AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016
Instructor:
Natalie Elliott Room C101
[email protected]
Conference Period & Tutorials: Conference Period & Tutorials: 7th period Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. Tutorials Monday-Thursday mornings, 7:45-8:25. Afternoons by appointment. Texts: Men versus the Man by Robert Rives La Monte and H.L. Mencken Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence by Geoffrey Canada Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe The Jungle by Upton Sinclair A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry Native Son by Richard Wright or Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison Q3 Dealer’s Choice Reading Selection: The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, or The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath *Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition edited by Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz *Suggested, though not required, for this course.
AP Language and Composition Course Description Excerpted from the College Board The AP English Language Composition course provides students with opportunities to write about a variety of subjects from a variety of disciplines and to demonstrate an awareness of audience and purpose. The overarching objective in most first-year writing courses is to enable students to write effectively and confidently in their college courses across curriculum and in their professional and personal lives. Most composition courses emphasize the expository, analytical, and argumentative writing that forms 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. As in the college course, the purpose of the AP English Language and Composition course is to enable students to read complex texts with understanding and to write prose of sufficient richness and complexity to communicate effectively with mature readers. An AP English Language and Composition course should help students move beyond such programmatic responses as the fiveparagraph essay that provides an introduction with a thesis and three reasons, body paragraphs on each reason, and a conclusion that restates the thesis. Although such formulaic approaches may provide minimal organization, they often encourage unnecessary repetition and fail to engage the reader. Students should be encouraged to place their emphasis on content, purpose and audience and to allow this focus to guide the organization of their writing.
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016 College writing programs recognize that skill in writing proceeds from students’ awareness of their own composing processes: the way they explore ideas and draft and revise their work. This experience of the process of composing is the essence of the first-year writing course, and the AP English Language and Composition course will emphasize this process, asking students to write essays that proceed through several stages or drafts, with revision aided by teacher and peers. Students write in both informal and formal contexts to gain authority and learn to take risks in writing. Imitation exercises, journal keeping, collaborative writing and in-class responses are all good ways of helping students become increasingly aware of themselves as writers and of the techniques employed by the writers as they read. As well as engaging in varied writing tasks, students become acquainted with a wide variety of prose styles from many disciplines and historical periods and gain understanding of the connections between writing and interpretive skill in reading. In addition, the informed use of research materials and the ability to synthesize varied sources (to evaluate, use, and cite sources) are integral parts of the AP Language and Composition course. Students move past assignments that allow for the uncritical citation of sources and, instead, take up projects that call on them to evaluate the legitimacy and purpose of sources used. One way to help students synthesize and evaluate their sources in this way is the researched argument paper. Course Objectives Upon completing the AP English Language and Composition course, then, students should be able to: analyze and interpret samples of good writing, identifying and explaining an author’s use of rhetorical strategies and techniques; apply effective strategies and techniques in their own writing; create and sustain arguments based on readings, research and/or personal experience; write for a variety of purposes; produce expository, analytical and argumentative compositions that introduce a complex central idea and develop it with appropriate evidence drawn from primary and/or secondary sources, cogent explanations and clear transitions; demonstrate understanding and mastery of standard written English as well as stylistic maturity in their own writings; demonstrate understanding of the conventions of citing primary and secondary sources; move effectively through the stages of the writing process, with careful attention to inquiry and research, drafting, revising, editing and review; write thoughtfully about their own process of composition; revise a work to make it suitable for a different audience; analyze image as text; and evaluate and incorporate reference documents into researched papers. Course Requirements It is required that a student enrolled in an AP course at NYOS take the associated AP exam for that course to ensure that the student is as prepared for college as possible. Towards the end of January, Bethany Watts will furnish information about test registration. Updated prices will be released and communicated as soon as they are made available (the prices last year were $91
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016 per exam, or less if you met the requirements for free and reduced lunch). Please plan accordingly. Assignment Expectations The majority of outside work assignments will be process or “prepared” writings. This means that, unless noted otherwise, the expectation is that these drafts will be taken through the writing process, sometimes required for in-class revision exercises. Final copies must be typed, doublespaced, and formatted consistent with MLA guidelines. These essays will be submitted via Turnitin.com. Course ID information for Turnitin.com will be communicated at the beginning of the year. Student Progress Tracking Expectations Each quarter, I will furnish you with a list of objectives that represent the College Board requirements for this course and other learning goals to prepare you for success on the AP English Language exam. As we cover those objectives throughout the course (usually they will be clearly identified on the posted daily Agenda), I expect you to keep track of your own progress, rating what you understand and what you need more practice with, so that you can take an active responsibility in your learning. At the end of each quarter, you will confer with me oneon-one to discuss your progress and action plan for hitting all of your learning goals by the time of the exam administration. Missed Work If you are absent, check with your neighbor to see what you have missed, review the work, and then ask me any questions. It is the student’s responsibility to ask for any handouts or assignments that they need to complete their make-up work. According to NYOS guidelines, for each day you are absent you will have one day to complete any missed assignments. Tests or projects will be due on the day of your return. Major papers assigned in advance of the absence are still due on the day in question, unless you have requested an extension. Late Work Per NYOS policy, late work cannot be accepted in an AP course. Deadlines can be negotiated on an as-needed basis, but conference with me beforehand is required. This would be the expectation in a college course, so it is the expectation of an AP course. Grading Scale 90–100 80–89 70–79 Below 70
A B C F
Quarter Grade Breakdown Classwork and participation Quizzes Tests, essays, and projects Homework and multiple-choice practice
20% 30% 40% 10%
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016 Supply List 3x5 index cards Pens/pencils Highlighters College-ruled notebook paper Spiral notebook 1 Box of Kleenex Advanced Placement Examination The 2016 exam will take place on Wednesday, 11 May at 8 AM. Course Outline QUARTER 1: THE PERSONAL IS POLITICAL Required Readings: “Tense Present: Democracy, English, and the Wars Over Usage” by David Foster Wallace “Learning to Read and Write” by Frederick Douglass “Learning to Read” by Malcolm X Chapter 7, “Structuring Arguments” from Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence by Geoffrey Canada “The Position of Poverty” by John Kenneth Galbraith “Brown v. Board of Education” Opinion by Chief Justice Earl Warren Viewing: The Central Park Five directed by Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon Chapter 10, “Evaluations” from Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition “On History” by Thomas Carlyle “The Allegory of the Cave” excerpt from The Republic by Plato “The Morals of the Prince” by Niccolò Machiavelli “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” by Frederick Douglass Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe Clips from Gone with the Wind directed by Victor Fleming, George Cukor, and Sam Wood “Cabin Fever” by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. “Affirmative Action: The Price of Preference” by Shelby Steele “The Case for Reparations” by Ta-Nehisi Coates “Nonmoral Nature” by Stephen Jay Gould Chapter 8, “Arguments of Fact” from Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition Assessments: Rhetorical analysis exercises (visual and prose texts) Sentence and paragraph imitation exercises Graded class discussions Descriptive and prescriptive multiple-choice question practice Two (2) assertion briefs: quick-turnaround position papers on current events One (1) synthesis essay on Fist Stick Knife Gun and two supplemental texts One (1) précis of an academic article
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016
One (1) rhetorical analysis jigsaw discussion of three texts, with synthesis questions Three (3) vocabulary quizzes One (1) timed writing: rhetorical analysis Process essay: Argument of fact
QUARTER 2: JUST THE FACTS Required Readings: Chapter 12, “Proposals” from Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition “Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau Viewing: The Statue of Liberty directed by Ken Burns The Jungle by Upton Sinclair Selections from “The Pentagon Papers” by Neil Sheehan, et al. Selections from “The Watergate Story” by Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, et al. Selections from “The NSA Story” by Glen Greenwald Listening: Excerpts from “Retraction” episode of This American Life “High Explosive for Everyone” by Martha Gellhorn Excerpt from “Sentimental Journeys” by Joan Didion A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry “The Last Tower” by Ben Austen “The People Who Pass” by Adam Gopnik “Germs Are Us” by Michael Specter “The Superorganism” by E.O. Wilson “Humanities and Science” by Lewis Thomas Chapter 11, “Causal Arguments” from Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition Listening: “Trends with Benefits” episode of This American Life Assessments: Rhetorical analysis exercises (visual and prose texts) Sentence and paragraph imitation exercises Descriptive and prescriptive multiple-choice question practice Graded class discussions Two (2) précis of reported articles One (1) argument analysis jigsaw discussion of three texts, with synthesis questions Process essay: Argument of proposal One (1) timed writing: rhetorical analysis One (1) timed writing: argument Two (2) student-curated vocabulary quizzes One (1) reverse-synthesis scavenger hunt exercise One draft of research questions One annotated bibliography One thesis outline and works cited from researched causal argument Process essay: Causal argument (research-based argument) Semester exam (multiple choice, argument timed writing, annotation) QUARTER 3: WAYS OF SEEING
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016
Required Readings: Chapter 9, “Arguments of Definition” from Everything’s an Argument, 6th Edition “Seeing” by Annie Dillard Viewing: The Thin Blue Line directed by Errol Morris Chapter 2 from Ways of Seeing by John Berger “The Subjection of Women” by John Stuart Mill Native Son by Richard Wright or Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison “Everybody’s Protest Novel” by James Baldwin “The White Negro” by Norman Mailer “Michael” by John Jeremiah Sullivan “Denmark and the Jews” by Hannah Arendt Viewing: “Rothko: Black on Maroon” from Simon Schama’s The Power of Art “In Plato’s Cave” by Susan Sontag “Bonnie and Clyde” by Pauline Kael “Dylan” by Ellen Willis Dealer’s Choice Reading Selection: The Crucible by Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, or The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath Excerpt from The Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin “The Serpent” by E.O. Wilson “Mr. Lytle: An Essay” by John Jeremiah Sullivan Assessments: Rhetorical analysis exercises (visual and prose texts) Sentence and paragraph imitation exercises Descriptive and prescriptive multiple-choice question practice Graded class discussions Process essay: Argument of definition One (1) argument analysis jigsaw discussion of three texts, with synthesis questions One (1) timed writing: rhetorical analysis Two (2) timed writings: argument One (1) timed writing: synthesis Two (2) student-curated vocabulary quizzes Process essay: Argument of evaluation One (1) précis of a personal essay One (1) personal essay QUARTER 4: THE MEDIUM IS THE MESSAGE Required Readings: “The Medium is the Message” by Marshall McLuhan “Teaching Culture” by Simon During “Generation Why?” by Zadie Smith “Chapels” by Pico Iyer “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016 “The Sahara of the Bozarts” by H.L. Mencken Excerpt from In Defense of Women by H.L. Mencken “Good Souls” by Dorothy Parker “Advice to Youth” by Mark Twain “The United States of Lyncherdom” by Mark Twain “Radical Chic: That Party at Lenny’s” by Tom Wolfe Viewing: Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb directed by Stanley Kubrick Viewing: Bob Roberts directed by Tim Robbins Independent Reading Selection Assessments: Rhetorical analysis exercises (visual and prose texts) Sentence and paragraph imitation exercises Graded class discussions Descriptive and prescriptive multiple-choice question practice One (1) argument analysis jigsaw discussion of three texts, with synthesis questions Two (2) timed writings: argument One (1) timed writing: synthesis Two (2) précis of satirical essays Annotations on independent reading selection Process essay: Wild card (on independent reading selection) Semester exam Independent Reading List: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Moby Dick by Herman Melville Portrait of a Lady by Henry James The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin Wise Blood by Flannery O’Connor The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams Catch-22 by Joseph Heller A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole The Color Purple by Alice Walker Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016 COURSE SCOPE & SEQUENCE Theme Essential Questions
1st Quarter The Personal is Political
2nd Quarter Just the Facts
How do America’s origins impact its culture even in present day?
What is the American Dream, and to what extent is it achievable for all Americans?
How does a literary work respond to the culture of its time?
What moral responsibilities does rhetoric have in American culture?
Political rhetoric, activist literature, debates in public policy. Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence by Geoffrey Canada
3rd Quarter Ways of Seeing
4th Quarter The Medium is the Message
How has the American Dream changed over time?
How do Americans represent and explore identity in an increasingly complex society?
Are independence and dependence separable or inseparable?
What is effective communication in our information-saturated age?
Reportage technique, current events, research.
Questions of race and gender, larger implications of the personal experience.
Interpreting media and culture, the power of creative expression, the impact of satire.
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
Excerpt from The Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft
“The Medium is the Message” by Marshall McLuhan
Focus
Reading
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansbery Prose selections from AP materials.
Native Son by Richard Wright
Prose selections from AP materials.
Writing
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Rhetorical Analysis Essay
Argument of Proposal Essay
Argument of Fact Essay
Reporting Project
Prose selections from AP materials. Argument of Definition Essay
“A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift “The Sahara of the Bozart” by H.L. Mencken Excerpts from In Defense of Women by H.L. Mencken Prose selections from AP materials. Open Topic/Wild Card Essay Timed Practice Essays
Timed Practice Essays
Outside Reading
Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence by Geoffrey Canada
Causal Research Synthesis Essay
Argument of Evaluation Essay Personal Essay
Timed Practice Essays
Timed Practice Essays
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Selected Readings
Native Son by Richard Wright
Selected Readings Independent Reading Selection
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Selected Readings
Selected Readings Viewing & Listening
Clips from Gone with the Wind directed by Victor Fleming, George Cukor, and Sam Wood
The Statue of Liberty directed by Ken Burns Excerpts from “Retraction,” This American Life
The Thin Blue Line directed by Errol Morris “Rothko’s Black on Maroon” from Simon Schama’s The Power of Art
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, directed by Stanley Kubrick, 1964
AP LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION SYLLABUS, 2015–2016 Letter of Introduction
Greetings Parents/Guardians: I hope that I get the chance to meet you in person, but in the event that I don’t, I would like to introduce myself to you. This will be my third year working in NYOS’s English department, and I am excited to have your student in my AP English Language & Composition class. Please note that the best way to reach is me is via email. I check email frequently throughout the day, so rest assured your queries will be addressed in a timely manner. The AP English Language course will be challenging—this is a year in which students begin their transition into college-level work, and I will be incorporating more rigorous assignments and readings into the curriculum. Please know that this is done with the intent to prepare and support your students, not to intimidate them. Readings may occasionally contain mature subject matter, and discussions about hard realities of the human condition may arise. Please take some time to review the syllabus with your student, so that you are aware of the rigor, content, and expectations. I would appreciate it if you would sign this letter and have your student return it to me no later than Monday, August 3, 2015. Again, I very much look forward to collaborating with you to achieve your student’s success in this course.
All best, Natalie Elliott
[email protected] Your student’s name: Please print your name: Phone number (best to reach you): Email address (if any): Do you give permission to be contacted via phone or email with updates about your student’s grades, behavior, or performance-related information? (Yes/No): Any other emergency contact:
Signature: ___________________________________