|
You will find all daily happenings from class in the calendar. Use this as a resource for staying on
top of your work in the event of your absence. Contact Information E-Mail: bennettr@fultonschools.org
(best method of contact) Milton High School 13025 Birmingham Highway Milton, GA 30004 770-740-7000 ext. 215 |
Contemporary Literature and Composition: In 2004 the Georgia Department of Education
adopted new Georgia Performance Standards for grades 9-12. Consistent with
state curriculum, the Fulton County Schools English language arts curriculum
implementation aligns with state standards. The content standards for twelfth
grade courses are clustered by strands: Reading
and Literature, Reading Across the
Curriculum, Conventions, Writing, and Listening/Speaking/Viewing. Twelfth graders will continue to build on the reading
and language curriculum established in grades 9-11. Throughout this
one-semester course, students will have opportunities to develop and expand
their knowledge of contemporary culture and its influence on the literature
of modern times. Students will demonstrate mastery level of new learning
through performance tasks and assessments. Reading and Literature Students will read, analyze, and apply their
knowledge of the structures, themes, and elements of contemporary fiction and
nonfiction as well as multimedia text such as film. They will deepen their
understanding of media literacy by relating themes across genres to their
contemporary context or political, social, or economic perspective. Through
extensive reading, students will acquire new vocabulary specific to the study
of contemporary literature and apply that knowledge in their writing. Reading Across the Curriculum To encourage students to become life-long readers,
the curriculum includes standards that address both academic and personal habits
of reading. Students will read approximately one million words per year from
a variety of subject disciplines including language arts. In the English
language arts classroom, students will learn the vocabulary of literature,
writing, and listening, speaking, and viewing. Writing Expository writing is
the focus for twelfth grade; however, students will continue to produce a
wide range of writings including polished narratives, persuasive pieces and
technical documents. Students will practice both timed and process writing to
develop compositions that demonstrate an understanding of tone, point of
view, style, organization, author’s purpose, and audience. Students
will continue to use research and technology to support reading and writing.
A research paper is a requirement of the course. Conventions Students will
demonstrate an understanding of proper English usage and control of grammar,
sentence and paragraph structure, diction, and syntax. They will apply their
knowledge of the conventions of language in reading, writing, and speaking
and focus on the correct use of clauses, phrases, and the mechanics
punctuation. Sentence construction and usage will continue to be a focus for
twelfth grade. Students will apply their knowledge of the conventions of
format when producing expository writing.
Listening/Speaking/Viewing Students will continue to develop their critical
listening skills. Through
presentations and interactions with the teacher and other students, they will
apply effective speaking techniques in small and large group settings. The
viewing standards will enable students to develop media literacy skills
through the careful examination of contemporary texts including television,
radio, film productions, and electronic media. |
Mrs. Bennett’s Addendum to
the State’s Definition Contemporary
Literature is “a lone reed waving proudly in the sands of
[education].” I say this
not lightly, but with the sincere belief that this course offers something
special to those who have endeavored to take it. Very rarely do
students encounter literature of immediate relevance—literature that
speaks to them about themselves and their ideas without reservation. Contemporary Literature offers such an
opportunity. During the course of
this semester we will study issues of class, male-female communicative
patterns, modern racial
perceptions, divorce, fraternal bonds, contemporary social ideology, adultery
(or moral sense), and media (including film terminology, purpose, bias, and the
like). Much of our
course will consist of class discussion.
Our forum is built on the respect of others and their ideas. At no time can the ideas of another be
belittled, though we will learn to question ideas in a manner that is thought
provoking and facilitative of mature deliberation. Students are
offered the opportunity to tell me, in writing, at the beginning of the
semester if there are any issues which they feel uncomfortable
discussing. Once we arrive at
those topics, alternative assignments may be given—though I strongly
urge students to brave what is uncomfortable for the sake of learning, and
for the purpose of helping others to see contemporary issues. |
