MAEI and Nelson Education Launch Entrepreneurial Teaching Materials For Aboriginal Youth

Sept. 12, 2011 - PRLog -- Martin Aboriginal Education Initiative (MAEI) and Nelson Education are pleased to announce their partnership to publish the teaching materials for MAEI’s Entrepreneurship program for Aboriginal students across Canada. The curriculum is uniquely developed by Aboriginal writers for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Grade 11 and 12 students across Canada.

Entrepreneurship: Grade 11 was launched in March, 2011. The teaching materials introduce skills and knowledge to provide Aboriginal students with a foundation for starting and running a business venture. Students develop a business plan for a micro-business, with the support of mentors from the business community.

The Grade 12 course focuses on the operation of an e-commerce business venture. Students develop a website to highlight their micro-business and, if they wish, to secure start-up funds to start their business. The Entrepreneurship: Grade 12 teaching materials will be available in the 2011-12 school year to participating schools.

The new Teachers’ Resource materials and the corresponding Workbook/Textbook/Case Study Book focus on Learning Connections related to Aboriginal values, such as correlating a Strength, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) marketing analysis with a medicine wheel, as well as profiles and case studies highlighting the creativity and success of Aboriginal entrepreneurs from across Canada.

These teaching materials provide an opportunity for Aboriginal students to see their culture and traditions situated within a business context.

“We’re very excited to be able to provide these teaching materials to the students who are enrolled in this program across Canada,” said former Prime Minister Paul Martin. “The teachers will have the materials and guidelines for activities that will help Aboriginal students develop confidence as entrepreneurs and creative thinkers, giving them the power to become agents of change. To bring the course resources to life, we partnered with Nelson Education due to their industry leadership and history of creating engaging, Canadian content-driven educational resources since 1914.”

“We share many values with the MAEI, and this partnership simply made sense,” said Greg Nordal, President and CEO of Nelson Education. “We’re proud to be able to play a role in providing practical, engaging, and relevant resources developed with great respect for Aboriginal cultures, and to have a part in enabling the success of Aboriginal students throughout the nation.”

About the Martin Aboriginal Education Initiative (MAEI)

MAEI brings together Aboriginal organizations, the business community, post-secondary institutions, First Nation schools and provincially-funded school boards to implement programs to support Aboriginal students. MAEI’s goal is to support initiatives that improve education at the elementary and secondary levels for Aboriginal Canadians, with the belief that the development of skills will provide Aboriginal youth with an incentive to continue their education.

MAEI projects are chosen in discussion with the pertinent school boards, Aboriginal leadership, Provincial and Territorial education authorities, and various national business communities.

For more information on MAEI programs and initiatives, visit http://www.maei-ieam.ca/.

About Nelson Education Ltd.

Nelson Education Ltd. is Canada’s leading educational publisher providing innovative products and solutions for learners of all ages. Nelson values and respects the life long learning continuum and dedicates its business efforts to the diverse learning needs of students and educators alike. In addition to its English language publishing, Nelson also supports French Language learning markets through Groupe Modulo, its Quebec based publishing business.

Nelson Education Ltd. is active in Canada’s K-12, Higher Education, Professional Learning and Business, Industry & Government markets. Our success now and in the future is based on our strong partnerships and ongoing relationships with educators across the country. Together we are making a positive difference in the lives of Canadians by producing the highest quality educational products and services.

One of Nelson Education's initiatives is to work with educators of FNMI students to provide the necessary quality resources for educational purposes, as well as in-service and collaboration on successful education plans.

Visit http://www.nelson.com/maei for more information.