Student Orientation & Curriculum Guide 
Curriculum
Core Course Curriculum

CBJA classes are loosely organized in a hierachy. Students are encouraged to take classes in a certain developmental order, because we believe students learn the arts of beadwork and jewelry making much better, using this approach.

All students should start with:
1. Orientation to Beads and Jewelry Findings
2. BS0001: Attaching Clasps

Students interested in Bead Weaving should begin with:
STITCH: Stitch of the Month

Students interested in Wire Work should begin with:
1. WIRE9001:Orientation to Wire and Wire Shaping - Jewelry Findings

Intermediate level core courses:
5. GEN6001: Color, Texture and Design
6. GEN6007: Design Elements: Strap, Fringe, Edge, Surface Embellishment, and/or
7. GEN6006: Jewelry Design I: Composition and Design Principles

Why Core Courses?  The original CBJA Planning and Advisory Board spent 1 1/2 years researching beadwork education and training programs around the nation, in terms of
- program content and organization  (input)
- teaching methods (through-put)
- quality of student work  (output)
- student satisfaction with courses and curriculum (output)

What the Board found was that, while some students picked up techniques very well, most did not.   The quality of the work, and the continued quality of the work, suffered from the reality of students learning to do projects rather than specific skills; students never really learning the basics of how to manage their tools and materials, and how to finish off pieces; and students not learning in a comparative, contextual, and developmental way -- there was little knowledge in how to apply what they learned to other types of projects, or how to incorporate other skills to achieve project goals.

The Board also felt, based on its research, that to master any technique, the student must be given opportunities to design their own patterns and design their own applications.