Beal/AP Language and Composition
AP LANGUAGE & COMPOSITION: First Semester Syllabus
Introduction:
The first semester of AP Language and Composition concentrates on the
following major questions. Questions 1 and 2 are the main focus of Unit 1
while Question 3 is the main focus of Unit 2.
UNIT 1:
 WHAT LED TO THE CREATION OF THE AMERICAN IDEAL?
 WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD READER AND A
GOOD WRITER?
Texts:
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To Kill a Mockingbird (Summer Reading Text)
"Good Readers and Good Writers" by Vladimir Nabokov
Appendix from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick
Douglass
Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau
Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Close Reading” by Francine Prose
"The Nature of Proof in the Interpretation of Poetry" by Laurence Perrine
Speech to the Virginia Convention by Patrick Henry
Preamble to the Constitution
The Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson
Signing of the Declaration of Independence by John Trumbull
Benjamin Banneker’s Letter to Thomas Jefferson, Aug.1791
How it Feels to Be Colored Me by Zora Neale Hurston
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Jonathon Edwards
The Crucible by Arthur Miller
Excerpts from The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Senator Joseph McCarthy Responds to Edward R. Murrow on CBS’s See It
Now (www.americanrhetoric.com)
Edward R. Murrow’s Response to Senator Joe McCarthy on CBS’s See It
Now (www.americanrhetoric.com)
Excerpt of George W. Bush’s Second State of the Union Address, January
29, 2002.(www.americanrhetoric.com)
Supplementary Text: Everything's An Argument (Composition
Text): Chapters 1-6, 14, 15, 16
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Writing Assignments:
 Summer Reading Essay: Open-ended and Synthesis essays from
portions of text
 Visual Essay
 Rhetorical analyses of Op-Ed pieces from The New York Times and/or
visual arguments in print or on the Internet.
 Research Paper
 AP Practice Essay Questions (Open-Ended Questions only)
 Dialectical Journals and Conferences
Composition Focus:
 Explicit and implicit thesis statements
 The rhetorical situation
 Purposes of argument
 Kinds of argument
 Occasions for argument
 Evidence in argumentation: definitions, statistics, tables, graphs,
evaluations, analogies, examples, personal experience, quotations,
precedence, authority, images, first and secondhand evidence and
research
 Arranging evidence
 Structure as a device to enhance content
 Appeals in writing
 Connecting with readers
 Contexts in writing
 Building a critical mass in argumentation
Reading Focus:
Identifying and practicing the traits of a critical reader of literature/art
(identified by students in class):
 From Vladimir Nabokov
 From Laurence Perrine
 From Francine Prose
Unit 2:
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HOW DOES IDENTITY FOR AN INDIVIDUAL AND A COMMUNITY
DEVELOP AND CHANGE?
Texts:
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Governor Jan Brewer Address Upon Signing Arizona Senate Bill 1070,
April 2010 (www.americanrhetoric.com)
President Barack Obama Comprehensive Immigration Reform, July 2010
(www.americanrhetoric.com)
Selected Political Cartoons to Support Immigration Rhetoric
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(http://editorialcartoonist.com) (Search “American Memory” in
www.loc.gov)
Liberty Enlightening the World by Emma Lazarus
American Progress,1872 by John Gast
Excerpt from Wm. Makepeace Thackeray’s Pocohontas
Excerpt from Disney’s Pocohontas (1995)
The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott Momaday
Indian Boarding School Runaways by Louise Erdrich
Ten Indians and Indian Camp by Ernest Hemingway
I Will Fight No More Forever by Chief Joseph
Smoke Signals (based on The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven)
by Sherman Alexie
Supplementary Text: Everything's An Argument (Composition Text)
Chapters 7, 9, 17
Writing Assignments:
 Extended Definition Essay with The Oxford English Dictionary
 Rhetorical analyses of Op-Ed pieces from The New York Times and/or
visual arguments in print or on the Internet.
 AP Practice Essay Questions (Open-Ended Questions only)
 Dialectical Journals and Conferences
Composition Focus:
 Appeals to authority, reason, and emotion in argument
 Specificity in diction choices
 Evidence and the rhetorical situation
 Kinds of definitions in an argument
 Toulmin argument
 Recognizing false assumptions and fallacies
Reading Focus:
Identifying and practicing the traits of a critical reader of literature/art
(identified by students in class):
 From Vladimir Nabokov
 From Laurence Perrine
 From Francine Prose
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Appeals to authority, reason, and emotion in argument
Specificity in diction choices
Evidence and the rhetorical situation
Kinds of definitions in an argument
Toulmin argument
Recognizing false assumptions and fallacies
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Professional Models: A variety of contemporary professional models will
be made available for our resources.
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Practice AP Essay Questions: Rhetorical Analyses, Synthesis and OpenEnded Questions
A syllabus for the second semester will be made available at the start of the
second semester. Ask Mr. Beal if you have any questions.
Expectations and Grading:
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First
level
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Nearly all of the writing done in class will be multi-draft in nature.
o A first draft of any piece of writing should be your best effort
o A second draft should be vastly different than a first draft—not
just a few words changed.
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On average, you will have one hour of reading/writing homework per
night assigned to you.
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Grading Breakdown:
o DAILY WORK (homework, quizzes, in-class writings)—20%
o DIALECTICAL JOURNAL/JOURNAL CONFERENCE—20%
o WRITING ASSIGNMENTS (essays, drafts, reflections)—50%
o SEMESTER EXAM—10%
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You will be required to purchase a separate, new notebook for our
Dialectical Journals. It is highly recommended you have another
notebook for class notes.
and foremost, it is important to remember that this is a collegeEnglish course. You will be challenged—embrace it!
Challenge your own ideas habits and beliefs regularly!
Ask questions of yourselves and others.
For more information, see “General Grading Guide” on pages 6-8.
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The AP Language Exam:
The AP Language exam is a long ways away, but familiarizing yourself with its
contents early is a good idea.
Part I: Multiple Choice Exam
 55 Multiple choice questions over 4-5 nonfiction reading
passages
 60 minutes to complete
 Passages can range from 1600’s to present
 Accounts for 45% of the entire exam.
Part II: Free Response Essays
 3 Separate Essays—all of which must be completed
o Synthesis
o Rhetorical Analysis
o Argument (AKA Open-Ended Question)
 15 minutes to read passages and take notes
 120 minutes to compose all 3 essays
 Accounts for 55% of the entire test.
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All parts of the test are added, generating a composite score
from 1-5
You may receive college credit if the composite score you
receive is high enough
o NOTE: Credits given for courses will vary from
institution to institution.
Practice tests will be made available throughout the school
year.
While we will have plenty of exposure to practice tests and actual AP Language
exams released from previous years, my primary focus is to incorporate the
skills you will use on the exam through day-to-day classwork.
Lots more information on the AP English Language and Composition Exam can
be found at: apcentral.collegeboard.com
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GENERAL GRADING GUIDE
This guide is intended to help you adjust your own level of work and your own
expectations of grades. Please understand that your effort is not the criterion for
an A. I expect that you are ALWAYS working hard. You will be graded on your
growth over each quarter—this means you must demonstrate growth as a reader,
as a writer, and as a thinker. You will participate in this assessment through
the Dialectical Journal Conferences and the Writing Conferences we have
regularly, as well as the Critical Reflections that end each writing
assignment. The highest grades in this class will be earned by students who
understand the skills we are trying to develop and who use the course disciplines
to reflect on their own progress, to improve their skills as readers, writers, and,
ultimately, critical thinkers.
“A” Students working at this level engage fully every assignment and demonstrate
a willingness to examine their own thinking and assumptions. All work reflects a
level of thinking far beyond the obvious and the superficial. Students come to
class fully prepared to discuss assigned readings and to participate actively in all
phases of the course. All assignments are submitted on time and all make-up
work from authorized absences is managed in a timely fashion. Obviously, all
work is the student’s own.
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Every writing assignment has undergone meaningful, substantive revisions
in content, diction, syntax, and style. Writing conferences are marked by
the student’s understanding of the assignment’s goals.
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Proposals for writing assignments are accepted within three submissions in
Semester One and within two submissions in Semester Two. Drafts are
submitted once a week, and the entire process from proposal through final
draft to the critical reflection is completed within a five-week period.
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Dialectical Journals indicate not only the questions and problems a student
has while working with a text, but an honest attempt at logical answers and
solutions. They also move far beyond the superficial identification of
rhetorical and literary devices and provide a full and rich argument on the
student’s reading of the text. They address all parts of the assignment.
Finally, the Dialectical Journal conference is focused on the reading skills
emphasized in class and led by the student. Dialectical Journals are also
completed on time. Any student who has even one incomplete journal in a
quarter will not be in an A category.
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Students make and keep appointments with me.
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Research assignments change every quarter, but A work involves critical
reading and writing, not superficial summaries, at every phase of the
project. All reading is completed on time as is all written work.
“B” Students working at this level competently engage every assignment and
consistently attempt to examine their own thinking and assumptions. The
majority of the student’s work reflects a level of thinking beyond the obvious and
the superficial. Students come to class fully prepared to discuss assigned readings
and to participate actively in all phases of the course. Most assignments are
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submitted on time and most make-up work from authorized absences is managed
in a timely fashion. All work is the student’s own.
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All writing assignments have undergone meaningful revisions in content,
diction, syntax, and style. Writing conferences are marked by the student’s
understanding of the assignment’s goals.
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Proposals for writing assignments are accepted in approximately five
submissions in Semester One; three in Semester Two. Drafts are submitted
weekly, and the entire process from proposal through critical reflection is
completed within a five to six week period.
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Dialectical Journals indicate not only the questions and problems a student
has while working with a text, but an honest attempt at logical answers and
solutions. They also provide an adequate argument on the student’s
reading of the text. Finally, the Dialectical Journal conference, led by the
student, is focused on the reading skills emphasized in class. Dialectical
Journals are also generally completed on time, but they lack the substance
of the A conferences.
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Students make and keep appointments with the teacher.
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Research assignments change every quarter, but B work involves critical
reading and writing, not superficial summaries, at every phase of the
project. All or nearly all reading and writing is completed on time.
“C” Students working at this level do not yet engage every assignment and
inconsistently demonstrate a willingness to examine their own thinking and
assumptions. Only a minor portion of the student’s work reflects a level of
thinking beyond the obvious and the superficial. Students are reluctant to
challenge themselves beyond what they have already accomplished in reading and
writing, and thus, show little or no growth in those areas. Students come to class
minimally prepared to discuss assigned readings and to participate actively in all
phases of the course. A majority of assignments are submitted on time and most
make-up work from authorized absences is managed in a timely fashion.
Obviously, all work is the student’s own.
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Writing assignments have not undergone meaningful revisions in content,
diction, syntax, and style. Some papers have not met the minimum three
revision standard, and some revisions ignore the specific requirements set
in class for the assignment.
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Proposals for writing assignments are not submitted on time and are not
accepted within five or six submissions. Drafts are not submitted weekly,
and the entire writing process is not completed within a six week period.
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Dialectical Journals often indicate the questions and problems a student
has while working with a text, but make only minor attempts at logical
answers and solutions. In addition, the journals provide only an opinion of
the text or a personal reflection, not a supported argument on the student’s
reading of the text. Finally, the conference with me about the journals is
not fully focused on the reading skills emphasized in class. Dialectical
Journals may not be completed on time and br are often incomplete.
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Required conferences with me are sometimes ignored but make-ups are
completed.
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Research assignments change every quarter, but C work involves only
minimal critical reading and writing, focusing instead on superficial
summaries of assigned reading. Reading and writing is not completed in the
time allotted.
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Conferences require considerable help from me and often lack focus.
Students often seem confused about the goals of the assignments in both
reading and writing.
“D” Students working at this level seldom engage any assignment and
consistently demonstrate an unwillingness to examine their own thinking and
assumptions. The student’s work reflects a level of thinking that is obvious and
superficial. Students come to class ill-prepared to discuss assigned readings and
to participate actively in the course. Several assignments are submitted late; some
assignments may be missing completely. Make-up work from authorized absences
may be missing or seriously late. Obviously, all work is the student’s own.
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Writing assignments have not undergone meaningful revisions in content,
diction, syntax, and style. Some or all papers have not met the minimum
three revision standard in Semester One; two in Semester Two, and some
revisions ignore the specific requirements set in class for the assignment.
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Dialectical Journals might indicate the questions and problems a student
has while working with a text, but seldom attempt logical answers and
solutions. They often deal with only a portion of the text or address the
entire text on only a surface level (perhaps offering a plot summary or
personal connections to a story line or character). In addition, the journal
provides only broad judgmental statements of the text, not a supported
argument on the student’s reading of the text. Many of the required
elements are incomplete or missing. Finally, the conference with me about
the journals is unfocused and ignores required discussion of particular
reading skills.
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Research assignments change every quarter, but D work ignores critical
reading and writing, while offering only superficial summaries of the
reading. Some work may be incomplete or missing entirely.
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Objective quiz and test grades average 60%.
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Required conferences with me are sometimes ignored by the student or the
student is not prepared to discuss the identified reading or writing skills
identified in class.
“F” - This level of work is obviously unacceptable. Work is often not submitted, or
the student may completely ignore the requirements of the assignment, or the
student has committed serious violations of the course Academic Integrity Policy
(plagiarism).
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Time Management:
Being able to manage and prioritize all of your commitments are essential to
obtaining success in any AP course. Indeed, time management is one of the
skills I want you master this year!
The final grade you hope to obtain at semester: _________________
Your commitments (those which take up more than an hour per week):
____________________________
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Regarding your commitments, what will you have to do to ensure that you will
have enough time to commit to all of the reading, writing and other work that
comes with AP English Language and Composition?