Mrs. A. Kroondyk
Mrs. C. McAllister
kroondyk@aquinas.org
mcallister@aquinas.org
ENGLISH 11
COURSE DESCRIPTION 2014-2015
RATIONALE:
Language is fundamental to thinking, learning, and communicating in all cultures. The skilled use of
language is associated with many opportunities in life, including further education, work, and social
interaction. As students come to understand and use language more fully, they are able to enjoy the
benefits and pleasures of language in all of its forms – from reading, writing, and listening, to literature,
theatre, public speaking, film, and other media. In this course, we will cover themes concerning identity,
loss, love, friendship, family, aspirations, and our overall purpose in life. These ideas will be explored
through the close study of Aboriginal poetry, Canadian and American literature, as well as classic novel
and short story selections. Furthermore, composition is a key component of this course, with the goal to
prepare students for English 12 and their future endeavours.
UNITS & RESOURCES:
Unit 1 (September): Introduction to “You!” and the Essay (Canadian literature selections)
Unit 2 (October- November): Short Stories (Echoes 11 Anthology and other selections)
Unit 3 (November): Oral Language- Narrative Speech
Unit 4 (December- January): Novel – Of Mice and Men and Review
Unit 5(February-March): Poetry – (Echoes 11 Anthology and other selections)
Unit 6 (April): Novel – The Alchemist
Unit 7 (May- June): Drama – Macbeth and Review
ONGOING:
INDEPENDENT READING- An important goal of the English department is to encourage all students to
become independent readers and to enhance their exposure to literature. Each English class will begin
with a 15 minute silent reading session. Students (and teacher!) are expected to bring appropriate
reading materials.
GRAMMAR AND LITERARY DEVICES- Developing the language in which to effectively communicate
within the English and literary worlds is imperative to understanding and appreciating the world in
general. Throughout the year, therefore, we will cover various grammar topics as well as all of the
required departmental literary terms (Composition, Fiction, Poetry) for grade eleven, as prescribed by
the Ministry of Education.
ASSESSMENT:
This course involves a variety of assessment strategies and techniques, and emphasizes Assessment for
Learning practices. The ultimate aim of the assessment and evaluation process is to teach the student
to take responsibility for his or her own work, and to become an independent learner; therefore, much
of our class work will be formative and will be done as practice without a mark being assigned. This
formative work is done in order to prepare us for our summative work, which will receive a mark and
feature the elements we have been practicing and learning throughout each unit. Students may not
complete the summative assessment for each unit until all formative, or practice, work is completed. If
a student is behind or incomplete in his or her formative work, summative work will not be graded and
students will receive an “I” in the reporting period. Please note that most units contain multiple
formative assessment tasks and one summative assessment task. Therefore, during certain reporting
periods expect minimal marked assessments to be included, simply because we are in the process of
approaching a new assessment at that time. The mark listed during the first two reporting periods is
temporary and there will most likely be fluctuation in percentage with the next assessment.
Mrs. A. Kroondyk
Mrs. C. McAllister
kroondyk@aquinas.org
mcallister@aquinas.org
DISTRIBUTION OF MARKS:
As per the Ministry of Education guidelines, English Language Arts courses are grouped under three
curriculum organizers which have been framed to highlight the important aspects of student learning in
English Language Arts:
1. Oral Language (Speaking and Listening)
2. Reading and Viewing
3. Writing and Representing.
Thus, our distribution of marks reflects these three important elements of the course:
Speaking Assessment
Reading Test
Reading Assessment
Writing Test
Writing Assessment
Reading Exam (Midterm)
Writing Exam (Midterm)
Reading Exam (Final)
Writing Exam (Final)
10%
20%
10%
15%
10%
10%
7.5%
10%
7.5%
WORK HABITS:
Work habits are carefully assigned to each student at the end of every reporting period:
E = Excellent
G = Good
S = Satisfactory
N= Needs Improvement
Three main factors are taken into account when teachers determine each student’s work habit mark:
Responsibility, Cooperation, and Ownership of Learning. Students who obtain (E) excellent work habit
marks go above and beyond classroom expectations, and consistently: submit assignments and
homework on the due date, make effective use of class time, have a neat and organized binder, come to
class with all required materials, behave respectfully and cooperatively in class, take responsibility for
work missed due to absence, prepare well for evaluation, and seek clarification or extra help when
necessary.
Please read the Classroom Expectations handout for more information on what is expected of students.
Please also note that students may achieve honour roll standing with work habits of (E) Excellent or (G)
Good in all subject areas.