IB English HL Language 1A



IB Language A1: Higher Level (Senior Year)

Instructor: Heather Purvis Office hours/tutoring: by appointment

Contact info: 771-4700 (school), hnpurvis@wsfcs.k12.nc.us Web page:

Course objectives (taken directly from IBO):

Candidates will be expected to demonstrate:

• an ability to engage in independent literary criticism in a manner which reveals a personal response to literature

• an ability to express ideas with clarity, coherence, conciseness, precision and fluency in both written and oral communication

• a command of the language appropriate for the study of literature and a discriminating appreciation of the need for an effective choice of register and style in both written and oral communication

• a sound approach to literature through consideration of the works studied

• a thorough knowledge both of the individual works studied and of the relationships between groups of works studied

• an appreciation of the similarities and differences between literary works from different ages and/or cultures

• an ability to engage in independent textual commentary on both familiar and unfamiliar pieces of writing

• a wide-ranging appreciation of structure, technique and style as employed by authors, and of their effects on the reader

• an ability to structure ideas and arguments, both orally and in writing, in a logical, sustained and persuasive way, and to support them with precise and relevant examples

See also: “Mapping the Objectives” and “IB Learner Profile.”

|Required texts (in the order they will be covered): |Required supplies: |

| |3-ring binder with dividers (dividers can be as simple as hole-punched |

|Part 3 |construction paper or post-its stuck on scrap paper) |

|Ben Jelloun, Tahar. The Sand Child. (World Literature) |college-rule loose-leaf notebook paper |

|Roy, Arundhati. The God of Small Things. |one large spiral notebook (or several small ones) |

|Emecheta, Buchi. Kehinde. |pencils and pens (in easy-to-read colors) |

|Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God. |highlighters of different colors |

| |electronic storage device (flash drive or rewritable CD) |

|Part 2 | |

|Shakespeare, William. Othello. | |

|Whitman, Walt. Selected Poems. |Classroom wish list: |

|Hughes, Langston. Selected Poems. |box(es) of tissue |

|Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. |hand sanitizer |

|Rushdie, Salman. Shame. |disinfectant wipes |

| |printer paper |

|Recommended, but not required |art supplies (crayons, colored pencils, markers, construction paper, glue, |

|Druce, Elizabeth, and Hannah Tyson. IB English A1 Course Companion: |yarn, rulers, scissors) |

|International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. Oxford University Press: 2007. | |

|Print. | |

Course expectations:

• As per school expectations: be on time, on task, prepared, respectful, honest.

• Read (or re-read) all texts carefully, have your texts and your reading work with you when you enter class, and be prepared to meaningfully participate.

• All formal written assignments must be typed and submitted in proper and complete MLA format, including works cited. If you don’t have access to a computer or printer at home, make arrangements before the day something is due. All formal written assignments must also be submitted to (this includes your WL 2 paper).

Evaluation and assessment:

60% Participation/work ethic: annotations, journal assignments, seminar/discussion/class participation

40% Formal assignments: assessments/writing/presentations

Academic integrity:

No cheating, collusion, or plagiarism will be tolerated. These actions will result in a zero for the assignment and possible disciplinary consequences. To avoid this, you should be very familiar with proper MLA format and documentation of sources as provided at resdoc.

Tardiness: If your entire body and all of your belongings are not in the room by the time the bell begins to ring, you are tardy. An accumulation of ten unexcused tardies shall be equal to one unexcused absence.

Student attendance (highlights from student handbook): Students who have more than three absences within a single grading period will receive a failing grade for that quarter. Students are required to make up work for any absence. Please see the student handbook for the absence make-up policy (page 10).

Make-up work:

• If you are absent, it is your responsibility to request all missed assignments. You must make up all work within one school day of your return. Beyond that time, work will not be accepted, and the resulting grade will be a zero. Be proactive.

• If you are absent on the day an assignment is due, and it has been previously assigned, you must turn in the work on the day of your return.

• If you miss a test, you may arrange to make it up before or after school. Make-up tests will not be given during class time. Make-up tests will require additional components as part of the test or in place of the originally scheduled test.

Late work: Late work will not be accepted; the resulting grade will be a zero. If you are seeking extra credit to remove a zero earned for work not submitted on the due date, see the “Extra credit” section.

Extra credit (not “instead of” credit):

You are expected to complete all assignments before being allowed the opportunity to do extra credit. Extra credit is available at any time, according to the following guidelines:

1. You are responsible for creating the extra credit assignment, and it must be challenging and relevant to the original assignment.

2. You must get your assignment pre-approved by submitting a written proposal and getting the teacher’s signature. No credit will be given to you if you did not seek pre-approval.

3. You must get approval for your proposal immediately after receiving the undesired grade (when the work is returned to you). If the undesired grade is a zero resulting from work you did not submit, you must make your proposal on the day of or the morning following the original due date.

4. Proposals must include: submission date, assignment for which you wish to earn extra credit, additional assignment proposal, and rationale as to why this additional assignment is an appropriate one. (Blank proposal forms are available on the website, or you may write the information on notebook paper.) Proposals must be returned with the final product.

5. Both the additional assignment (and the original assignment in the case of work not submitted) must be completed and returned within one calendar week (i.e. Monday to Monday) regardless of whether or not you have class that day.

6. No extra credit proposals will be accepted the week before the end of the grading period.

7. The final decision for credit rests with the teacher, but it is usually an average of the two grades.

Progress report schedule: Paper copies of the progress report will be given to all students on the following dates: Sept. 14, Oct. 5, Nov. 16, Dec. 14, Feb. 15, Mar. 14, Apr. 25, May 16. Parents may access grades online through the Parent Assist program.

Exam exemption: The IB English examinations do not count as end-of-year course exams (due to scores not being available until after grades are finalized). If grades or attendance prevent you from being eligible to be exempted from school exams, you must be present for the senior English exam. Failure to do so will result in a zero, which will be 25% of your overall grade.

IB examinations (Paper 1 and Paper 2): If you choose not to take the IB exams at the end of the year, your course grade will automatically drop one letter.

Hall passes: If you have to use the restroom or get water, write a pass for me to sign and go; but if you abuse it, you lose it.

Group work accountability (adapted from Kessler, “Group Work Policy”):

• At the start of the assignment, group members should immediately collaborate to assign responsibilities, set timelines, and agree upon divisions of workload. This should be written down and signed by each member and can be turned in to the teacher. The group grade is based on equal participation; therefore, each member is responsible for monitoring the contributions of the other members and his/her own contributions.

• If a student is a non-contributor (i.e. not pulling their share of the work), active members may submit a written defense for the expulsion of the non-contributor, including assignments agreed upon and not delivered according to the group timeline. It is not acceptable to submit this the day before something is due. Following this, all members must meet with the teacher (who will act as mediator) to plead cases and hear rebuttals. The group will vote (via blind ballot) whether or not to expel the “non-contributor.”

• Should the non-contributor be removed from the group, due dates will not be changed for any member. Active group members need to submit a complete product (essay, project) in order to receive a complete grade. The non-contributor will receive no part of group grade and is responsible for submitting his/her own complete product.

Mapping the objectives

The objectives for the language A1 course may be mapped on to the assessment components and tracked through to the assessment criteria as follows.

|Objective |Assessment Components |Assessment criteria |

|demonstrate an ability to engage in independent |External assessment |Criteria for paper 1, particularly criterion B; criteria|

|literary criticism in a manner which reveals a |Paper 1 commentary; paper 2 essay; world literature |for paper 2, particularly criterion B; criteria for WL |

|personal response to literature |assignment(s) |assignment(s), particularly criterion A |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component, particularly criterion B |

| |Individual oral commentary | |

|demonstrate an ability to express ideas with |External assessment |Criteria for paper 1, particularly criterion D; criteria|

|clarity, coherence, conciseness, precision and |Paper 1 commentary; paper 2 essay; world literature |for paper 2, particularly criterion D; criteria for WL |

|fluency in both written and oral communication |assignment(s) |assignment(s), particularly criterion C |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component, particularly criterion C |

| |Individual oral commentary | |

|demonstrate a command of the language appropriate|External assessment |Criteria for paper 1, particularly criterion E; criteria|

|for the study of literature and a discriminating |Paper 1 commentary; paper 2 essay; world literature |for paper 2, particularly criterion E; criteria for WL |

|appreciation of the need for an effective choice |assignment(s) |assignment(s), particularly criterion D |

|of register and style in both written and oral | | |

|communication | | |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component, particularly criterion D |

| |Individual oral commentary | |

|demonstrate a sound approach to literature |External assessment |Criteria for paper 2, particularly criterion B; criteria|

|through consideration of the works studied |Paper 2 essay; world literature assignment(s) |for WL assignment(s), particularly criterion A |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component, particularly criterion A |

| |Individual oral commentary | |

|demonstrate a thorough knowledge both of the |External assessment |Criteria for paper 2, particularly criteria A and B; |

|individual works studied and of the relationships|Paper 2 essay; world literature assignment(s) |criteria for WL assignment(s), particularly criterion B |

|between groups of works studied | | |

|demonstrate an appreciation of the similarities |External assessment |Criteria for WL assignment(s), particularly criterion B |

|and differences between literary works from |World literature assignment | |

|different ages and/or cultures | | |

|demonstrate an ability to engage in independent |External assessment |Criteria for paper 1 |

|textual commentary on both familiar and |Unfamiliar pieces of writing: paper 1 commentary | |

|unfamiliar pieces of writing | | |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component |

| |Familiar pieces of writing: individual oral | |

| |commentary | |

|demonstrate a wide-ranging appreciation of |External assessment |Criteria for paper 2, particularly criterion C; Criteria|

|structure, technique and style as employed by |Paper 2 essay; world literature assignments |for WL assignments, particularly criterion A |

|authors, and of their effects on the reader | | |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component, particularly criterion B |

| |Individual oral commentary | |

|demonstrate an ability to structure ideas and |External assessment |Criteria for paper 1, particularly criteria C and D; |

|arguments, both orally and in writing, in a |Paper 1 commentary; paper 2 essay; world literature |Criteria for paper 2, particularly criteria D and E; |

|logical, sustained and persuasive way, and to |assignments |Criteria for WL assignments, particularly criteria C and|

|support them with precise and relevant examples | |D |

| |Internal assessment |Criteria for oral component, particularly criteria C and|

| |Individual oral commentary |D |

Source: IBO Diploma Program. “Language A1: Additional Guidance.” Sept. 2006. Print.

IB learner profile

The aim of all IB programmes is to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world.

IB learners strive to be:

|Inquirers |They develop their natural curiosity. They acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show |

| |independence in learning. They actively enjoy learning and this love of learning will be sustained throughout |

| |their lives. |

|Knowledgeable |They explore concepts, ideas and issues that have local and global significance. In so doing, they acquire |

| |in-depth knowledge and develop understanding across a broad and balanced range of disciplines. |

|Thinkers |They exercise initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively to recognize and approach complex |

| |problems, and make reasoned, ethical decisions. |

|Communicators |They understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in more than one language and in a |

| |variety of modes of communication. They work effectively and willingly in collaboration with others. |

|Principled |They act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness, justice and respect for the dignity of the |

| |individual, groups and communities. They take responsibility for their own actions and the consequences that |

| |accompany them. |

|Open-minded |They understand and appreciate their own cultures and personal histories, and are open to the perspectives, |

| |values and traditions of other individuals and communities. They are accustomed to seeking and evaluating a |

| |range of points of view, and are willing to grow from the experience. |

|Caring |They show empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. They have a personal |

| |commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference to the lives of others and to the environment. |

|Risk-takers |They approach unfamiliar situations and uncertainty with courage and forethought, and have the independence of |

| |spirit to explore new roles, ideas and strategies. They are brave and articulate in defending their beliefs. |

|Balanced |They understand the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional balance to achieve personal well-being for|

| |themselves and others. |

|Reflective |They give thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experience. They are able to assess and understand |

| |their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development. |

Source: IBO Diploma Program. Academic Honesty. Sept. 2007. Print.

IB English A1 – Senior Level

Parent/Guardian Agreement Form (to be returned)

Please sign below to indicate you have received and reviewed the syllabus and advise me as to the best possible contact information. If you have any concerns, write them in at the bottom, and I will get back to you as soon as possible upon the return of this page. We are looking forward to a great year!

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