Courses
English 9 is a year-long, writing-intensive course that introduces freshmen to a variety of communication activities. Students will read at least one novel, one Homeric epic, and one Shakespearean play. They will write formally and informally in response to the readings. Students’ writing instruction will begin with learning to write a well-supported body paragraph and will culminate with writing a short informative research paper. Students will also study vocabulary in conjunction with course readings and learn to define words through context clues. Grammar instruction will take place alongside students’ writing assignments, and students will learn to utilize the four sentence types and the corresponding proper punctuation.
English 10 is a year-long, writing-intensive course that covers literature, vocabulary, and writing activities. Students will read novels, short stories, non-fiction, and drama and will examine the differences among the genres. Students will learn and use new words from their vocabulary study, and they will hone their writing skills by reviewing grammar concepts. Writing instruction emphasizes proper development of introductory and concluding paragraphs, the basic five-paragraph essay, and the research essay. Students must submit a research paper in order to receive credit for the semester.
English 11 is a year-long writing intensive course that focuses on college preparatory writing skills. Students will write in a variety of formats with a focus on persuasive argument. Students will learn the importance of unity, cohesion, supporting materials, and transitions. In addition, this course examines selected American literature leading up to the 20th century. These works demonstrate that many of our contemporary American values have their roots in Puritanical, revolutionary, Romantic, and realistic underpinnings.
English 12 is a year-long writing intensive course that focuses on college preparatory writing skills. Students will write in a variety of formats with a focus on college preparatory writing (i.e. research writing, literary analyses, response essays, etc.). Students will learn the importance of unity, cohesion, supporting materials, and transitions as they analyze literature, study different schools of criticism, and write about different texts. Students will examine selected British literature through reading essays, poetry, plays, and novels. Students will write approximately 4 essays per semester, which range from 2-5 pages each.
Journalism will provide hands-on experience to students interested in journalism as they assume the responsibilities for the writing/publishing of a monthly school newspaper and the annual school yearbook. Students will gain experience in various styles of writing (reporting, editorializing, etc.) and knowledge of each step involved in publication. It should be taken as an elective.
AP English offers qualified students the opportunity to pursue college-level writing skills while still in high school. This is a very rigorous course comparable to English courses in colleges and universities. Therefore, most students will need to spend a significant amount of time studying outside of the classroom. Students will be responsible for reading a variety of rhetorical contexts and writing for a variety of purposes to enable them to communicate effectively in their college courses across the curriculum and in professional lives; writing expository, analytical, and argumentative essays that form the basis of academic and professional communication as well as the personal and reflective writing that fosters the development of writing facility in any context; analyzing primary and secondary sources to synthesize materials into writing; writing essays through several stages and drafts with revisions to become more self-aware and flexible writers; researching to form varied, informed arguments; and considering each source as a text written for a specific audience that they reflect and analyze.
DUAL CREDIT COURSES
Speech Communication is a semester-long course that focuses on the fundamental principles of selecting, analyzing, evaluating, organizing, developing, and communicating information, evidence, and points of view orally. The course includes instruction in techniques of listening and informative, persuasive, and reactive speaking. Students will plan, develop, organize, deliver, and evaluate speeches while learning various skills that help them improve throughout the course. Students with a 3.0 cumulative GPA will have the option of earning 3 credits from Eastern Illinois University. Those students will be required to pay EIU tuition at a reduced rate.
Advanced Literature is a semester-long course in which students will study different types of literature written by diverse authors. These types of literature will include novels, poetry, graphic novels, film, and short stories. There will be in-class assignments, and three major literary analysis essays of 3-5 pages each. Students with a 3.0 cumulative GPA will have the option of earning 3 credits from Eastern Illinois University. Those students will be required to pay EIU tuition at a reduced rate.
Advanced Composition is a writing-intensive course that is the equivalent of Parkland College’s ENG 101 (Composition I) and ENG 102 (Composition II). The first semester emphasizes critical and analytical thinking skills, introduces academic essay writing to students, and challenges students to critically analyze a variety of media texts (previous texts have included public space, music, toys, advertisements, etc.). Essay writing emphasizes the writing process, purpose, audience awareness, focus, organization, development, clarity, and coherence. A minimum of 6,000 words of formal writing is required, which equates to 4 formal essays, ranging from 1,200-2,000 words each. A variety of informal writing activities and assignments are also required.
The second semester emphasizes the research process. Students will rhetorically analyze arguments; adopt, narrow, and support a thesis; develop effective research techniques; evaluate sources; and accurately document sources using MLA style. A minimum of 6,300 words of formal writing is required, which equates to at least 3 formal essays, one of which is a 12-page research paper. Students will also learn to write annotated bibliographies and complete a variety of informal writing activities and assignments.
Students enrolled in this course have the option of earning dual credit through Parkland College. Dual credit students earn Parkland credit for ENG 101 (3 credits) for the first semester and credit for ENG 102 (3 credits) for the second semester. Students must pass the first semester with a C or higher to take the second semester for dual credit.
English 10 is a year-long, writing-intensive course that covers literature, vocabulary, and writing activities. Students will read novels, short stories, non-fiction, and drama and will examine the differences among the genres. Students will learn and use new words from their vocabulary study, and they will hone their writing skills by reviewing grammar concepts. Writing instruction emphasizes proper development of introductory and concluding paragraphs, the basic five-paragraph essay, and the research essay. Students must submit a research paper in order to receive credit for the semester.
English 11 is a year-long writing intensive course that focuses on college preparatory writing skills. Students will write in a variety of formats with a focus on persuasive argument. Students will learn the importance of unity, cohesion, supporting materials, and transitions. In addition, this course examines selected American literature leading up to the 20th century. These works demonstrate that many of our contemporary American values have their roots in Puritanical, revolutionary, Romantic, and realistic underpinnings.
English 12 is a year-long writing intensive course that focuses on college preparatory writing skills. Students will write in a variety of formats with a focus on college preparatory writing (i.e. research writing, literary analyses, response essays, etc.). Students will learn the importance of unity, cohesion, supporting materials, and transitions as they analyze literature, study different schools of criticism, and write about different texts. Students will examine selected British literature through reading essays, poetry, plays, and novels. Students will write approximately 4 essays per semester, which range from 2-5 pages each.
Journalism will provide hands-on experience to students interested in journalism as they assume the responsibilities for the writing/publishing of a monthly school newspaper and the annual school yearbook. Students will gain experience in various styles of writing (reporting, editorializing, etc.) and knowledge of each step involved in publication. It should be taken as an elective.
AP English offers qualified students the opportunity to pursue college-level writing skills while still in high school. This is a very rigorous course comparable to English courses in colleges and universities. Therefore, most students will need to spend a significant amount of time studying outside of the classroom. Students will be responsible for reading a variety of rhetorical contexts and writing for a variety of purposes to enable them to communicate effectively in their college courses across the curriculum and in professional lives; writing expository, analytical, and argumentative essays that form the basis of academic and professional communication as well as the personal and reflective writing that fosters the development of writing facility in any context; analyzing primary and secondary sources to synthesize materials into writing; writing essays through several stages and drafts with revisions to become more self-aware and flexible writers; researching to form varied, informed arguments; and considering each source as a text written for a specific audience that they reflect and analyze.
DUAL CREDIT COURSES
Speech Communication is a semester-long course that focuses on the fundamental principles of selecting, analyzing, evaluating, organizing, developing, and communicating information, evidence, and points of view orally. The course includes instruction in techniques of listening and informative, persuasive, and reactive speaking. Students will plan, develop, organize, deliver, and evaluate speeches while learning various skills that help them improve throughout the course. Students with a 3.0 cumulative GPA will have the option of earning 3 credits from Eastern Illinois University. Those students will be required to pay EIU tuition at a reduced rate.
Advanced Literature is a semester-long course in which students will study different types of literature written by diverse authors. These types of literature will include novels, poetry, graphic novels, film, and short stories. There will be in-class assignments, and three major literary analysis essays of 3-5 pages each. Students with a 3.0 cumulative GPA will have the option of earning 3 credits from Eastern Illinois University. Those students will be required to pay EIU tuition at a reduced rate.
Advanced Composition is a writing-intensive course that is the equivalent of Parkland College’s ENG 101 (Composition I) and ENG 102 (Composition II). The first semester emphasizes critical and analytical thinking skills, introduces academic essay writing to students, and challenges students to critically analyze a variety of media texts (previous texts have included public space, music, toys, advertisements, etc.). Essay writing emphasizes the writing process, purpose, audience awareness, focus, organization, development, clarity, and coherence. A minimum of 6,000 words of formal writing is required, which equates to 4 formal essays, ranging from 1,200-2,000 words each. A variety of informal writing activities and assignments are also required.
The second semester emphasizes the research process. Students will rhetorically analyze arguments; adopt, narrow, and support a thesis; develop effective research techniques; evaluate sources; and accurately document sources using MLA style. A minimum of 6,300 words of formal writing is required, which equates to at least 3 formal essays, one of which is a 12-page research paper. Students will also learn to write annotated bibliographies and complete a variety of informal writing activities and assignments.
Students enrolled in this course have the option of earning dual credit through Parkland College. Dual credit students earn Parkland credit for ENG 101 (3 credits) for the first semester and credit for ENG 102 (3 credits) for the second semester. Students must pass the first semester with a C or higher to take the second semester for dual credit.