Contemporary Case Study

Consequences and Challenges in a Post- 9/11 World

Remembrance and Public Memory

Building Better Futures; Narrative, Recovery and Responsibility. 

“I was proud to contribute to this outstanding project,” Tambuscio says. “Our students will learn a lot about terrorism and loss of life at the tenth anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks this fall, but teachers now have the tools they need to address student concerns by helping them understand what happened and how people came together to offer assistance and support.”