English 1302:LANGUAGE & COMPOSITION II SYLLABUS

Houston Community College and Houston Academy for International Studies

Instructor: Mrs. Amanda Gillespie-Kimbrell

Email: [email protected]

Room: 203

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course will help you become skilled readers of prose, written in a variety of rhetorical contexts. You will read and examine novels, as well as short texts, to analyze how language is used to convey the author’s purpose. In addition to becoming effective readers of rhetoric, you will also learn to incorporate these elements in your own writing for a variety of purposes including formal writing (requiring multiple drafts and revisions), as well as informal timed writing. You will be writing in a variety of modes for a variety of audiences in order to develop a sense of style and an ability to effectively articulate your thoughts and opinions.

This course is designed in accordance with the guidelines described by the HCC English Department AP English Course Description, and with the Houston ISD AP Language master syllabus.

Readings will be found in the HCC-approved The Language of Composition textbook or provided as individual documents online.

Some examples of readings this course will cover include:

Speeches:

"The Gettysburg Address," Abraham Lincoln

"I will fight no more forever," Chief Joseph

" "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break the Silence," Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Short Stories:

"Eleven," Sandra Cisneros

"Super Toys Last All Summer Long" Brian Aldiss

Essays and Articles:

"Civil Disobedience," Henry David Thoreau

"Marrying Absurd," Joan Didion

"For a Nisei Sisterhood, It’s Yesterday Once More," Teresa Watanabe

"Why America Should Explore Space," Neil Degrasse Tyson

"Show and Tell (graphic essay)," Scott McCloud

We will also read and analyze variety of current events articles, interview transcripts, and political cartoons, as well as letters and selections from the autobiographies of various public figures throughout history. In addition, students will be expected to find and analyze readings outside of class that deal with the topics and themes discussed in class. Students will be expected to evaluate and cite their sources in MLA format.

THE WRITING PROCESS:

Students will research, plan, draft, and revise position papers, rhetorical analysis essays, and synthesis essays throughout the year. Students will develop and demonstrate mastery of the writing process. You will receive feedback on your writing throughout the year, both before and after revision. Feedback will be geared toward improving style, clarity, variety of vocabulary and sentence structures, and mastery of writing mechanics. Feedback will also be tailored to help you to develop a balance between generalization and specific detail in your writing. You will also receive regular instruction in vocabulary and grammar to further aid your writing. Not only will the teacher offer feedback, but you will also learn how to give constructive criticism to your peers, and how to accept constructive criticism as an integral part of your development as a writer.

PROJECTS:

Researched Synthesis and Rhetorical Analysis Essays: In addition to writing timed rhetorical analysis, position, and synthesis papers in class, students will also be expected to write two researched synthesis essays and one researched rhetorical analysis essays. Students will be expected to use sources from outside sources as well as from their class readings to support their ideas. Students must demonstrate the ability to conduct independent research outside of class, to accurately evaluate a source’s relevance and reliability, to use primary and secondary sources effectively in their essays, and to correctly cite each source in MLA format.

Researched Personal Manifesto Project: In response to reading Thoreau’s famous "Civil Disobedience," you will analyze the elements of this essay that identify it as a manifesto. You will then brainstorm and research an issue about which you feel passionate, before planning, draft, revise, and polishing your personal essay expanding on your beliefs about that issue.

 

FOCUS OF SPRING SEMESTER:

4th 6 Weeks:

Synthesis Essay focus. Thematic Unit: War and Ethics

Major assignment #1: Formal Compare Contrast Researched Synthesis

Major assignment #2: Formal Argue, Defend, Qualify Researched Synthesis

Major assignment #3: Thoreau Analysis and Personal Manifesto

 

5 th 6 Weeks:

Synthesis Essay Focus. Thematic Unit: Science and Technology

Major assignment #1: Synthesis Essay

Major assignment #2: Portfolio of revised essay drafts

 

6th 6 Weeks:

Rhetorical Analysis focus. (Outside of regular class, AP Preparation will be in full swing)

Major assignment #1: Synthesis Binder Presentations

Major assignment #2: Researched Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Student Name:______________________________________________ Class Period:________