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AP
ENGLISH |
We have three sections, a new one taught by Kathryn Walker, a section taught by Molly (Maya) Richman Inspektor, and one taught by Debra Bell.
Instructor: Kathryn L. Walker
Tuition: $525
Course Overview: This is a college-level course in which students will prepare for the Advanced Placement Language and Composition exam by engaging in critical reading, writing, and discussion. The stated purpose of the course is to “emphasize the expository, analytical, and argumentative writing that forms the basis of academic and professional communication.” Students will learn to read texts closely to determine the author’s purpose and means of conveying his message. Students will also engage in analysis of film, art, and audio recordings to better understand communication and texts. Students will develop skills in narrating, analyzing, and arguing through examining texts from various time periods and genres and through writing formal and informal responses to them in various modes. Timed essays and practice tests will help prepare students for the exam.
Course Texts:
A. To be acquired by
the student:
A Rulebook for Arguments by Anthony Heston
The Elements of Style by Strunk and White
Cliff’s AP Language and Composition, 3rd edition
Beowulf (text and/or audio recording read by Seamus Heaney, translator)
Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Patton
The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Hard Times by Charles Dickens
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
B. To be provided by
the teacher:
To Russell, My Brother, Whom I have Slept With by Bill Cosby (voice recording)
A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift
Poetry by Wordsworth, Blake, Tennyson, Yeats, Browning, and Eliot
Selections from The Stones of
Selections from The Idea of a University by John Henry Newman
“Politics and the English Language” by George Orwell
“The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Elliot
“The Legacy” by Virginia Woolfe
“Araby” by James Joyce
“I have a Dream” by Martin Luther King
“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” by Jonathan Edwards
“The
“Votes for Women” by Mark Twain
“The Apology of Socrates” by Plato
Three Rhetorical
Units:
Unit I: The Narrative
Students will examine the tools of narration, including repetition, chiasmus, antithesis, hyperbole, metonymy, irony, etc. Narrative works will range from Beowulf to Bill Cosby’s contemporary comedy. Students will discuss what makes a good narrative, analyze and write in response to narrative works, and create their own narrative work in the form of a Chaucerian-style retelling.
Unit II: The Argument
Students will study logical syllogisms and fallacies through A Rulebook for Arguments to help them craft meaningful arguments. Students will argue through a variety of modes: satire, letters to the editor, persuasive essays, and debates. Students will craft an argumentative research essay giving their perspective on the purpose education ought to serve, analyzing Newman and Dickens as they do so (this assignment makes an excellent foundation for college decisions!). Topics for argumentation will also include current events.
Unit
Students will examine the relationship of human consciousness to language, writing, and reading through the works of Orwell, Joyce, Wolfe, and T.S. Eliot. Through studying the role of the writer’s voice to persuade, engage, and argue, they will examine the careful use of language and its effect upon their reader’s experience. They will study stream of consciousness works as well as a variety of notable speeches, from various eras and countries, and determine how the speechwriters worked upon human language and consciousness. Students will craft a written speech of their own to demonstrate their rhetorical abilities.
Technical Details: Course assignments and interaction will take place through a website specific to this course. Assignments will be posted weekly, and graded work will be returned promptly. Students will interact through discussion boards, peer reviews, and reflection groups. Audio files, links to articles and resources, and documents will be posted to the website and provided through email for student access. Students will work with their peers and instructor to revise their work in stages through topic proposals, drafts, and peer reviews. All papers will be written using Modern Language Association (MLA) citations. Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style will serve as our text for the technicalities of strong writing, such as focusing word usage and sentence structure, crafting the thesis statement, and developing adroit transitions.
Workload: Weekly coursework will generally include 50-100 pages of reading, an essay or work on a major essay, and participation on the class discussion board. I also give occasional short quizzes.
Student Qualifications: Open to students in 10th-12th grade. Students should be competent readers and writers, but don’t let the reading list scare you; we will work together through the difficult texts. Students need Microsoft Word and Internet access.
Class Schedule:
Instructor
Qualifications: A graduate of PHAA, I hold a B.A in English from
Instructor Availability: I anticipate being in close contact with students and will be engaged with them in discussion boards, as well as available through email, phone, and Skype to provide any support or guidance students need. I am also happy to provide recommendation letters for students in the college application process.
Click here to download an application for Ms. Walker’s AP Language class
Instructor: Maya Inspektor (minspektor “at” pahomeschoolers “d0t” com)
Course fee: $575.
Note: this course is open to 10th, 11th and 12th graders. I occasionally admit 9th graders who present exceptional credentials.
Required texts:
·
The Writer’s Presence: A Pool of Readings,
5th Edition; McQuade,
Donald and Atwan, Robert (Bedford/St. Martin’s). It's important that you get this edition so
that readings and page numbers match up, as the 6th edition has
already been released. Check Amazon.com for inexpensive used copies!
· Cliffs AP English Language and Composition prep guide, 3rd ed, by Barbara Swovelin
· The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White (The summer reading assignment. Any edition is acceptable, but be sure you buy a version by Strunk and White rather than one only by Strunk.)
· The Story of My Life, by Helen Keller (any edition, even a free e-text.)
· Hunger of Memory, by Richard Rodriguez (any edition)
· Walden, by Henry David Thoreau (any edition, even a free e-text.)
Suggested Text:
Grammar
Smart: A Guide to Perfect usage http://pahomeschoolers.c2.ixwebhosting.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=32&products_id=48 (While I will not
assign work from this text, I strongly recommend it to students who need to
brush up on the finer points of grammatical writing. It's excellent preparation
for the writing section of the
Registration deadline: Applications will be accepted through August 1st, though the class may fill up sooner.
Tech needs: Full web and printer access (broadband Internet recommended but not required). Students will also need to be able to view PDF files.
Length of course:
Hours of study each
week: Approximately 10-12 hours. (We don't meet at set class times; rather,
you will have assignments due by
Who should apply: Students with a love for words, argumentation, and reading who would like to invest time and energy into exploring language more deeply. As this is a beginning college-level writing course, students should come in with the ability to write with relatively minimal grammar errors. They do not need extensive experience with formal literary analysis or essay writing.
Course description: This highly interactive course is designed to prepare students for the AP English Language and Composition exam in May. Students will learn to understand complicated texts and write with complexity, clarity and polish. Essentially, the goal of an AP English Language and Composition course is for students to develop maturity, both as readers and writers. To reach this goal, this course will involve extensive reading, writing, and online discussion.
Reading and writing nonfiction lies at the heart of the AP English Language and Composition exam. Students should anticipate reading 30-50 pages (mostly engaging nonfiction essays) and writing one essay (or the equivalent) weekly. I think students will be happily surprised to discover just how engaging nonfiction writing can be, from Helen Keller's dramatic autobiography about emerging from a silent, dark world to Sherman Alexie's humorous account of how Superman helped him learn to read. We will also study image as text, critiquing Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoons and photographs. Students will track down logical fallacies in politicians' speeches (not too hard of an assignment, I'm afraid!) and read satire from Jonathan Swift and Langston Hughes. Nonfiction readings prepare students for readings in every discipline of college study, but that doesn't mean they need to be dry! In addition, students will choose novels, plays, and nonfiction works to study either independently or in interactive “book clubs” with their classmates throughout the year.
Course writing will vary greatly. During the year, students will compose journal entries, discussion question responses, argumentative papers and analytic essays. They will also write several personal narratives, which in my experience have been the most fun to read (and sometimes have resulted in publication). They will write a researched argument paper that they can submit as an entry to a scholarship competition. Throughout the year, I will emphasize the writing process, as students move from prewriting to drafting and revisions with the help of extensive critique from both their classmates and from me.
Finally, let's not forget one of our ultimate focuses: throughout the year, but particularly at the end, students will engage in guided test preparation for the AP English Language and Composition exam.
Our readings will center around three driving questions:
1. How does language and literacy change who we are? For example, how did learning the word for “water” change Helen Keller's experience of water? How did the acquisition of English change Richard Rodriguez's identity?
2. What does it mean to get an education? Why does Richard Rodriguez try so hard to be the “scholarship boy”? What struck Joyce Carol Oates about her childhood school? What are arguments for (and against) homeschooling?
3. How can we use words to change the world? How do we critically examine the words used by politicians? How to writers craft arguments? What is Henry David Thoreau trying to accomplish in his story of retreat from society?
I have been very proud by my students' performance in the past. For example, in 2008-2009, not only did more than two thirds of my students earn scores of 4 or 5 on the exam at the end of the year (with 5 as the most common grade), but two of my students won $1000 college scholarships for the Peace Essay Contest entries they completed as part of the class. I look forward to even better results in the future!
Instructor
Qualifications: This is my third year teaching online AP English Language,
and I feel I grow into a better teacher every year. I graduated summa cum laude
from the
Details: I am happy to respond to any and all questions about the class. My e-mail is minspektor “AT” pahomeschoolers “D0T” com. (Note: my spam filter occasionally diverts e-mails from certain addresses coming to this account. If you don't hear back from me within a few days, please try sending a message to yiyehtov “AT” gmail “DOT” com or contact me via PA Homeschoolers.)
Click here to class reviews from participants in Mrs. Inspektor's section of the class.
Click here to download an application for Mrs. Inspektor's AP Language class.
Instructor: Debra Bell (debrabell2000@yahoo.com). To Apply: request an application from the instructor.
Tuition: $550.
Technical Requirements
· Course is run through Google Groups and Snitz Forums. Students need a Google account (free) to access.
· Assignments are posted to the syllabus page and must be downloaded as Word or PDF files. I use Word 2007 and 2003.
· Weekly e-mails with attachments are sent to students. Students must submit assignments via e-mail as attachments in Word or an .rtf (rich text file).
· Students work collaboratively with group members however they arrange. Some use Google Docs, others use Word and the Comment Tool. Some use Gchat, Facebook, the Snitz Forums to collaborate. They must collaborate in a format where I can also see their collaboration (and individual group member’s contributions.)
· I comment on student work via Comment (called Review in 2007) Tool in Word. Students really should have Word to make this course less frustrating.
Course Description
The main reason I’m developing the course is to give students an opportunity to grow as critical thinkers and effective writers of reflection and argument. (See: Stephen Toulmin’s The Uses of Argument as one approach of interest).
I also think students who’ve already taken an AP Language class will still find this course beneficial. One can always take another writing course.
Here is a bit of an overview of what we will be doing:
· We will be researching and writing an extensive research paper (20 pp.) on a current topic of interest to the student. This starts in October and last until mid-March (students write this in eight parts). This goes through multiple revisions and it is worth at least 1/3 of the points awarded in the course.
· Students will learn to recognize and use a wide range of rhetorical strategies in their writing.
· Students will write reflective and argument essays.
· Students will make several arguments using new media and post these online (e.g. videos, photo essays, posters).
· Students will organize into collaborative groups in order to read, write and discuss/debate topics of interest. Students will help determine the topics this coming summer, but possibilities include movies, music, politics, education, globalization, immigration, beauty, technology, sports, online social networks, gaming, etc. You get the idea – current issues.
Course Objectives:
· To prepare students to succeed on the AP English Language and Composition exam.
· To help students write with elegance, perception and persuasion about life and culture.
· To help students recognize the rhetorical and linguistic choices writers make when composing non-fiction for narrative, expository or argumentation purposes
· To prepare college-bound students to confront divergent opinions on campus; and to make their own contribution to the broader culture through writing that is winsome and well-reasoned.
One Important Note:
As you might infer from the reading list, this course will take a look, in part, at the Christian faith as an idea worth defending; students of other persuasions are more than welcomed to participate; all perspectives will be respected. Students should be willing to look at current cultural issues from a number of viewpoints and courteously but unflinchingly evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of those views.
Required Texts
Everything’s An Argument (4th edition) by Lunsford and Ruszkiewicz
The Reason for God by Tim Keller
Blue Like Jazz by Don Miller
Ideal Students
· 10th grade at least and 15 years old. The content of this course requires emotional maturity and consideration. We write about and respond to what others have said on a wide array of subjects where a range of opinions exist.
· Committed to collaborating with others weekly. This is important – if students prefer to work alone and do not have time to fulfill their end of the bargain in group work then this is not the right course for you.
Instructor’s Qualifications
M.A. in English, B.S. in communications education. M. Ed. in
educational psychology (2009). Currently, I am in the dissertation phase of a
PhD in educational psychology through
Instructor’s
Availability:
I am almost always online, and willing to communicate with parents and students via Gchat. (debraabell@gmail.com). However, there are times when I have deadlines myself – tests, papers, meetings, speaking engagements, etc. So my response time to students can vary from 5 seconds to 48 hours. But it generally does not exceed that.
I do my best to grade assignments within one week. I’d say I have about a 90% success rate with that. The research paper in particular (which reaches 20 pages) can take a bit longer.
Click here to class reviews from participants in Mrs. Bell’s section of the class.
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