AP English IV
Canutillo High School
Fall 2012, M-F [Period goes here], alternating days; H 212
Steve Vinson, Ph.D
I. Course Requirements (Expectations for AP English IV)
Students who take AP English IV will read texts in various modes (long fiction, short fiction, plays, poetry, essays). Students should be able to recognize language devices (symbolism, imagery, point-of-view, voice, effective diction, wide-ranging vocabulary, figurative language, etc.), syntax (variety of sentence structures including subordination, coordination, parallelism, rhetorical question, etc.) and structure (including use of repetition, transition, and emphasis) which create tone and contribute to the meaning of the work as a whole and the style of the writer. Through close reading activities, media presentations and class discussion, students will become familiar with ways to make their own writing more sophisticated. The goal is that not only will the student recognize excellence in the writing of others but will emulate effective techniques by writing in various modes, such as expository and analytical writing. The teacher will provide numerous opportunities (timed writings in class and formal, more extended essays at home) for students to write and rewrite. A minimum of ten essays is expected of every student. Essay assignments in the first two study units will be closely monitored, and students failing to meet expectations will be encouraged to drop the AP course. In addition, students will complete independent research at least one time each semester. The activities outlined in the AP syllabus provide opportunities for reviewing and practicing the basics of writing-- pre-writing, writing, editing, revision-- and will be supplemented by teacher feedback for each of these writing opportunities.
Students who are enrolled in the AP course sequence have been evaluated by the counseling office and the administration, and potential success in AP courses is assumed for them. However, no prediction of student success can account for student unwillingness to do the work to the fullness of his/her ability. This course has higher expectations, and the bar may be above the reach of some students. No stigma is attached to seeking a better match for the student by scheduling regular English classes. The reward for success on the AP exams is college credit at most institutions of higher learning
2. Text and Reading Material
The first text for AP English IV is the seventh edition of Perrine's Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense, published by Harcourt Brace College Publishers in 1998. A class set is available in the classroom, and it is found in many libraries. The Walmart price for a new book is about $98, but it may be available in used bookstores. In addition to the various genres (plays, short stories, and poetry) in Perrine's, students will also read from these t
The Poisonwood Bible Long Day's Journey into Night
Beowulf Canterbury Tales
1984 The Turn of the Scr
Brave New World Crime and Punishment
Hamlet The Importance of Being Earnes
Medea Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
The Inferno Paradise Lost
She Stoops to Conquer Candide
Gulliver's Travel
These works comprise the focus on longer readings, either as part of the class unit lessons or their assessments.In addition, students will be required to read two novels and one play from the list of works which have been most frequently cited on the AP Literature Open Ended Question from 1979 to the present.On occasion, students will read from the Norton Anthology of British Literature. This text, however, is also only available as a classroom set, and I will try to provide copies of poems and short works from the Norton’s
3. General Course Objectiv
* To read texts of various genres and time periods that have survived critical scrutiny
* To develop a sensitivity to language, so that literature can be analyzed, interpreted, and evaluate
* To read carefully and comprehendingly through close reading, highlighting, and annotation
* To engage in insightful discussion of literature—stylistically, thematically, and with regard to autobiographical, historical, and social relevance
* To develop stylistic maturity by writing in various modes and putting "the best words in the best order"
* To develop stylistic maturity by incorporating effective language devices
* To develop literary evaluations which are reinforced with well chosen textual detail and insightful interpretative commentary (which constitutes a balance of generalization and specific, illustrative detail
* To recognize literary traditions and modes of formal inquiry
* To develop a "speaking and writing vocabulary" of literary terminology, such as paradox, juxtaposition, dichotomy
* To foster intellectual self-confidence in the synthesis of independent thinking and writing and, thus, to eliminate the need of a high school
English teacher
4. On-Going Writing Instructional Activities and Feedback Procedures
* Instruction on close reading and annotation of short selections of prose and poetry
The teacher uses the INfocus and reads the passage, using voice inflection to guide the students to point of view, voice, and tone of the selection. Students annotate their copies of the selections, considering the following questions: whose voice are you hearing, what is the tone, what is the attitude, how were these created, and what is the purpose of the selection? Other important questions are about why and how the writer has chosen to employ diction, imagery, syntax, irony, structure, etc. The teacher guides the students through the close reading, reminding the students of the analytical vocabularies they have acquired in their previous pre-AP and AP English classes. Students are encouraged to highlight the most important textual evidence and explain how or why it contributes to one of the controlling purposes of voice, purpose, tone, etc. (interpretation of the text's meaning).
* Simultaneous reading and listening to audio recordings
For many readings, the pace, voice inflections, and vocabulary will be enhanced by accompanying student reading with a professional reading. By the end of the year, students should be more comfortable and competent at reading difficult works silently by themselves.
* Steps to simplify and respond to prompts (both expository and analytical)
Students are given an AP prompt from a previous year and are instructed on how to make the essay more approachable (Appendix A). The activity is done in class and is modeled by the teacher until the teacher feels confident the students are ready to tackle the process in small groups or individually. First, students practice simplifying the prompt by rewording it in more "user friendly" terms. Then, the students make a list of questions that the prompt expects for them to answer. Next the students close read and annotate the prompt. They then focus on the highlighted textual detail which they can use in their response to the prompt in an extended interpretation of the meaning of the text. With teacher feedback, students then outline their answers for all to see. As they progress, students may be asked to write the prompt in essay form or to write the introduction and conclusion paragraphs and to outline the body paragraphs by providing textual detail and insightful interpretation (which we call commentary). Eventually these are done as homework and then discussed in class-- each is graded by the teacher using a specific rubric .
* Comparative class discussion of peer samples
We discuss the students' essays or outlines from the above assignment(s), often categorizing them as good, better, or best. I, then, distribute copies of essays the AP has provided for us for that particular prompt, and, as a class, we read these essays, focusing on how the student organized or structured the essay, noting topic sentences, etc. We highlight insightful vocabulary, parallel structure, clever introductory or concluding remarks, how the student has created voice, sophisticated transitional devices, and how the student used emphasis without only parroting or repeating the passages he is analyzing. As the year progresses, the students rely less and less on my input and prodding and become very proficient at recognizing "good, better, and best" writing.
* Follow-up writing and feedback
After completing the above activities, students are then given a similar prompt to write. While most of these are done individually, sometimes students do write with a partner, especially if the prompt is introducing a new idea or writing technique. They are expected to take the timed writing activity through the steps we have been practicing, so at first I give them much more than the 40 minutes that they will have. The following class, students receive their essays back. I direct each of them to one specific area of improvement: more development of interpretative commentary, stronger verbs, more sophisticated transition eliminating "pat" transitions and using more sophisticated methods such as "hooks," using participles to begin sentences, combining sentences with subordination or coordination, etc. Students are then given the opportunity to change their essays, to revise, to edit, and submit their papers showing me their revisions, deletions, additions, on another sheet.
* Comparing College Board samples to their own writing
The next time we meet, together we again look at College Board samples for the timed writing they just finished and revised, focusing on all of the components which go into a higher scoring essay. I often make copies of several of my students' essays and we discuss them because they enjoy reading papers they know were written by their own classmates.
* Instruction using rubrics for feedback
Students are then given back their own essays which I have graded with a very specific rubric based on the AP English Literature exam readers' rubric(Appendix B). Students receive several samples of essays written by their peers. We read these essays together and discuss their merits and demerits. In this way the teacher is providing instruction and feedback on the student's writing assignments. Students are also given the opportunity to made editing remarks on their essays; to highlight their insightful analytical, interpretive, and evaluative comments; and to remark about their writing progress in a writing journal.
*The rubric will have at least fifteen components which are designed to fit the specific prompt the student is writing: quality of introduction, whether the introduction answer the prompt or simply restate it, quality of topic sentences, quality of overall structure, selection of insightful textual detail, quality of extended explanation (commentary) which related the textual detail to the focus of the prompt's question, use of transition, quality of varied sentence structures, quality of a wide ranging vocabulary, quality of conclusion, grammar error which would detract from the overall essay, quality of sophisticated voice, etc. The essays may be graded on a 1-9 AP score basis, or may be graded on a comment basis, such as: "Excellent, I am impressed" or "I see real improvement, you're almost there!"
* Student conferences
Students will be given the opportunity to rewrite their essays and to resubmit them, but, rather than just turning them it to me, they meet with me individually. We discuss the changes they have made, why they made them, and how those changes will enhance the sophistication of their ideas or style. In an effort to give individual feedback during all stages of the writing process from prewriting to rewriting, I encourage students to set up appointments with me at lunch, before school, or after school for individual conferences.
* Writing folder review
Students are encouraged to meet with me at least one time per semester so that we can review their writing progress by reviewing their writing folders. Many take advantage of this opportunity for extra credit.
* Feedback, instruction, and revision through email
At least one time each year, rather than giving the students a written evaluation of their essay, or grading by a rubric, I will email comments. As I read through their essays, I comment on places where they could make analytical or stylistic improvement, and they are required to listen to the tape and to edit or revise their essays and to resubmit them. This is especially useful in being able to determine if a student truly understands writing terminology. For example, if I comment, "In the third paragraph, you need to make your sentences more parallel in structure," then I know that the student recognizes the term parallel structure, as well as the error and how to improve the essay if the student successfully makes that change.
* Good Writing Powerpoints
Students are shown Powerpoint presentations which explain elements of good writing both for in class timed essays and extended essays written at home. There are hints for poetry analysis, prose analysis, formulating an argument, analyzing an argument, researching a literary topic, researching a controversial topic, effective use of rhetoric, etc. Students should take notes for their personal use when writing for class. The notes will be collected in a Style Notebook.
* Extended writing activities
Depending upon the assignment, before the actual essay is written, a series of instructive preliminary assignments may take place. For example, before a poetry analysis, students will submit hard copies of their sources and I will give them instruction on compiling annotative bibliographies, etc. Eventually students will be ready for the longer, more extended essays which students write at home. Such extended essays are approached somewhat differently. Since most of them don't finish the essay until late the night before it is due, I recognize that little editing, revision, or rewriting has taken place. So, when the students bring in their essays, I give them a long list of questions they must answer about their papers. They must highlight topic sentences, circle "be" verbs, count how many sentences begin with phrases and how many different sentence structures they have used, etc. Then they are given the opportunity to rewrite the essay and submit both copies so that I can compare how they revised their essays. On such assignments which may be written and submitted in "stages," and then resubmitted after editing, revision, and rewriting, I will use a variety of grading rubrics for each "stage" which focus on the area of revision I am focusing on at that time.
* Feedback for extended writings
The rubric that I used for these essays is slightly different, also. The students receive multiple grades: content, grammar, style, and documentation grades. Each category is broken down into parts. For example, content focuses on the quality of the thesis statement, evidence, explanation/interpretation/commentary, structure, quality of topic sentences, balance of generalization and specific details, Etc. Style focuses on sentence variety, elevated vocabulary, elimination of passive voice, effective transition, and focus on the development of voice. Documentation focuses on correct parenthetical documentation and adherence to MLA guidelines.
5. Other On-Going Activities
These are activities which are conducted each six weeks. To avoid duplication, I am listing them here rather than repeating them throughout the syllabus.
* Students will write a minimum of twelve timed essays (such as the types on the AP English Literature exam). The syllabus units will suggest topics and appropriate times for these timed essays to be written. In addition, two weeks before the actual exam, students will write three timed essays in succession (one of each type). These essays are peer graded.
* Students will take AP multiple choice tests throughout the year. While many of the tests will be given in conjunction with specific novels, students will also take previously given AP tests for skills practice. Students will also be asked to make up their versions of AP multiple choice test questions over selected passages of prose and poetry. I have indicated these practice tests when I used outside materials which supplement the literary selections.
* Developing poetry reading, analysis, interpretation, and evaluation skills is emphasized in AP English IV. In order to help students get over "their fear" of this genre, students participate in Poem of the Day each six weeks. A student signs up for a day to bring a poem to class each six weeks. At the beginning of class each day, the student will read his/her poem and explain why he/she chose it. The poem must be typed and submitted with a Works Cited notation. As the year progresses, students will be asked to respond to the poems they are listening to by writing in a poem journal. For example, they may be asked to jot down words the poet used that created a tone or to comment on a contemporary thematic purpose for the poem. Sometimes I will cut the student's name off of the typed poem and distribute the poems to the class. Then each student will close read and annotate his/her poem. A few weeks before the AP Literature exam students will submit their poem with an essay of analysis, interpretation, and evaluation.
* In order to help the students prepare for the open ended question on the AP English Literature exam, each time the student reads a major work, he/she completes a Major Works Reading Sheet. The components of the sheet include a brief survey of the major characters, a thematic statement, elements of the writer's distinct style, passages of significant textual detail, and a plot overview.
6. Curriculum Units (each Unit =5-10 days)
I. Reading Selection: The Poisonwood Bible
AP Skills
Focusing on methods of characterization such as multiple narrators
Distinguishing subject from theme
Evaluating the novel's social relevance in the 21st century
Reading closely by annotating and highlighting
Introducing AP objective style testing
Activities:
View Powerpoint on modern Congo, followed by student reflective essay: write a paragraph explaining each of the following terms, using Congo as an example—genocide, colonization, exploitation
Close reading
Assignment: Read all eleven questions below. Take extensive notes for at least five of these topics. Expect an essay assignment based on your choices, as well as a class discussion that will necessitate using notes.
Topics for Discussion:
1. What are the implications of the novel's title phrase, the poisonwood bible, particularly in connection with the main characters' lives and the novel's main themes? How important are the circumstances in which the phrase comes into being?
2. How does Kingsolver differentiate among the Price sisters, particularly in terms of their voices? What does each sister reveal about herself and the other three, their relationships, their mother and father, and their lives in Africa? What is the effect of our learning about events and people through the sisters' eyes
3. What is the significance of the Kikongo word nommo and its attendant concepts of being and naming? Are there Christian parallels to the constellation of meanings and beliefs attached to nommo? How do the Price daughters' Christian names and their acquired Kikongo names reflect their personalities and behavior?
4. The sisters refer repeatedly to balance (and, by implication, imbalance). What kinds of balance--including historical, political, and social--emerge as important? Are individual characters associated with specific kinds of balance or imbalance? Do any of the sisters have a final say on the importance of balance?
5. What do we learn about cultural, social, religious, and other differences between Africa and America? To what degree do Orleanna and her daughters come to an understanding of those differences? Do you agree with what you take to be Kingsolver's message concerning such differences?
6. Why do you suppose that Reverend Nathan Price is not given a voice of his own? Do we learn from his wife and daughters enough information to formulate an adequate explanation for his beliefs and behavior? Does such an explanation matter?
7. What differences and similarities are there among Nathan Price's relationship with his family, Tata Ndu's relationship with his people, and the relationship of the Belgian and American authorities with the Congo? Are the novel's political details--both imagined and historical--appropriate?
8. How does Kingsolver present the double themes of captivity and freedom and of love and betrayal? What kinds of captivity and freedom does she explore? What kinds of love and betrayal? What are the causes and consequences of each kind of captivity, freedom, love, and betrayal?
9. At Bikoki Station, in 1965, Leah reflects, "I still know what justice is." Does she? What concept of justice does each member of the Price family and other characters (Anatole, for example) hold? Do you have a sense, by the novel's end, that any true justice has occurred
10. In Book Six, Adah proclaims, "This is the story I believe in . . ." What is that story? Do Rachel and Leah also have stories in which they believe? How would you characterize the philosophies of life at which Adah, Leah, and Rachel arrive? What story do you believe in?
11. At the novel's end, the carved-animal woman in the African market is sure that "There has never been any village on the road past Bulungu," that "There is no such village" as Kilanga. What do you make of this?
Discussion of novel's subjects and transforming them into 2-3 thematic statements
Submitting personal copy of novel which had been highlighted and annotated (optional)
Completing AP style objective questions (see file)
Timed essay: open ended question on the 1996 AP Engl. Literature exam (Appendix A)
Project: Bio Bodies
Students work in groups to create body bios by using drawing paper and drawing. a major character from the novel OR
creating an electronic avatar of the character. Accompanying the media is a character analysis, including textual details
and a diary entry in the voice of the character.
Additional Materials:
Student copies of The Poisonwood Bible (optional)
II. Reading Selection: Poems of Robert Frost
AP Skills:
Recognizing the importance of poetry devices to create thematic purpose
Recognizing use of metaphor to develop tone
Relating themes between genres
Activities:
Close reading, highlighting, and annotating poems (from Norton anthology)
Reading a biographical essay on the poet (http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/robert-frost) and summarizing the content and the message
Answering AP multiple choice questions from the 2006 test (Appendix A)
Looking at essay samples from the poetry analysis question on the 1991 test: allusions
http://www.appliedpractice.com/img/shop_texts/Allusion1.pdf
Timed essay: poetry analysis on attitude and thematic purpose in "Death of the Hired Man"
III. Reading Selections:
A. Various Short Stories (for story categories and descriptions)
Choose FOUR short stories, one from each category
B. Dramatic monologue "My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning
C. Dramatic monologue "Porphyria's Lover" by Robert Browning
AP Skills:
Exploring voice through multiple narrators
Distinguishing symbol from motif
Recognizing thematic purpose
Distinguishing 3 types of irony
Use of setting for establish tone and thematic purpose
Use of allegory for thematic purpose
Comparing thematic purpose in different genres
Activities:
Close reading: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/616/01/
Close read for each selection; use the Purdue OWL suggestions. While avoiding the Pitfalls, annotate by highlighting and taking marginal notes
Take notes on symbolism and meaning from the two articles provided as handouts from you teacher.
IV. Reading Selection: Oedipus Rex
AP Skills:
Recognizing traditional patterns and concepts of the tragic hero
Focusing on irony
Recognizing 21st century relevance in Greek tragedy
Research and documentation processes
Sophistication of oral communication
Peer evaluation to develop independent critical thinking skills
Activities:
Reading the play aloud (Round Robin)
Discussing the qualities of the archetypal notion of tragedy (participation grade using Rubric (Appendix B)
Group discussion of the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of the play (participation grade using Rubric(Appendix B)
Written Review of research skills and documentation formats
Timed essay: Relating the thematic purpose of other genres to the thematic purpose of Drama
Project: Tragedy in Modern Drama
Students are put in small groups and pick ONE of these plays: Death of a Salesman OR Long Day's Journey into Night (students buy), AND
read Medea. at http://www.gutenberg.org/files/35451/35451-h/35451-h.htm (students print copies).
Requirements are to read the play independently, to research the author's biography, to research one insightful article of literary
criticism from a scholarly source, and to meet with their groups to focus on irony, symbolism, elements of Greek tragedy, relevance to
21st century social problems, thematic purpose, and key scenes. In a presentation of no less than thirty minutes students present their
research, analysis, interpretation, and evaluation as well as act out key scenes to evidence textual detail. Students submit a.
typed synopsis of the play, a hard copy of their research sources, and a works cited page. Students submit group and peer
evaluations on quality of each presentation.
V. Reading Selection: Independent Novel Choice from List of Novels on AP Literature Tests from 1979-2006:
http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/AP/APtitles.html
AP Skills
Close reading
Developing sensitivity to language
Recognizing the purpose of an author's language devices
Developing confidence in analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating independently
Sophisticating writing
Recognizing literary traditions and concepts
Activities
Students select a novel from the list. They research the author's biography from a scholarly source. They read their novel independently, making the novel "their own" through highlighting and annotating. They submit an annotated bibliography of their research and an essay on how the author's biography added insight to the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of the fiction. Each student is given an open ended question from a previous AP English Literature exam and answers that question in a timed writing essay. The student submits the annotated novel for assessment.
Note: This assignment, or a variation of it, is done at least twice during the academic year.
VI. Reading Selection: The Turn of the Screw at http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/JamTurn.html
AP Skills
Close reading of more difficult syntactical style
Analyzing and evaluating a novel with unlimited interpretations
Activities
Close reading test
Inner-outer circle independent discussion of character development, thematic purpose, and style, focusing on motifs and ambiguity.
VII. Reading Selections: Poetry from Perrine's
Throughout the year students will read poetry from the Perrine's text and other sources.Initially, we may focus on the poems by type: ode, elegy, pastoral, carpe diem, sonnet, ballad, lyric, villanelle, etc. Thereafter poems are selected by theme or some other arrangement. Also, selections from Beowulf and Canterbury Tales may be read.
AP Skills
All AP objectives are met in these poetry readings, writings, and discussion. See General Course Objectives, above.
Activities
Reading poems aloud
Annotating poems
Presenting annotated poems to the class via power point or overhead
Small group discussion
Test over a glossary of poetry terms and structures
Round table discussions comparing and contrasting poems' thematic purpose, poets' styles, use of poetic devices, importance of
structure, 21st century relevance, etc .
Timed essay on poetry analysis from previous AP Literature exams
Project
Students will complete a My Poets Mini-Project, over several six weeks . Students will select a modern poet from my list. They
must find and peruse five poems by that poet, making hard copies of all research. The project includes biographical research, personal
responses to at least two poems, a third annotated poem, a fourth poem with an AP style prompt essay, an original poem patterned after the
poet's style, and the fifth poem will be shared in the Poetry of the Day. (Students will submit an annotative bibliography, which includes
an evaluation of research sources. Students are encouraged to present this project in the form of a Powerpoint presentation.
Additional Materials:
VIII. Reading Selection: Independent Novel Choice from List of Novels on AP Literature Tests from 1979-2006:
http://homepage.mac.com/mseffie/AP/APtitles.html
AP Skills
Close reading
Developing sensitivity to language
Recognizing the purpose of an author's language devices
Developing confidence in analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating independently
Sophisticating writing
Recognizing literary traditions and concepts
Activities
Students select a novel from the list. They research the author's biography from a scholarly source. They read their novel independently,
making the novel "their own" through highlighting and annotating. They submit an annotated bibliography of their research and an essay
on how the author's biography added insight to the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of the fiction. Each student is given
an open ended question from a previous AP English Literature exam and answers that question in a timed writing essay.
The student submits the annotated novel for assessment.
Note: This assignment, or a variation of it, is done at least twice during the academic year.
IX. Optional Research Project
The teacher is encouraged to assign a Literary History Project to give the students an overview of the general movements in literature,
including historical events and philosophical concepts that shaped the art of a given period. The focus is making connections between
various genres and movements across history. This could be submitted individually or presented to the class by a group, depending on the
the element. Submitted information would include a time line of relevant dates, a glossary element.
Submitted information would include a time line of relevant dates, a glossary a list of representative authors and their works, three carefull
chosen excerpts of prose and poetry, a CD of music representative of the period, and an annotative bibliography. Also students would write
an in class essay synthesizing what they have learned from their research. Suggested literary/historical periods include but are not limited
to The Early Renaissance, focusing on Florence; the Anglo-Saxons, focusing on oral traditions of early literature; the Medieval Period,
focusing on God and man; and the Enlightenment, focusing on the expanding horizons of the British empire, etc.
Note: At this point students should have a complete understanding of each of the course's objectives as well as the format of the AP
EnglishLiterature and Composition exam. Hopefully, the teacher will have reached this point by the end of the first semester
so that the second semester can be spent on refining the skills of the course objectives.
Note: Since one of the course objectives is to foster independent thinkers, activities will become more student-centered eas the semester
progresses. Since the course's objectives and rigorous curriculum have been established thus far in this syllabus, for the sake of brevity, the
remainder of the syllabus will not list every skill and activity which each reading selection focuses upon.
X. Reading Selection: Camus's The Stranger, Crime and Punishment, and Selected Poems of cummings, Donne, Shelley, Neruda
Note: the first three parts of the novel are assigned as the reading over the winter break
.
AP Skills:
Reading more complex literature with multiple interpretive and evaluative levels
Fostering independent critical thinking
Comparing theme in several genres
Recognizing literary traditions and archetypes
Activities
Close reading tests
Completing value judgment work sheets to instigate discussion regarding crime, punishment, and redemption, the themes of the novel
Discussion of existentialism in various genres including short story, novel, and
Poetry: Socratic seminar
Timed writing: open ended question from 2002B exam
Additional Materials:
XI. Reading Selections: Hamlet
AP Skills:
Recognizing traditional patterns and concepts of the tragic hero
Evaluating varying interpretations of the same drama
Writing creatively to develop voice
Activities:
Reading the play aloud and independently
Comparing and contrasting scenes from various theatrical productions
Close reading for images such as sleep/dreams, harlotry/cosmetics, weeds/flowers
Close reading for themes involving subjects such as fate/destiny, duality, the stage world, order and chaos
Writing journal entries with textual detail focusing on the above motifs and themes
Tracking characters by charting
Round table discussion of student-generated questions
AP multiple choice questions
Timed writing: open ended question from 1997 exam
Additional Materials:
XII. Reading Selections: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and Poetry of Eliot
AP Skills:
Recognizing literary traditions and concepts
Developing voice through creative writing
Activities:
Discussing distinguishing characteristics of modernism and absurdism
Reading the play aloud
Close reading tests
Annotating poetry
Relating themes of different genres through discussion and journal writing
Rewriting a scene from any genre by incorporating the elements of the Theatre of the Absurd
Timed writing: prose analysis of a passage from the play
Timed writing: open ended question from 2000 or 2005 test
XIII. Reading Selections: 1984 and Brave New World
At http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks01/0100021.txt & http://www.archive.org/stream/Book-
AldousHuxley-BraveNewWorldPdf/Brave_New_World_Aldous_Huxley_djvu.txt
AP Skills:
Evaluating literature for its relevance to social and historical conditions of the 21st century
Activities:
Completing a technology survey
Annotating novels
Socratic seminar
AP multiple choice questions
Timed writing on one of the novels: open ended question from 1994 or 1989 test
At home essay: Establish one thematic argument from each novel and write an essay establishing its validity using current events
.
Project
Students will work in groups to write a missing scene from one of the novels. Costumes and props must be used. Students will
then make a video of their scene to be shared with the class. Students should be prepared to defend their work.
Additional Materials:
XIV. Reading Selections: "A Modest Proposal," "The Rape of the Lock," The Importance of Being Earnest
AP Skills
Recognizing degrees of humor and how they achieved by varying language devices and genres for contrasting social and historical purposes
Activities
AP multiple choice questions
Timed writing: prose analysis of a satirical passage
Analyzing male-female relationships by discussing conversations in the works and what they reveal about society (in small groups and/or
Socratic seminar)
Additional Materials:
XV. Reading Selections: Heart of Darkness
AP Skills and Activities:
Students will be given the opportunity to demonstrate they have mastered each of the course's objectives. Having read the novel
each will submit a proposal for teaching some element of the novel. They will research various literary theories, and will examine the novel
through one of these critical lenses. They may make a video, a CD, a Powerpoint presentation, etc. Presentations must show how the novel is
relevant to some aspect of the 21st century: social problems, art, music, contemporary literature, a parallel of current events, etc. the students
Powerpoint Presentations will be student and peer graded. Hopefully, will prove to the teacher that they have successfully mastered
objectives and no longer need him/her. The teacher's only job in this project is supervisory!
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APPENDIX A
Open-ended Questions for Advanced Placement 1970. Choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards. In your essay do not merely summarize the plot. 1970 Also. Choose a work of recognized literary merit in which a specific inanimate object (e.g., a seashell, a handkerchief, a painting) is important, and write an essay in which you show how two or three of the purposes the object serves are related to one another.
1971. The significance of a title such as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is so easy to discover. However, in other works (for example, Measure for Measure) the full significance of the title becomes apparent to the reader only gradually. Choose two works and show how the significance of their respective titles is developed through the authors’ use of devices such as contrast, repetition, allusion, and point of view. 1972. In retrospect, the reader often discovers that the first chapter of a novel or the opening scene of a drama introduces some of the major themes of the work. Write an essay about the opening scene of a drama or the first chapter of a novel in which you explain how it functions in this way. 1973. An effective literary work does not merely stop or cease; it concludes. In the view of some critics, a work that does not provide the pleasure of significant closure has terminated with an artistic fault. A satisfactory ending is not, however, always conclusive in every sense; significant closure may require the reader to abide with or adjust to ambiguity and uncertainty. In an essay, discuss the ending of a novel or play of acknowledged literary merit. Explain precisely how and why the ending appropriately or inappropriately concludes the work. Do not merely summarize the plot. 1974. Choose a work of literature written before 1900. Write an essay in which you present arguments for and against the work’s relevance for a person in 1974. Your own position should emerge in the course of your essay. You may refer to works of literature written after 1900 for the purpose of contrast or comparison. 1975. Although literary critics have tended to praise the unique in literary characterizations, many authors have employed the stereotyped character successfully. Select one work of acknowledged literary merit and in a well-written essay, show how the conventional or stereotyped character or characters function to achieve the author’s purpose. 1975 Also. Unlike the novelist, the writer of a play does not use his own voice and only rarely uses a narrator’s voice to guide the audience’s responses to character and action. Select a play you have read and write an essay in which you explain the techniques the playwright uses to guide his audience’s responses to the central characters and the action. You might consider the effect on the audience of things like setting, the use of comparable and contrasting characters, and the characters’ responses to each other. Support your argument with specific references to the play. Do not give a plot summary. 1976. The conflict created when the will of an individual opposes the will of the majority is the recurring theme of many novels, plays, and essays. Select the work of an essayist who is in opposition to his or her society; or from a work of recognized literary merit, select a fictional character who is in opposition to his or her society. In a critical essay, analyze the conflict and discuss the moral and ethical implications for both the individual and the society. Do not summarize the plot or action of the work you choose. 1977. In some novels and plays certain parallel or recurring events prove to be significant. In an essay, describe the major similarities and differences in a sequence of parallel or recurring events in a novel or play and discuss the significance of such events. Do not merely summarize the plot. 1978. Choose an implausible or strikingly unrealistic incident or character in a work of fiction or drama of recognized literary merit. Write an essay that explains how the incident or character is related to the more realistic of plausible elements in the rest of the work. Avoid plot summary. 1979. Choose a complex and important character in a novel or a play of recognized literary merit who might on the basis of the character’s actions alone be considered evil or immoral. In a well-organized essay, explain both how and why the full presentation of the character in the work makes us react more sympathetically than we otherwise might. Avoid plot summary. 1980. A recurring theme in literature is the classic war between a passion and responsibility. For instance, a personal cause, a love, a desire for revenge, a determination to redress a wrong, or some other emotion or drive may conflict with moral duty. Choose a literary work in which a character confronts the demands of a private passion that conflicts with his or her responsibilities. In a well-written essay show clearly the nature of the conflict, its effects upon the character, and its significance to the work. 1981. The meaning of some literary works is often enhanced by sustained allusion to myths, the Bible, or other works of literature. Select a literary work that makes use of such a sustained reference. Then write a well-organized essay in which you explain the allusion that predominates in the work and analyze how it enhances the work’s meaning. 1982. In great literature, no scene of violence exists for its own sake. Choose a work of literary merit that confronts the reader or audience with a scene or scenes of violence. In a well-organized essay, explain how the scene or scenes contribute to the meaning of the complete work. Avoid plot summary. 1983. From a novel or play of literary merit, select an important character who is a villain. Then, in a well-organized essay, analyze the nature of the character’s villainy and show how it enhances meaning in the work. Do not merely summarize the plot. 1984. Select a line or so of poetry, or a moment or scene in a novel, epic poem, or play that you find especially memorable. Write an essay in which you identify the line or the passage, explain its relationship to the work in which it is found, and analyze the reasons for its effectiveness. 1985. A critic has said that one important measure of a superior work of literature is its ability to produce in the reader a healthy confusion of pleasure and disquietude. Select a literary work that produces this “healthy confusion.” Write an essay in which you explain the sources of the “pleasure and disquietude” experienced by the readers of the work. 1986. Some works of literature use the element of time in a distinct way. The chronological sequence of events may be altered, or time may be suspended or accelerated. Choose a novel, an epic, or a play of recognized literary merit and show how the author’s manipulation of time contributes to the effectiveness of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. 1987. Some novels and plays seem to advocate changes in social or political attitudes or in traditions. Choose such a novel or play and note briefly the particular attitudes or traditions that the author apparently wishes to modify. Then analyze the techniques the author uses to influence the reader’s or audience’s views. Avoid plot summary. 1988. Choose a distinguished novel or play in which some of the most significant events are mental or psychological; for example, awakenings, discoveries, changes in consciousness. In a well-organized essay, describe how the author manages to give these internal events the sense of excitement, suspense, and climax usually associated with external action. Do not merely summarize the plot. 1989. In questioning the value of literary realism, Flannery O’Connor has written, “I am interested in making a good case for distortion because I am coming to believe that it is the only way to make people see.” Write an essay in which you “make a good case for distortion”" as distinct from literary realism. Analyze how important elements of the work you choose are “distorted” and explain how these distortions contribute to the effectiveness of the work. Avoid plot summary. 1990. Choose a novel or play that depicts a conflict between a parent (or a parental figure) and a son or daughter. Write an essay in which you analyze the sources of the conflict and explain how the conflict contributes to the meaning of the work. Avoid plot summary. 1991. Many plays and novels use contrasting places (for example, two countries, two cities or towns, two houses, or the land and the sea) to represent opposed forces or ideas that are central to the meaning of the work. Choose a novel or play that contrasts two such places. Write an essay explaining how the places differ, what each place represents, and how their contrast contributes to the meaning of the work. 1992. In a novel or play, a confidant (male) or a confidante (female) is a character, often a friend or relative of the hero or heroine, whose role is to be present when the hero or heroine needs a sympathetic listener to confide in. Frequently the result is, as Henry James remarked, that the confidant or confidante can be as much “the reader’s friend as the protagonist’s.” However, the author sometimes uses this character for other purposes as well. Choose a confidant or confidante from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you discuss the various ways this character functions in the work. You may write your essay on one of the following novels or plays or on another of comparable quality. Do not write on a poem or short story. 1993. “The true test of comedy is that it shall awaken thoughtful laughter.” Choose a novel, play, or long poem in which a scene or character awakens “thoughtful laughter” in the reader. Write an essay in which you show why this laughter is “thoughtful” and how it contributes to the meaning of the work. 1994. In some works of literature, a character who appears briefly, or does not appear at all, is a significant presence. Choose a novel or play of literary merit and write an essay in which you show how such a character functions in the work. You may wish to discuss how the character affects action, theme, or the development of other characters. Avoid plot summary. 1995. Writers often highlight the values of a culture or a society by using characters who are alienated from that culture or society because of gender, race, class, or creed. Choose a novel or a play in which such a character plays a significant role and show how that character’s alienation reveals the surrounding society’s assumptions or moral values. 1996. The British novelist Fay Weldon offers this observation about happy endings. “The writers, I do believe, who get the best and most lasting response from their readers are the writers who offer a happy ending through moral development. By a happy ending, I do not mean mere fortunate events -- a marriage or a last minute rescue from death -- but some kind of spiritual reassessment or moral reconciliation, even with the self, even at death.” Choose a novel or play that has the kind of ending Weldon describes. In a well-written essay, identify the “spiritual reassessment or moral reconciliation” evident in the ending and explain its significance in the work as a whole. 1997. Novels and plays often include scenes of weddings, funerals, parties, and other social occasions. Such scenes may reveal the values of the characters and the society in which they live. Select a novel or play that includes such a scene and, in a focused essay, discuss the contribution the scene makes to the meaning of the work as a whole. You may choose a work from the list below or another novel or play of literary merit. 1998. In his essay “Walking,” Henry David Thoreau offers the following assessment of literature: In literature it is only the wild that attracts us. Dullness is but another name for tameness. It is the uncivilized free and wild thinking in Hamlet and The Iliad, in all scriptures and mythologies, not learned in schools, that delights us. From the works that you have studied in school, choose a novel, play, or epic poem that you may initially have thought was conventional and tame but that you now value for its “uncivilized free and wild thinking.” Write an essay in which you explain what constitutes its “uncivilized free and wild thinking” and how that thinking is central to the value of the work as a whole. Support your ideas with specific references to the work you choose. 1999. The eighteenth-century British novelist Laurence Sterne wrote, “No body, but he who has felt it, can conceive what a plaguing thing it is to have a man’s mind torn asunder by two projects of equal strength, both obstinately pulling in a contrary direction at the same time.” From a novel or play choose a character (not necessarily the protagonist) whose mind is pulled in conflicting directions by two compelling desires, ambitions, obligations, or influences. Then, in a well-organized essay, identify each of the two conflicting forces and explain how this conflict with one character illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole. You may use one of the novels or plays listed below or another novel or work of similar literary quality. 2000. Many works of literature not readily identified with the mystery or detective story genre nonetheless involve the investigation of a mystery. In these works, the solution to the mystery may be less important than the knowledge gained in the process of its investigation. Choose a novel or play in which one or more of the characters confront a mystery. Then write an essay in which you identify the mystery and explain how the investigation illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. 2001. One definition of madness is “mental delusion or the eccentric behavior arising from it.” But Emily Dickinson wrote Much madness is divinest Sense- Novelists and playwrights have often seen madness with a “discerning Eye.” Select a novel or play in which a character’s apparent madness or irrational behavior plays an important role. Then write a well-organized essay in which you explain what this delusion or eccentric behavior consists of and how it might be judged reasonable. Explain the significance of the “madness” to the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. 2002. Morally ambiguous characters -- characters whose behavior discourages readers from identifying them as purely evil or purely good -- are at the heart of many works of literature. Choose a novel or play in which a morally ambiguous character plays a pivotal role. Then write an essay in which you explain how the character can be viewed as morally ambiguous and why his or her moral ambiguity is significant to the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. 2002, Form B. Often in literature, a character’s success in achieving goals depends on keeping a secret and divulging it only at the right moment, if at all. Choose a novel or play of literary merit that requires a character to keep a secret. In a well-organized essay, briefly explain the necessity for secrecy and how the character’s choice to reveal or keep the secret affects the plot and contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole. You may select a work from the list below, or you may choose another work of recognized literary merit suitable to the topic. Do NOT write about a short story, poem, or film. 2003. According to critic Northrop Frye, “Tragic heroes are so much the highest points in their human landscape that they seem the inevitable conductors of the power about them, great trees more likely to be struck by lightning than a clump of grass. Conductors may of course be instruments as well as victims of the divisive lightning.” Select a novel or play in which a tragic figure functions as an instrument of the suffering of others. Then write an essay in which you explain how the suffering brought upon others by that figure contributes to the tragic vision of the work as a whole. 2003, Form B. Novels and plays often depict characters caught between colliding cultures -- national, regional, ethnic, religious, institutional. Such collisions can call a character’s sense of identity into question. Select a novel or play in which a character responds to such a cultural collison. Then write a well-organized essay in which you describe the character’s response and explain its relevance to the work as a whole. 2004. Critic Roland Barthes has said, “Literature is the question minus the answer.” Choose a novel, or play, and, considering Barthes’ observation, write an essay in which you analyze a central question the work raises and the extent to which it offers answers. Explain how the author’s treatment of this question affects your understanding of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. 2004, Form B. The most important themes in literature are sometimes developed in scenes in which a death or deaths take place. Choose a novel or play and write a well-organized essay in which you show how a specific death scene helps to illuminate the meaning of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. 2005. In Kate Chopin’s The Awakening (1899), protagonist Edna Pontellier is said to possess “That outward existence which conforms, the inward life that questions.” In a novel or play that you have studied, identify a character who outwardly conforms while questioning inwardly. Then write an essay in which you analyze how this tension between outward conformity and inward questioning contributes to the meaning of the work. Avoid mere plot summary. 2005, Form B. One of the strongest human drives seems to be a desire for power. Write an essay in which you discuss how a character in a novel or a drama struggles to free himself or herself from the power of others or seeks to gain power over others. Be sure to demonstrate in your essay how the author uses this power struggle to enhance the meaning of the work. 2006. Many writers use a country setting to establish values within a work of literature. For example, the country may be a place of virtue and peace or one of primitivism and ignorance. Choose a novel or play in which such a setting plays a significant role. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the country setting functions in the work as a whole. 2006, Form B. In many works of literature, a physical journey - the literal movement from one place to another - plays a central role. Choose a novel, play, or epic poem in which a physical journey is an important element and discuss how the journey adds to the meaning of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. 2007. In many works of literature, past events can affect, positively or negatively, the present activities, attitudes, or values of a character. Choose a novel or play in which a character must contend with some aspect of the past, either personal or societal. Then write an essay in which you show how the character’s relationship to the past contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole. 2007, Form B. Works of literature often depict acts of betrayal. Friends and even family may betray a protagonist; main characters may likewise be guilty of treachery or may betray their own values. Select a novel or play that includes such acts of betrayal. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze the nature of the betrayal and show how it contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole. 2008. In a literary work, a minor character, often known as a foil, possesses traits that emphasize, by contrast or comparison, the distinctive characteristics and qualities of the main character. For example, the ideas or behavior of a minor character might be used to highlight the weaknesses or strengths of the main character. Choose a novel or play in which a minor character serves as a foil for the main character. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the relation between the minor character and the major character illuminates the meaning of the work. 2008, Form B. In some works of literature, childhood and adolescence are portrayed as times graced by innocence and a sense of wonder; in other works, they are depicted as times of tribulation and terror. Focusing on a single novel or play, explain how its representation of childhood or adolescence shapes the meaning of the work as a whole. 2009. A symbol is an object, action, or event that represents something or that creates a range of associations beyond itself. In literary works a symbol can express an idea, clarify meaning, or enlarge literal meaning. Select a novel or play and, focusing on one symbol, write an essay analyzing how that symbol functions in the work and what it reveals about the characters or themes of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. 2009, Form B. Many works of literature deal with political or social issues. Choose a novel or play that focuses on a political oe social issue. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the author uses literary elements to explore this issue and explain how the issue contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. 2010. Palestinian American literary theorist and cultural critic Edward Said has written that “Exile is strangely compelling to think about but terrible to experience. It is the unhealable rift forced between a human being and a native place, between the self and its true home: its essential sadness can never be surmounted.” Yet Said has also said that exile can become “a potent, even enriching” experience. Select a novel, play, or epic in which a character experiences such a rift and becomes cut off from “home,” whether that home is the character’s birthplace, family, homeland, or other special place. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the character’s experience with exile is both alienating and enriching, and how this experience illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. 2010, Form B. “You can leave home all you want but home will never leave you.” -- Sonsyrea Tate 2011. In a novel by William Styron, a father tells his son that life “is a search for justice.” Choose a character from a novel or play who responds in some significant way to justice or injustice. Then write a well-developed essay in which you analyze the character’s understanding of justice, the degree to which the character’s search for justice is successful , and the significance of this search for the work as a whole. 2011, Form B. In The Writing of Fiction (1925), novelist Edith Wharton states the following: At every stage in the progress of his tale the novelist must rely on what may be called the illuminating incident to reveal and emphasize the inner meaning of each situation. Illuminating incidents are the magic casements of fiction, its vistas on infinity. Choose a novel or play that you have studied and write a well-organized essay in which you describe an “illuminating” episode or moment and explain how it functions as a “casement,” a window that opens onto the meaning of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary. |
APPENDIX B
Discussion/ Socratic Seminar Grading Rubric
To participate, you must first examine a text (novel, movie, poem, piece of music or art).
During the seminar, listen attentively and respond to one another with respect. Before agreeing or disagreeing with a classmate, summarize that classmate’s ideas/opinions, and then express your own with clarity and supporting evidence from the text.
Rubric
1. Number of comments
- No comments=0 points______
- 1 comment= 5 points ______
- 2 comments=8 points ______
- 3 comments=12 points______
- 4 or more comments =15 points______
2. Quality of points
- no comments=0 points _____
- just repeats others’ ideas=5 points_____
- expresses original ideas=10 points_____
- original, deep comments, new ideas=15 points_____
3. References to text
· no references=0 points_______
· 1-2 references=8 points______
· 3 references=12 points ______
· 4 or more references=15 points_____
4. Write a comment that you didn’t get to make in the discussion. (15 points)
5. List and describe at least TWO comments by other participants(30 points)
6. Write a reflection of your participation in the discussion. (10 points)
ENGL 2322; Revised Fall 2013
Revised by Discipline: Fall 2012
El Paso Community College
Syllabus
Part II
Official Course Description
SUBJECT AREA English
COURSE RUBRIC AND NUMBER ENGL 2322
COURSE TITLE British Literature Survey: Anglo-Saxon to the 18th Century
COURSE CREDIT HOURS 3 3 : 0
Credits Lec Lab
I. Catalog Description
Examines a survey of the development of British literature from the Anglo-Saxon period to the Eighteenth Century. Students will study works of prose, poetry, drama, and fiction in relation to their historical, linguistic, and cultural contexts. Texts will be selected from a diverse group of authors and traditions. This course is strongly recommended for those pursuing a major in English at the baccalaureate level. ENGL 2322 is not required in order to enroll in ENGL 2323. Prerequisite: ENGL 1301 with a "C" or better. (3:0).
II. Course Objectives
Upon satisfactory completion of this course the student will be able to accomplish the following:
A. Explain the relationship between authors and their works in the context of their historical, social, and philosophical issues during the corresponding time periods.
B. Identify major trends of thought and literature in each period studied: i.e., the Anglo-Saxon, the Middle Ages, the Sixteenth Century, the Early Seventeenth Century, the Restoration and the Eighteenth Century.
C. Analyze and understand works of each literary figure studied.
D. Define literary terms and understand their practical application.
E. Better understand the various people of the Western World and their approach to life as these elements are presented in the literature considered.
F. Successfully articulate in writing his/her responses and interpretations of literary works through the writing of critical essays, research papers, journals, or a combination of these.
G. (Recommended) Attend at least one interpretive performance of a piece of literature from the period, (poetry reading, play, film, etc).
Unit Titles
The standard units for a British literary/historical survey are these:
A. Anglo-Saxon through the Middle Ages
B. The Sixteenth Century
C. The Early Seventeenth Century
D. The Restoration and the Eighteenth Century ENGL 2322; Revised Fall 2013
Revised by Discipline: Fall 2012
Some instructors may wish to organize the course thematically. If so, possible thematic units could be these:
1. Heroic Literature
2. Love
3. Satire
4. Religious/Philosophical Literature
III. THECB Learning Outcomes (ACGM)
Upon successful completion of this course, students will:
1. Identify key ideas, representative authors and works, significant historical or cultural
events, and characteristic perspectives or attitudes expressed in the literature of different
periods or regions.
2. Analyze literary works as expressions of individual or communal values within the social,
political, cultural, or religious contexts of different literary periods.
3. Demonstrate knowledge of the development of characteristic forms or styles of
expression during different historical periods or in different regions.
4. Articulate the aesthetic principles that guide the scope and variety of works in the arts
and humanities.
5. Write research-based critical papers about the assigned readings in clear and
grammatically correct prose, using various critical approaches to literature.
IV. Evaluation
A. Pre-assessment
Instructors should check each student's prerequisites the first week of class; those who do not qualify should be sent back to Admissions.
B. Post-assessment
1. The instructor will maintain a continuous record of each student's progress.
2. Students should be evaluated periodically throughout the semester.
3. The instructor will determine the weight of each graded assignment.
4. Instructors will require writing assignments other than quizzes and formal exams.
5. Plagiarism is both intellectual theft and academic dishonesty and will not be tolerated. Any work that is plagiarized could result in failure of the course. See the Student Handbook.
C. Remediation
This is left to the discretion of individual instructors. Some instructors permit students to re-write major writing assignments. Students needing assistance with writing problems are encouraged to contact the instructor. Assistance is also available through the Writing Centers located at most campuses.
D. Grading Scale
A = 90 – 100 I = Incomplete
B = 80 - 89 W = Withdrew or Withdrawn
C = 70 - 79
D = 60 - 69
F = below 60 ENGL 2322; Revised Fall 2013
Revised by Discipline: Fall 2012
V. Disability Statement (American with/Disabilities Act [ADA])
EPCC offers a variety of services to persons with documented sensory, mental, physical, or temporary disabling conditions to promote success in classes. If you have a disability and believe you may need services, you are encouraged to contact the Center for Students with Disabilities to discuss your needs with a counselor. All discussions and documentation are kept confidential. Offices located: VV Rm
C-112 (831-2426); TM Rm 1400 (831-5808); RG Rm B-201 (831-4198); NWC Rm M-54 (831-8815); and MDP Rm A-125 (831-7024).
V. 6 Drop Rule
Students who began attending Texas public institutions of higher education for the first time during the Fall 2007 semester or later are subject to a 6-Drop limit for all undergraduate classes. Developmental, ESL, Dual Credit and Early College High School classes are exempt from this rule. All students should consult with their instructor before dropping a class. Academic assistance is available. Students are encouraged to see Counseling Services if dropping because exemptions may apply. Refer to the EPCC catalog and website for additional information.
