English 11 B Honors

Syllabus/Course Overview
Spring 2007

Instructor:
Mr. Sheridan
English office: 240-497-6364

Department Objective Focus

Fostering inquiry and helping students develop strong questioning skills and annotating skills when reading and responding to texts.
 

Throughout this semester students will be learning to

• read and listen to acquire literary experience, gain information, perform a task, and derive pleasure.
• reflect upon the creative elements and forms and respond in a critical manner.
• recognize, analyze, and interpret various writing techniques used in poetry, prose, and drama.
• evaluate the author’s use of structural elements appropriate to narrative, informative, persuasive, and expressive writing.
• identify and use specific textual evidence from the works we read to support a personal response to a text.
• write analytical essays that are well-written, well-organized, and well-argued.
• use self-evaluation to improve written work through the process of revision.
• value the integrity of various cultures and societies and recognize their contributions to language and literature.
• recognize how cultural background, gender, and personal experience influence learning and point of view.
• recognize the influence of historical forces on the development of language and literature.
   

Texts (Tentative List)

Selections from Detectives: Stories for Thinking, Solving, and Writing; Robert Eidelberg, editor
A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines
Macbeth by William Shakespeare

We will read, analyze, discuss, and write about these works in three units, Inquiry, Dissonance, and Heritage.
 

Essential Questions

Essential Questions reflect key inquiries and the core ideas of a unit. What follows is a preliminary list of some essential questions we will attempt to answer throughout the course.

Unit 4 — Inquiry

1. What are the elements of research?
2. Where do we find relevant and credible information?
3. How do we determine the validity of information?
4. How do we integrate the facts and ideas found in our research into our own product?

Unit 5 — Dissonance

1. What causes personal or societal dissonance?
2. How are people changed by their experiences with dissonance?
3. When is dissonance resolvable? How can dissonance be resolved?

Unit 6— Heritage

1. How is an individual shaped by the decisions of his/her ancestors?
2. What contribution(s) are you making to the world?
3. For what do you hope to be remembered?
    

Assignments

Students are required to complete a number of Common Tasks in each unit as final assessments of learning. The Common Tasks will include:

• Research paper
• Analytical essays
• Speeches/Presentations
   

Class expectations and rules

Students are expected to follow the school rules as outlined in the student handbook.

If you are absent, you are responsible for keeping up with reading assignments and for making up missed work.

• Treat everyone with respect.
• Come to class prepared with necessary materials.
• Come to class on time.
• Do not bring food to class.
   

Grading Policy

Assignments will be explained in detail and due dates will be clearly stated. Assignments will have a due date and a deadline as stated in the MCPS grading policy (see student handbook). Papers will not be accepted after the deadline.

Grades for each quarter will be determined based upon points accumulated for all assignments. These assignments will include papers, quizzes, tests, presentations, study guides, and projects.

Grading scale:

The following B–CC policies are consistent with the new MCPS Grading and Reporting Policy as outlined in Learning, Grading and Reporting Guidelines (MCPS, 2004). These will apply in all courses offered at B–CC.

• Teachers will assign grades to reflect individual achievement on course objectives.
• Teachers will determine grades based on a variety of assessment methods.
• Teachers will issue progress reports at the 4½-week mark in each quarter.
• Teachers will establish clear due dates and deadlines. The maximum penalty for work submitted after the due date but before the deadline is one letter grade on an A-E scale or 10% on a 100% scale.

Teachers will record 50% as the lowest possible grade if percentages are used except in cases of academic dishonesty.
 

Reteaching/Reassessing Policy

Students will be allowed to be reassessed on assignments as determined by the 11th grade Honors English Team. Students will be informed ahead of time when an assignment may be reassessed. They must show evidence as determined by the teacher and team that they have made an attempt to relearn the material before taking the reassessment. Examples of that evidence include, but are not limited to:

• Coming to the teacher for extra help
• Attending TAP
• Completing practice assignments
• Making corrections on the original assessment/assignment

Reassessment must be done in a timely fashion according to a schedule determined by the teacher and the team. The reassessed grade will replace the original grade.
 

Academic Dishonesty

Students are advised to read carefully the entry entitled “Academic Dishonesty” in the student handbook. Students are expected to follow these guidelines. Plagiarism or cheating will result in a zero on the assignment with no opportunity for resubmission. All cases of academic dishonesty will be referred to school administration.