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High Schools to Teach App Development in New STEM Communities

  • By Staff
  • 09/19/17

Lenovo and NAF, a nonprofit education network, this school year have opened 68 new NAF academies, or small learning communities within traditional high schools.

NAF academies are designed to provide underserved high school students with comprehensive and “career-themed” STEM education curricula focused on five areas: finance, hospitality & tourism, information technology, engineering and health sciences.

Students at 57 academies will have a chance to develop Android mobile apps using Lenovo devices and win tech prizes, for example, as part of the Lenovo Scholar Network’s annual app challenge. NAF’s mobile app development program is centered around using the MIT App Inventor developer platform. It caters to reaching students in underrepresented communities, according to the NAF website.  

For teachers, NAF academies offer a flexible structure that encourages collaboration across subject areas. The structure emphasizes personalization to meet student, school, district and state goals as well.   

The 68 academies opening for the 2017-2018 school year bring the Lenovo Scholar Network’s total to 118 academies. These learning communities serve approximately 5,000 students in 21 states — with a goal to reach 10,000 additional students over the next three years, a news release stated.

To view the full list of participating schools or learn more, visit the NAF Scholar Network site.

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