Dr. Sylvia Bailey Shurbutt Phone: 876-5207/5220,
Email: Sshurbut@shepherd.edu Office: Knutti 223;
Office Hrs.: MWF
SYLLABUS
SPECIAL METHODS OF TEACHING
ENGLISH, EDUC 421/585
www.ncte.org
The purpose of "English Methods" is to familiarize
potential Language Arts teachers with both the practical
and theoretical aspects of their discipline as applied to
the classroom experiences they will encounter as
English teachers. The
theoretical and practical framework into which all activities are set is
provided by
the NCTE Guidelines
for the Preparation of Teachers of English Language Arts (see course
webpage). To accomplish this
purpose and to facilitate students' becoming reflective problem solvers
as prescribed by the TARPS theme, students will
participate in a variety of active learning experiences;
in the process, students will accomplish the following Intended Outcomes:
1) Mastery of current methods of developing reading skills,
teaching literature, and developing oral and written language skills, including
process writing, computer
drafting, design and use of
classroom webpages, collaborative and cooperative learning strategies, reading/writing work-shopping techniques, mind-based learning
strategies, and appropriate "questioning"
techniques for teaching Language Arts);
2) Understanding of language development and how students respond
to literature at different developmental stages and from ethnic backgrounds,
as well as understanding levels of
language usage and dialects;
3) Mastery of techniques in classroom management, constructing lesson plans appropriate for L/A
teaching, utilizing the
technology and technological resources available to L/A teachers, and constructing evaluative tools;
4) Understanding of the significant developmental stages and physiological
processes of adolescence, utilizing appropriate methods and teaching
strategies as noted above, as well as new findings of mind-based learning
strategies;
5) Understanding of student exceptionalities and how these
impact specifically the L/A teacher;
6) Exploration of ethnic and gender issues, relevant to
a multicultural world and the teaching of English;
7) Observation of master teacher presentations (by individuals
noted for their teaching effectiveness in the field) and evaluate/discuss the
approaches and techniques they espouse;
8) Examination of schools of literary criticism and pedagogical literature in those
journals and texts devoted to improving the quality of the teaching English in
secondary and middle schools;
9) Preparation of teaching unit and presentation of a lesson from the
unit, which will
be video taped and
self-evaluated;
10) Proficiency in the use of technology
as applied to the LA classroom, by
developing class webpages, PowerPoint programs, webquests, and
Smartboard lessons.
Frank Smith's Reading
without Nonsense will
provide an understanding of the mental processes utilized when processing
language and verbal information. Effective
mentoring and modeling will be provided by the Methods instructor, the guest Master
Teachers, case studies from Nancie Atwell’s In
the Middle and Side By Side and from Peter Elbow’s What
Is English?
Two important goals of the course are the
integration of practice and theory and the infusion of the
TEXT, MATERIALS, REQUIREMENTS:
Tchudi and Mitchell, Explorations
in the Teaching of English, 4th edition, Harper & Row;
Nancie Atwell, In the Middle:
Writing, Reading, and Learning with Adolescents, 2nd
edition, Heinemann; Holman and Harmon’s Handbook
to Literature, Macmillan (required for ENGL 310/311); Frank Smith’s Reading Without Nonsense, 3rd
edition, Teachers College Press; Adriana Trigiani’s Big Stone Gap; Edward Hallowell’ s Delivered from Distraction:
Getting the Most Out of Life with Attention Deficit Disorder,
Ballantine, 2006; Membership in NCTE (including a subscription to the English
Journal or another professional journal; see NCTE website).
EVALUATION: Graduate students only will conduct an
original research project suitable for conference presentation which will count
1/10 of their grade; their
instructional unit will count likewise 1/10.
All students will write a number of daily assignments, including
one-page, computer-drafted critical abstracts of pedagogical/scholarly
articles, as well as a number of written responses to case studies and other
daily assignments, activities, essays, special projects, including class and
WebCT bulletin board participation (1/10). Students are also required to attend at least
2 Appalachian Heritage WIR events: see
website at http://www.shepherd.edu/ahwirweb/ and at http://www.shepherd.edu/ahwirweb/Gates/. The Methods
course exam will count 3/10, while the usage/grammar exam will
count 1/10. A classroom
webpage (1/10), PowerPoint presentation and Interpretive Reading
Presentation (1/10), and webquest
(1/10) will also be required. A fully
developed and detailed instructional
unit will be created (2/10 for undergraduates only), with one lesson
from that unit presented and video taped as a teaching demonstration. Any make-up work will be allowed only if absences are excused; students
should contact the professor by phone or email or leave a message with the
English Department secretary in advance of an absence. TARDIES are not advised, as they
interrupt class discussion, disturbing both professor and students. Students are required to have a computer
account at Shepherd and will receive most assignments via WebCT postings.
METHODS OF TEACHING
ENGLISH
SEMESTER CALENDAR
*Assignments may be adjusted on calendar as
needed. E-mail instructor if you will be
out of class: sshurbut@shepherd.edu; make-up work is allowed only if absence
is excused. The course webpage is located
on
August 19: Introduction
Syllabus,
Bibliography, Unit Projects, NCTE Guidelines for Teacher Preparation (see
online @ Sakai prior to August 21 class discussion), Introductions @ Sakai
Teacher’s Lounge (bulletin board)
8/26 Assignments: Check Sakai for
assignment specifics; read
selections from Hallowell’s Delivered
from Distraction: Getting the Most Out of Life with ADD (chs. 1, 2, 6, 8, 11, 14, 16, 17, 18, 25, 27, Appendix A) ; read "Misreading Dyslexia";
“Dyslexia and the New Science of Reading”; read "Scott's Gift"; write
a single one-page response to the two articles and case study; write a one-two
page essay on A Memorable Teacher (use MLA manuscript style); obtain NCTE membership at NCTE website,
www.ncte.org.
August 21: NCTE Guidelines and English
Education Competency Exam Pre-Test
August 26: Exceptionalities
Discussion of Hallowell’s Delivered from
Distraction and Exceptionalities in the Classroom
8/28 Assignments: Review the assessment evaluation and
download Period Outlines from 421 Course
Page for those American and British Literary periods in which you need to
strengthen your knowledge base; read Nancie Atwell's “The Thoughtful
Practitioner” (on-line @ Sakai); Tchudi's "A Documentary History of
Teaching the English Language Arts"(1-34); Four Case Studies for
Exceptionalities Diagnosis and Response; Review Abstract: Your
Choice—Exceptional Child. Check Sakai for “As You Read” or to post your thoughts.
August 28: The Thoughtful
Practitioner and A Historical Perspective
of Teaching English
Discussion of
Atwell and Tchudi Assignments
9/2
Assignments: Read Peter Elbow case study "Are
Teenagers Different?" and the articles “Getting Inside a Teen Brain” and
“Mind Expansion: Inside the Teenage Brain”; write a single one-page response to
the case study and articles. Read
Atwell’s "Making the Best of Adolescence" (51-81). Check Sakai for
assignment link and post your thoughts on the bulletin board.
September 2: Making the Best of Adolescence: Gray
Matters, the Teen Brain, and Brain-
Based Learning
9/4 Assignment: Read Tchudi’s "Exploring and Teaching the English
Language Arts" (36-65); “The Integrated Curriculum" (67-91);
"Creating Instructional Units" (92-116); check Sakai assignment link
and post your thoughts.
September 4: Language, Experience and Teaching
Discussion of The Integrated Curriculum and Creating Instructional Units
Determine a subject
and plan for your unit; see Sakai and post your thoughts.
9/9 Assignments: Read Gurian's "Biology of
Boyhood"; “Gray Matters”; “Girls, Boys, and Autism.” Check Sakai and post
your thoughts.
September 9: Gender Issues, Cultural Diversity, and Teaching
Language Arts
9/11 Assignments:
Abstract: Your Choice—Gender Issue in the LA Classroom or Brain-Based
Learning; NCTE Guidelines for Non-Sexist
Language; check Sakai assignment link and you’re your thoughts. Post on Sakai your unit topic, grade level,
and preliminary ideas for unit.
September 11: Learning-Centered/Student-Centered
Teaching and Creating A
Classroom
Community through Diversity in the
L/A Class
9/16 Assignments:
Read Tchudi’s
"Classroom Talk, Drama, Performance" (314-337); Write one-page Case
Study Response: Student-Centered Teaching (Lunsford, Avery, and Shea); read
Tchudi’s "Teaching Writing" (241-270) and "Writing for the Here
and Now” (271-293). Check Sakai and post
your thoughts.
September 13: Exploring Language: Engaging Teens in
Language Arts
9/18
Assignment: Read
Atwell’s "Learning How to Teach Writing" (3-26); select and prepare
oral interpretation performance, enhanced with PowerPoint introduction. Check Sakai for “As You Read” Big Stone Gap assignment and post your
thoughts.
September 18: Exploring Language as a Thoughtful
Practitioner
8/23 Assignments:
Check Sakai assignment link and post your thoughts; Read Tchudi’s
"Exploring Language" (294); Read Herndon’s "Setting Standards of
Usage" and "Dialects of American English"; Grammar/Mechanics Pretest; Grammar Review.
September 23: Exploring
Language: Levels of Usage and English Grammar
Discussion of Tchudi and Herndon.
September 25: Oral English and
Drama in the Classroom
Student Oral Interpretation Performances and PowerPoint
presentations.
September 30: Grammar/Mechanics Post-Test
10/2
Assignment: Pedagogy
Abstract: Your Choice—Teaching Writing; Complete Adriana Trigiani’s Big Stone Gap. Check Sakai assignment link and post your
thoughts.
September
29-October 4: Appalachian Heritage
Writer-in-Residence Project
Students must
attend at least two residency events; see http://www.shepherd.edu/ahwirweb/ and http://www.shepherd.edu/ahwirweb/trigiani/.
October 2: Exploring Language and Student Literacy
Bring Big Stone Gap to class.
Discussion of Teaching Writing and Literacy.
10/7
Assignment: Essay: A
Practical Strategy for Making Better Student Writers (essay due on October
14). Check Sakai assignment link and
post your thoughts.
October 7: Literacy and Technology
Discussion of Using Technology and Teaching Literacy.
10/9 Assignment: Read Tchudi’s "Language: A Mass
Medium" (338-358). Check Sakai
assignment links and bulletin board.
October 9: Collaborative Learning in the English
Classroom and Composition Checklists
and
Response Sheets
10/14 Assignment: Read Tchudi’s "Engagement with Literature" (153-181),
"Literature and the Young Adult" (182-212), and "Organizing to
Teach Literature" (214-240); check Sakai assignment link and post your
thoughts. Post on Sakai your finalized
unit topic, grade level, time-line, and specific objectives; review unit
instructions on Sakai.
October 14: Teaching Students to Read and Respond to Literature
Discussion
of the Tchudi.
10/16 Assignments: Review Abstract: Your Choice—Collaborative Learning
Strategies; Case Study Response: "An Interactive Literature-Writing
Class." Read
Frank Smith's Reading without Nonsense (“Making Sense of Reading,”
“Reading—From Behind the Eyes” and “Problems and Possibilities of
Memory”—1-41). Check Sakai
assignment link and post your thoughts.
October 16: Teaching Students to Read and Respond to
Literature Continued
Discussion of Smith.
10/21
Assignments:; Read
Atwell’s "Learning How to Teach Reading" (27-50) and "Writing
and Reading Workshop" (87-262).
Review Abstract: Your Choice—Cultural Diversity and Teaching Literature
to Adolescents. Check Sakai assignment
link and post your thoughts.
October 21: Engaging Students: the Integrated L/A
Workshop
Discussion of Atwell.
10/23 Assignment: Read
Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.”
Use Holman & Harmon in order to understand and apply the
following critical approaches to the study of literature: Archetypal,
Deconstruction, Feminist, Marxist, New Criticism, Reader-Response, and
Semiotics; Review Abstract: Your Choice—Critical Interpretation of
Literature (select your literary essay from the MLA Online Index). Choose an article that is appropriate for any
of your current English classes where you must research and write a critical
paper; determine the critical approach or combination thereof utilized in the
essay.
October 23: Schools of Criticism and
Critical Approaches: the Scholar/Teacher
“The Art
of Teaching Prose” and Quiz
on Critical Approaches
10/28
Assignment: Continue
developing your instructional unit. Review Abstract: Your
Choice—Using Technology in the English Classroom. Meet in Knutti 206 for class next Tuesday.
October 28: Technology in the
English Class: Constructing Class Webpages (Knutti
206
Workshop)
10/30 Assignment:
Continue developing your instructional unit.
Review Abstract: Your Choice—Classroom Management. Check Sakai for assignment link and post your
thoughts.
October
30: Utilizing Technology:
Teaching Writing, Teaching Literature
11/4 Assignment: Continue
developing your instructional unit. Read Tchudi’s
"Creating Classroom Community" (117-151). Check Sakai for assignment link and post your
thoughts.
November 4: Classroom
Management and Academic Integrity
11/6
Assignment: Continue
developing your instructional unit. Write 1-2 page essay on
your “Philosophy of Academic Honesty.”
Check Sakai for assignment link and post your thoughts.
November 6: Classroom Management and
Academic Integrity Continued
11/11
Assignment: Continue developing your instructional unit.
Read Tchudi’s “Assessment, Evaluation, and Grading" (
November 11: Assessment and Evaluation in the English Class
Discussion of Evaluation
in the L/A Classroom.
11/13
Assignment: Study for Comprehensive Methods Content Exam.
November 13: Methods Course Content Exam
11/18
Assignment: Continue developing your instructional unit.
Read Atwell’s “Finding Poetry Everywhere” (415).
Read poetry assignment from Dr.
Carter.
November 18: Master Teacher Presentation: “The Art of Teaching Poetry,” Dr.
11/20
Assignments: Continue developing your instructional unit. Read
“Diary of a Rookie Teacher,” Peter Elbow's "What Is
English," "Concluding Word:
About Teachers and Conditions for Teaching,” and Atwell' s "Taking Care of
Business” (455)
November 20: Master Teacher Presentation: “In the Trenches,” Dave
Hoffman, Loudoun
County Public Schools
12/2 Assignment: Continue
developing your instructional unit.
December 2: Unit Presentations and Tapings
1)__________________
2)__________________
3)__________________
December 4: Unit Presentations and Tapings
1)___________________
2)___________________
3)___________________