Download AP® English Language and Composition

AP English Language and Composition
Course Objectives:
The purpose of this course is to help students “write effectively and confidently in their college
courses across the curriculum and in their professional and personal lives.” (The College Board,
AP English Course Description, May 2007, May 2008, p. 6) The course is organized according
to the requirements and guidelines of the current AP English Course Description, and, therefore,
students are expected to read critically, think analytically, and communicate clearly both in
writing and speech.
Grading Categories:
Essays 40%: Most essays are written as in-class essays and graded as rough drafts. These essays
will be graded on the AP rubric, or nine-point scale. Major writing assignments require rough
drafts, which must be self-edited and peer-edited before students type the final copies. Students
must submit all drafts with final copies. Graded essays are kept in a portfolio that counts as part
of the final exam grade for semester two. Assignments requiring the creation of prose or text of
any kind are included in this category. Examples include editorials, and copy for projects.
Tests and Quizzes 30%: Tests are used to ensure comprehension and application of a concept.
Quizzes are used primarily to check for reading and basic understanding of a text. Vocabulary
quizzes are also included in this category. Tests and quizzes may be administered on paper or
online.
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Class Work and Homework 30%: Daily assignments consist of a variety of tasks. Some of these
tasks involve individual steps leading to a larger product, such as plans, research, drafts, and
edits for an essay. Other daily tasks consist of grammar reviews, vocabulary exercises,
annotation of texts, and fluency writing. Most lessons begin with a warm-up or anticipatory task.
Students do these exercises during the first five minutes of the class period.
Course Organization:
The course is organized by conceptual units. (See Syllabus.) Each unit requires students to use
Standard English grammar, and to understand the importance of diction and syntax in an author’s
style. Therefore, students are expected to develop the following:
• a wide-ranging vocabulary used appropriately and effectively;
• a variety of sentence structures, including appropriate use of subordination and
coordination;
• logical organization, enhanced by specific techniques to increase coherence, such as
repetition, transitions, and emphasis;
• a balance of generalization and specific illustrative detail; and sentence structure.
For each reading assignment students must identify the following:
• Thesis or Claim
• Tone or Attitude
• Purpose
• Audience and Occasion
• Evidence or Data
• Appeals: Logos, Ethos, Pathos
• Assumptions or Warrants
• Style (how the author communicates his message: rhetorical mode, rhetorical devices
always including diction and syntax)
Vocabulary:
Students enrolled in AP Language & Composition are encouraged to increase their reading and
writing vocabularies through specific vocabulary instruction, usually based in S.A.T./A.C.T
vocabulary. In addition, students will be required to learn and use literary terms used for
analysis and extensive college-level words based on Greek and Latin derivations.
Class Web Page:
It is an expectation of this class that students check the class web page every day for updates and
information. The web page is integral to successful communication between the instructor and
students, as well as among students. If you do not have internet access, please ask for time
during class to use the computer, or you may come after school.
News Editorials:
Students are required to keep a keen and critical eye on the world around them. As such, weekly
news editorials are to be written and occasionally presented to the class. Editorials must explain
the topic or issue and provide an opinion on that topic or issue. Topics are student-selected and
may fall under such diverse domains as science, politics, pop culture, school, local, national or
global news items.
Required Textbooks:
Elements of Literature, Fifth Course, Holt, Rinehart and Winston
The Riverside Reader, Joseph Trimmer & Maxine Hairston
Ancillary Textbooks:
50 Essays, Samuel Cohen
The Elements of Style, E.B. White & William Strunk, Jr.
The Lively Art of Writing, Lucile Vaughan Payne
Additional novels selected by instructor
Plagiarism:
Plagiarism is using another person’s thoughts and accomplishments without proper
acknowledgment or documentation. It is a violation of academic ethics. Students found to be
plagiarizing will receive a zero for the assignment.
Instructor Information:
Elizabeth Plummer
Dunbar High School
3800 E Edison Ave
Fort Myers, FL 33916
(239) 461-5322
[email protected]
Syllabus: AP English Language and Composition
(Additions and amendments to readings may be made at the discretion of the instructor )
Quarter 1
Unit 1 – Introduction
Concepts: AP English Course Description, Class Rules and Responsibilities, Grading System
Literary Terms, Basic Syntax, Ethics, Diction, Tone, Annotation, Socratic Discussion
Thematic: The Power of Language, Why Write?
Readings & Viewings:
 1984, George Orwell
 The Problem with Hypertext, David Shenk
 On Keeping a Notebook, Joan Didion
 Why I Write, George Orwell
 Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
 Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Unit 2 – What is Rhetoric?
Concepts: Rhetoric, Logos, Ethos, Pathos, Inventio, Rhetorical Terms, Rhetorical Modes,
Rhetorical Devices
Thematic: Society vs. Man
Readings & Viewings:
 On Dumpster Diving, Lars Eighner
 Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
 Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Major Projects/Writing Assignments:
1984 Propaganda Pamphlets – Students will create propaganda pamphlets for fictitious
organizations in Orwell’s 1984, using details from the text in their argumentation.
Brave New World Argumentative Essay
Process Analysis Essay
Quarter 2
Unit 3 – Pathos & Ethos
Concepts: Audience Assessment, Pathos, Ethos, Objective Correlative
Thematic: Society vs. Woman
Readings & Viewings:
 Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, Jonathan Edwards
 The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne
 Anthem, Ayn Rand
 Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain, Jessica Mitford
 Lost in the Kitchen, Dave Barry
 The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria, Judith Ortiz Cofer
 From The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf
 The Crucible, Arthur Miller, starring Daniel Day Lewis and Winona Ryder
 Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
 Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Unit 4 – Logos
Concepts: Logical Fallacies, Deduction and Induction, Syllogism, Advertising
Thematic: Society vs. Woman, The Manipulation of Information
Readings & Viewings:
 Body Ritual Among the Nacirema, Horace Miner
 Women’s Brains, Stephen Jay Gould
 The Allegory of the Cave, Plato
 Walmart: The High Cost of Low Price
 Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
 Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Major Projects/Writing Assignments:
Marketing Campaign Project – Students must create a marketing campaign for an assigned
product, accompanied by persuasive copy and visuals.
Compare and Contrast Essay
Midterm Examination
Students have two hours to take their final exam; it is worth 20% percent of the semester
average.
Part 1: Multiple Choice
This section is interpretation of new material. Students read four passages and answer 45 to 55
questions. Reading selections and questions are similar to those on AP Released English
Language Exam.
Part 2: Free Response
Students have 40 minutes to write an in-class essay. The prompt asks for rhetorical analysis,
comparison/contrast, or argumentation. This essay is graded on the AP rubric, or nine-point
scale.
Quarter 3
Unit 5 – In-Depth Analysis
Concepts: Syntactic Analysis, Rhetorical Analysis, Thesis and Enthymeme, Passive Voice,
Parallel Structure, Concession
Thematic: The Creation of Societies
Readings & Viewings:
 The Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln
 The Morals of The Prince, Niccolò Machiavelli
 Speech in the Virginia Convention, Patrick Henry
 From The Crisis, Number 1, Thomas Paine
 The Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson
 On Civil Disobedience, Henry David Thoreau
 I Have a Dream, Martin Luther King
 The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
 Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
 Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Unit 6 – Argumentation
Concepts: Classical Argumentation, Toulmin Model, Concession Paragraphs, Style Exercises,
Theses
Thematic: Against Society
Readings & Viewings:
 To His Coy Mistress, Andrew Marvell, The Flea, John Donne, To the Virgins, To Make
Much of Time, Robert Herrick
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A Modest Proposal, Jonathan Swift
From Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, Ernest J. Gaines
Two Ways of Seeing a River, Mark Twain
I Want a Wife, Judy Brady
Once More to the Lake, E.B. White
The Death of the Moth, Virginia Woolf
Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell
Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Major Projects/Writing Assignments:
Emulation – Students will perform a style analysis and emulation of The Declaration of
Independence.
The Short Story Professors – Students will be asked to read an American short story, analyze it
for figures of thought, and figures of speech, and teach it to the class.
Rhetorical Analysis Essay
Quarter 4
Unit 7 – Research
Concepts: MLA Citation
Thematic: Outside of Society
Readings & Viewings:
 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
 Salvation, Langston Hughes
 From Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov
 From American Psycho, Brett Easton Ellison
 From The Teachings of Don Juan, Carlos Castaneda
 The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger
 Readings on Current Events: Theme-related articles, articles that reflect claims or central
ideas made by the authors studied in this unit, submissions from students with teacher’s
approval.
 Theme-related photos and/or cartoons from current periodicals will be discussed as these
become available. Students may contribute selections for viewing with teacher’s
approval.
Major Projects/Writing Assignments:
Synthesis Essay
Research Paper
Task and Prompt:
• Choose a current event that reflects one of the themes that we studied this year.
• Research the topic through different types of sources (newspapers, magazines, news
stories, interviews, online sources, radio broadcasts, visuals, etc.).
• Take careful notes, making sure that you cite your sources accurately using MLA
format.
• Develop an argument about this topic.
• Establish a claim.
• Then integrate a variety of sources into a coherent, well-written essay.
• Use the sources to support your position; avoid mere paraphrase or summary.
• Your argument should be central.
• Remember to attribute both direct and indirect citations, using MLA format. (Give
credit where credit is due.)
• Create a Works Cited page using MLA format.
• Plagiarism will result in a zero.
Final Examination
The Final Exam will assess the application of concepts covered in class. It will also include a
self-assessment of the writing contained in the portfolio.