Course Syllabus

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English II Syllabus (PDF Version)cougar.png

Cory McDowell

cory.mcdowell@ucps.k12.nc.us

Classroom Ext.: (704) 296-3088 || 7163

 

Welcome to English II!!

 

Course Overview

In this course, we will begin to study world literature through the examination of texts from the Americas (North, South, and Central), Africa, Asia, Western Europe, and the Middle East. Students will also be introduced to critical writing. As a class, we will examine (through close-reading) the elements of the literature. The goal of this course is to learn aspects of other cultures and languages through reading, writing, speaking, and of course, thinking.

Part of the core requirements for this class is writing. Our goal is to have you as college ready as possible. This includes: argumentative, narrative, expository, persuasive, literary analysis, and compare/contrast papers. As students here at CATA, you are expected to use outside sources and form a comprehensive research essay of at least 3-4 pages.




Materials

  1. A composition notebook for daily writing. This will serve as your daybook. You will put handouts (taped or stapled) and your writing in this book. Everything we do on a day-to-day basis.
  2. Loose leaf paper or notebook
  3. Some sort of folder or binder for papers/handouts
  4. Pens and/or pencils
  5. Chromebook!!

 

Procedures for Class

  1. Be respectful. To EVERYONE!
  2. Be prepared. Make sure you are ready when the bell rings. No one has time for shuffling, plugging in Chromebooks, etc.
  3. Be focused. I think this goes without saying. I WILL call on you to participate if I feel you’re not staying focused and on task.
  4. Be active. PARTICIPATE in discussions, helping your classmates, asking questions, etc.
  5. All graded materials NOT submitted through Canvas need to be put in the appropriate tray on the table.
  6. NO restroom breaks in the first or last 15 minutes of class.

 

Quizzes/Essays

You will have various quizzes throughout the semester. Quizzes will mainly be reading and vocabulary quizzes. I will never give a quiz unannounced unless I feel that the work is not being done (i.e. half the class decides they don’t want to read when they’re supposed to).

Essays will be of various scope (expository, critical, analytical, etc.) throughout the semester. Rubrics will be provided per essay. We will have several writing sessions, seminars, and peer-review opportunities along with the assignments. ALL essays will be submitted through Canvas using the plagiarism checker.

 

Late Work

I am not a fan of late work. Late work makes more work for me to do. However, I understand life and things happen. I will accept late work after an absence within two days after your absence. This means ONLY the work you missed on the day you were absent NOT work for the day you come back. Readings will be posted in Canvas daily. If you are absent, make sure you check the readings for the day you are coming back.

 

Attendance/Tutoring

Attendance is paramount to your success. If you miss a class, it is YOUR responsibility to make-up any work that you missed. As stated above and in your student handbook, you have TWO days to make up work after an absence.

I will offer tutoring on Mondays from 3:30 until 4:30. Our class is big. This will be the time you can see me outside of class for extra help and understanding, or even if you didn’t get a chance to ask a question or get clarification in class. Feel free to stop by even just for 10 minutes.

As well as tutoring, Mrs. Barron and Ms. Foreman offer a Writing Lab to help students with their writing and questions. See the fliers by all English classrooms for more information.

 

Grading

This course will be graded on the ten-point scale and will be broken down into four categories:

  1. Major projects/essays/tests: 40%
  2. Quizzes: 30%
  3. Participation: 20%
  4. Homework: 10%

 

Grading Scale:

A  90 - 100

B  80 - 89

C  70 - 79

D  60 - 69

F   0 - 59

 

Grading Composition: Course work will make up 75% of your final grade; the final exam will make-up 25% of your final grade based on your performance on the North Carolina Final Exam.

 

Units (preliminary and subject to change)

*Each unit will include vocabulary, written responses (creative and reading responses), and historical background, as well as, other assignments on a weekly/daily basis.

 

Unit I: Fairytales From Around the World/Short Stories (Various African and European selections)

Introduction to Research and Research Paper/Milestones

Introduction to your groups and Literary Theories

2 weeks

 

Unit II: Poetry (Various) *During this unit, students will select and participate in Poetry Out Loud. This is not optional!

Formal Assessment: Poetry Out Loud

Project I: Music Project

2 weeks

 

Unit III: “Madea” by Euripedes (Greece)

3 weeks

 

Unit IV: Literary Analysis - Night by Elie Wiesel (Germany & Poland)

4 weeks

 

Unit V: Literary Analysis - The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy (France)

Project II: Trials

3 weeks

 

Unit VI (optional): Literary Analysis - Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (African/”Response” to Conrad’s Heart of Darkness)

Research Paper Due

3 weeks

 

Course Summary:

Date Details Due