Course Objectives:
Welcome to Senior English. Most of you already know who I am but I know
there are a lot of you who do not know what to expect from this course or from
me as your teacher. This syllabus will
help to clarify course objectives, my intent, and the necessary information for
successful completion of this class. If
there is any information you cannot find here, it is your responsibility to
make me aware of what you need. I cannot
read your mind and I cannot anticipate all of your individual needs without
your assistance. The primary goal for
this course is to provide you learning opportunities to improve your writing and reading comprehension levels. These skills are broken down into the
following state standards & essential outcomes:
1. Students know and use
word analysis skills and strategies to comprehend new words encountered in
texts.
2. Students use reading
process skills and strategies to build comprehension.
3. Students read to
comprehend, interpret, and evaluate literature from a variety of authors,
cultures and times.
4. Students read to
comprehend, interpret, and evaluate informational texts for specific purposes.
5. Students write a
variety of texts that inform, persuade, describe, evaluate, or tell a story and
are appropriate to purpose and audience.
6. Students write with a
clear focus and logical development, evaluating, revising and editing for
organization, style, tone, and word
choice.
7. Students write using
Standard English grammar, usage, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling.
8. Students listen to
and evaluate oral communications for content, style, speaker's purpose and
audience appropriateness.
9. Students speak, using
organization, style, tone, voice, and media aids appropriate to purpose and
audience.
10. Students participate in discussions to offer
information, clarify ideas, and support a position.
11. Students formulate research questions, use a
variety of sources to obtain information, weigh the evidence, draw valid
conclusions, and present findings.
The
district curriculum for this course is located at : www.elko.k12.nv.us/pages/curriculum_guides.html
The
Nevada State Standards for this course are located at: http://www.doe.nv.gov/standards.html
Course Description:
During the first nine weeks of this English
course, class will generally be split into two daily sections. The first of those sections will concentrate
on writing and writing skills, while the second part of the day will be devoted
to the study of literature specific to the British Tradition. It
must be stated at this time, very little class time will be given over to you
in order to work on essays or other Summative
written assignments.
Participation is not only recommended, it is
vital to your understanding of the course materials. Because of the nature of the course structure,
you will not be able to fake your way past the interim assessments which will
focus on both heuristics (the study of writing) and literature content. If you choose to avoid participation by way
of sleeping or ignoring conversations (state standards 9 & 10) when they
take place you risk not gaining the understanding necessary to pass interim
assessments. At no time will you be allowed to re-take any test. Your opportunity to improve your grade will
come in the form of revising assigned essays and other summative writing
assignments.
Reading is a fundamental aspect of this
course. You should expect to be assigned
reading or a re-reading every day. I
cannot force any of you to read the assignments, but it will quickly become apparent
who is reading and who is not. If you do
not like reading, you will have a difficult time with this course, so if you do
not enjoy reading, you will need to find a way to get through the school year
as best you can. If you are having difficulty comprehending the various passages, I
suggest you share the assignment of reading with a friend or partner. One of the best ways to gain understand of
something is to talk it over with others.
Extending this logic, participation in discussions by asking questions,
offering possible explanations, and actively listening to others will add to
your overall understanding and increase your chances of receiving better grades.
Over the course of the school year, you will
be writing several essays, ranging from 500-1000 words in length. Each of these essays is designed to teach you
by way of practice, various approaches to the writing process, which in turn
will help you to master the standards set forth by the state of Nevada.
The course will be divided into several units
of study. We are going to be using a
modified portfolio system for part of the course work you will be
assigned. The intent of my modified
portfolio system is to allow you to play to your strengths and give you some
say in the assignments you complete. I
will be explaining the portfolio at the appropriate time and be modifying it as
the course progresses to match your needs.
Rationale:
Why English?
The fundamental aspects of language and literature are key to
success. 75% of all CEO's in the Fortune
500 attribute a strong background in writing and literature to their
success. Being able to write and
understand literature widens your perspective and your ability to relate to
others. It's as simple as that. One
final factor for motivation: This is
your last year and without passing both semesters of this class, you will not
graduate.
Textbook and other resources:
1.
Timeless Voices,
Timeless Themes: The British Tradition (Prentice Hall, 2002)
2.
Hamlet. Shakespeare, William.
3.
VARIOUS
.
Class Procedures:
1.
Journal Writing: Each day of class, you will write a journal
entry for the first several minutes of class.
These entries will be turned in on Friday each week and will be entered
in as a Formative Assignment.
2.
Reading Quizzes: Quizzes will be assigned according to the
various reading assignments given in class and will be entered in as Formative
Assignments.
3.
Essay Formatting: All assigned essays will be written in MLA
format.
4.
Late Work: Late work will only be accepted at the
discretion of the teacher, and only for valid causes.
Formative:
Formative work will not be accepted late for credit except as previously
noted.
Summative:
In the case of Summative Assignments, students may arrange with me to
mitigate any missed Summative Assignment by completing alternative assignments as arranged between the student any myself
in a timely manner. These “alternative
assignments” will represent a fair, balanced approach to making up the original
assignment but will consist of more work than the original assignment.
5.
Participation: All students are expected to participate in
class discussions and activities.
Participation is your best opportunity to improve the chances of doing
well on summative assignments.
Grading:
Students will accumulate
points throughout the nine weeks. Points
will come from the following categories, and will be based on the following
percentages:
·
Category
1: Formative 30%
·
Category
2: Summative 70%.
Assignments
1.
Major Assessments
a. Essays:
During the 18 weeks of this course, you will be assigned various written
assignments designed to improve your ability to write about a single subject.
b. Exams:
Throughout the semester, you will be given exams derived from the
in-class and homework reading assignments, as well as pertinent aspects of the
writing process. These exams are a
measurement of your ability to comprehend and discuss the major themes
presented in class.
c. Writer
Workshops: Most Fridays you are in class, you will be
assigned to participate in a writer's workshop.
These are considered summative assignments based upon
participation. If you are absent, it is
your responsibility to make up the time/work before or after school.
d. Class
Discussions: During the study of major works of
literature, you will be required to participate in student led class
discussions. These discussions are
summative. You must participate four
times in a significant manner to receive full credit.
2.
Daily Assignments:
a. Journal
b. Silent
reading
c. Participation
d. Reading
Quizzes
e. Formative
writing assignments
3.
Homework:
a. Readings:
Most days you will be given a reading assignment. These reading assignments will be monitored
by the use of quizzes.
b. Written
work: Most written work assigned should be
considered as homework because most class time will be taken up with learning
writing strategies and the discussion of literature.
Grading System:
All assignments, regardless of whether
they are formative or summative, will be graded on a 4 point scale:
4
= Exceeds Standards 90-100% (A)
3
= Meets Standards 80-89% (B)
2
= Approaches Standards 70-79% (C)
1=
Below Standards 60-69% (D)
0
= Insufficient Evidence 0-59% (F)
The purpose of this scale is to help
make the transition to a standards based grading system. Some of the math does not appear to be
correct, but it reflects the need to perform at a certain level to be considered
proficient at any various assigned task.
In addition, the actual percentages are irrelevant because the real
measure of a grade is based upon whether or not the evidence you provide
suggests you are exceeding, meeting, or not addressing the standards set forth. Grades for Summative assignments will be
calculated on a traditional letter grade/percentage scale for ease and
convenience of students and parents, but be translated to the 4 point scale
when put in the grade book. These
numbers will be carried over to two decimal points (e.g. 3.5 or 2.75).
A Word on Formative
Assessments:
In order to assure the impact of
certain Formative assignments will have upon the final grade, not all Formative
assignments will be graded. For example,
I will collect journals every week, but a maximum of 6 journals throughout the
semester will be counted towards your final grades. Further, because the assigned readings are of
such importance to the successful completion of this course, content and
concepts from the quizzes will account for at least 50% of your reading exams
and your semester exam grade, whether that is five questions or thirty
questions for each of these tests.
Make up work:
Policy: Students will have two days
for every day they are excused for being absent to make up their work. Assignments
will be left blank until the work has been turned in or time has expired. If a
student is absent (excused) the day assigned work is due (e.g. an essay) the
assigned work is due the day they return.
If not turned in, the grade entered will be a “0.”
Assessment Re-Test
Opportunities:
All students have the opportunity to revise summative writing assignments. Students will be given at least one full week after they receive their paper after it has been graded to revise and re-submit for a better grade. Reading exams and Unit Exams are not open for this option.
Returning work to the
student:
Students will have the opportunity to review
their major assignments, but because of the nature of a split between the
sections of this course, all major assignments must be returned to the instructor.
Student Discipline
Policies:
As seniors you are in a unique position. Some of you are legally adults, but more
importantly, you are in your final year of high school. As such, I expect you to act as adults. Simply put, I do not believe in disciplinary
problems with seniors. Either you are a
willing participant in this class as far as behavior goes or you should
leave. If my authority or guidelines are
challenged from a behavioral perspective, my first response is to remove you
from class and require a face to face meeting with your parents, where you will
explain to them why they were required to come to the school. All standards and school policies will be
enforced.
A Few
Words on Cheating & Plagiarism
Make no mistake about
my views on cheating and plagiarism. If
I catch you cheating or plagiarizing on an assignment, you will be referred to the administration for disciplinary measures at
the administration’s discretion, and I will schedule a conference with your
parents and the counseling office. This
will happen every time I catch you.
Cheating (which plagiarism is) is defined by all of the following
activities:
1.
Copying
in part or whole another person’s work, words, and/or ideas and attempting to
pass it off as your own.
2.
Copying
in part or whole another person’s work, words, and/or ideas and neglecting to
give credit to that person.
3.
Having
someone complete assigned work for you.
4.
Completing
assigned work for someone else.
5.
Looking
at another person’s answer sheet during a test or quiz.
6.
Allowing
someone to look on you test or quiz for the answers.
7.
Attempting
in any
way to subvert the directions given for any assignment or test.
Be warned: I
only accuse someone of cheating or plagiarism when I have irrefutable evidence,
so if I make the charge, it will stick.
Be further warned: The
Common Core Standards addresses Plagiarism.
"Gather relevant
information from multiple print and digital sources, assess the credibility and
accuracy of each source, and integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism."
As such, plagiarism
fits squarely in the realm of something which affects your grade. Because it is a standard for you to avoid
plagiarism, you need to be aware if it has been determined you have plagiarized
and assignment in my class, you will be given a "0" for that
assignment. You also need to keep in
mind I am the person who determines which assignments you may re-attempt or
mitigate. The severity of your
plagiarism will determine whether I allow you to re-attempt the assignment.
Availability for Extra
Help:
1.
Please
see me before school or after school.
2.
You
may request to be placed with me for guided instruction.
Students are encouraged
to come see me before or after school for additional help and explanations of
concepts or help in approaching summative work as the course requires. Students should also make arrangements to
come see me during guided instruction.
It is not only my job to help when a student asks for help, but it is
one of the more enjoyable aspects of my work to interact with students on a
one-to-one basis. In the long run,
coming to me will be helpful to you, more so than asking a classmate who might
be guessing or to simply let the opportunity slide.
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