Education 821: Methods of Teaching English
Fall, 2003
Thursday, 5-9 p.m. MC                                                         Office: MC 536
E-Mail: gtsmith@.viterbo.edu                                              Phone: 796-3485 

Texts

·         Making the Journey: Being and Becoming a Teacher of English Language Arts by Leila Christenbury, Heinemann, 2000.

·         Classroom Management for Secondary Teachers by Emmer, Evertson and Worsham; Allyn and Bacon, 2003

  • The Revealers by Doug Wilhelm

·         Using Young Adult Literature in the English Classroom, Bushman and Haas, Merrill Prentice Hall, 2001. (Optional, on reserve in the library)

·         Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools, Maxwell and Meiser, Merrill Prentice Hall, 2001. (Optional, on reserve in the library)

·         A Measure of Success: From Assignment to Assessment in English Language Arts by Fran Claggett (Optional, on reserve in the library)

·         Inside Out: Developmental Strategies for Teaching Writing by Kirby, et. al. (Optional, on reserve in the library)

·         The Peaceable Classroom by Mary Rose O'Reilley (Optional, on reserve in the library)

 

 Course Description 

 

The English Methods course emphasizes (1) creating appropriate lesson or unit plans of different genres of literature, (2) effective teaching strategies that promotes authentic learning, (3) classroom management strategies, and (4) curriculum development that includes assessment tools.

 

The English Methods course will address Wisconsin Standards for Teacher Development and Licensure A through F.  The English Methods course will address directly the following INTASC standards:  (1) Teachers know the subjects, (4) Teachers know how to teach, (5) Teachers know how to manage a classroom, (6) Teachers communicate well, (7) Teachers are able to plan different kinds of lessons, and  (9) Teachers are able to evaluate themselves

 

The English Methods course will address the Viterbo Core Abilities 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5

 

Objectives

 

·        The students will define four literary genres: short story, poetry, novel, and drama (INTASC 1) (ELA A)

·        The students will prepare lesson plans for one of the four genres (INTASC 4) (ELA F)

·        The students will present a lesson to the group (INTASC 4, 6, 7) (ELA B, C, D, E, F)

·        The students will participate in class discussions (ELA C) 

 

Week One:  November 6

·         Introduction: We will ask and try to answer the following questions: What teaching skills do you hope to learn this semester?  Why do you want to be an English teacher?  What do you perceive as your strengths and weaknesses?  What is English?  What is a good English teacher?  What fears do you have about teaching English?  What are your expectations as an English teacher?  Click here for the Wisconsin Learner Standards

·         Leading a class discussion

·         Assigned reading:  Making the Journey, Chapters 1, 2 and 9; Classroom Management, Chapters 2, 4, and 9; Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools, Chapters 2, 14

·         Suggested reading: The Peaceable Classroom, Chapters 1 - 4;  Inside Out Chapters 1 - 3; A Measure of Success, Introduction through Chapter Two.

·         For a list of helpful "English" web sites click here.

·         For a helpful web site on creating lesson plans click here.

Teaching the Short Story

·         Teaching the short story: Be prepared to discuss the following: What's the value of narratives What short stories do you remember from your secondary school experience?  Why do you remember them?  What strategies will you use to teach the short story?  Will you teach the short stories as literature or as experiences?  How will you place the stories in a textual, social, cultural, and topical perspective?

·         Assigned reading:  Making the Journey, Chapter Three; Classroom Management, Chapters 5 - 8; Using Young Adult Literature, Chapter 3.

  • Read "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor

·         Suggested reading: The Peaceable Classroom, Chapters Five through Conclusion

 

Week Two:  November 13

·         Teaching Literature through Drama: What was your experience with Shakespeare in school?  How were you introduced to Shakespeare?  Did you read his plays aloud in class?  Have you seen a film or live production of one of his plays?

·         Assigned Reading:  Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools, pp. 275 - 278; Using YA Literature in the English Classroom, p. 140.

 

Week Three: November 20

·        Teaching Poetry: Why are teachers of English often afraid of teaching poetry?  Why, when it is taught, is it often taught poorly?  What were your experiences with poetry in junior high, high school, college?  How do you feel about memorizing poetry?  Do you read poetry for pleasure (leisure reading)?  How do you feel about teaching the parts of a poem: scansion, iambic pentameter, metonymy, metaphor, simile, allusion, imagery, near rhyme, blank verse, villanelle, sonnet, and on and on?

·         Assigned reading:  Chapter Five in Making the Journey; Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools, pp. 279 - 284; Using YA Literature in the English Classroom, pp. 129 - 134

·         Suggested reading: Chapter Six in Inside Out; Pass the Poetry Please by Lee Bennett Hopkins, HarperCollins, 1998; Carver: A Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson

·         Click here for a YA poetry booklist

·         Click here for a web site on poetry lesson plans.

Week Four: December 4

 

·        Teaching the novel: Are the books you read on your own different from those you read in school?  If so, how?  What books have your read in school that you enjoyed?  What was it that you enjoyed about the experience of reading them?  Has a teacher or another adult ever recommended a book to you that you found boring or unsatisfactory?  Did you feel a little guilty about your reaction?  Do you sometimes gain additional insight into a book during a class discussion of it?  If so, what kind of discussion?  Do you sometimes gain additional insight into a book while writing about it?  If so, what kind of writing?  Will you teach the same novel to all of the students in your class?  Or will you allow the students to choose different novels (with a similar theme) to read?

·         Classroom Management – How Can I Teach Peace?

·         Assigned reading: Making the Journey, Chapter Four;  Using Young Adult Literature, Chapters 1, 2, 4, 7; Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools, Chapters 8, 9, 13.

  • Read The Revealers by Doug Wilhelm

·         Click here for the Newbery Award site.

·         Click here for the National Book Award site.

·         Click here for a YA reading list web site.

Week Five: December 11 (Final Exams Week)

·         Teaching Composition: What is your definition of language?  Can you remember anything about the process by which you learned to use language?  What are the most important differences between your uses of spoken and written language?  Are you satisfied with the way you use language?  Why or why not?  How can language best be learned?  How will you teach writing?  How much time will you devote to teaching composition?

·         Assigned reading: Chapters Six and Seven in Making the Journey; Chapters 6, 7, and 10 in Teaching English in Middle and Secondary Schools

·          Suggested reading: The remainder of Inside Out; and Chapters Three through Five in A Measure of Success.