Course Type : | Academic |
Credit Value : | 1.0 |
Prerequisite : | English, Grade 9, Academic or Applied |
Course Description
English Grade 10: This course is designed to extend the range of oral communication, reading, writing, and media literacy skills that students need for success in their secondary school academic programs and in their daily lives. Students will analyse literary texts from contemporary and historical periods, interpret and evaluate informational and graphic texts, and create oral, written, and media texts in a variety of forms. An important focus will be on the selective use of strategies that contribute to effective communication. This course is intended to prepare students for the compulsory Grade 11 university or college preparation course.
Outline of Course Content
Unit
Titles and Descriptions
Time and Sequence
Unit 1
Poetry
Students will become familiar with major poetic forms, devices, and themes, as well as have the opportunity to write, present, and edit their own works.
15 hours
Unit 2
Short Fiction
Students will develop an understanding of literary devices, traditions, and conventions through close readings of short fiction.
10 hours
Unit 3
Novel Study ( The Catcher in the Rye)
Students will study the literary form of the novel by examining Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. They will respond to, reflect upon, and analyze questions, passages, and techniques in the work in order to build an understanding of the literary elements of the piece. Students will develop their formal writing skills with a persuasive essay.
25 hours
Unit 4
Modern Drama (The Glass Menagerie) We will examine the unique challenge of reading, performing, and creating meaning in dramatic works through a close reading and analysis of Williams’ classic play. Students will apply critical thinking and reading skills in studying the play’s characters and themes. Students will also consider the way that literature and theatre are rendered on film, through a comparison with the play’s cinematic adaptation.
|
20 hours
Unit 5
Classical Drama ( Macbeth)
Students will explore a number of diverse tools and techniques for exploring Shakespeare’s language and style through a close reading of Macbeth. Through reading aloud, scene analysis, small group performance, and film adaptation comparison, students will develop a sophisticated understanding of the play while furthering their understanding of creating both written and visual meaning through theatre.
20 hours
Unit 6
Independent Study
Students will complete an independent novel study of Hosseini’s book. They will complete journal and media assignments which will allow them to reflect critically and creatively on the novel’s characters, themes, plot, and setting. This unit will serve as the course-culminating task.
20 hours
Total
110 hours
Since the over-riding aim of this course is to help students use language skillfully, confidently and flexibly, a wide variety of instructional strategies are used to provide learning opportunities to accommodate a variety of learning styles, interests and ability levels. These include:
Directed Reading Activities |
Seminar |
Group work |
Brain storming |
Literature Circles |
Reflections |
Structured Discussions |
Oral presentations |
Close reading |
Role play |
Self assessments |
Teacher Analysis |
Independent Study |
Peer assessments |
Analysis of Exemplars |
Assessment is a systematic process of collecting information or evidence about a student’s progress towards meeting the learning expectations. Assessment is embedded in the instructional activities throughout a unit. The expectations for the assessment tasks are clearly articulated and the learning activity is planned to make that demonstration possible. This process of beginning with the end in mind helps to keep focus on the expectations of the course. The purpose of assessment is to gather the data or evidence and to provide meaningful feedback to the student about how to improve or sustain the performance in the course. Scaled criteria designed as rubrics are often used to help the student to recognize their level of achievement and to provide guidance on how to achieve the next level. Although assessment information can be gathered from a number of sources (the student himself, the student’s course mates, the teacher), evaluation is the responsibility of only the teacher. For evaluation is the process of making a judgment about the assessment information and determining the percentage grade or level.
English Grade 10: Assessment is embedded within the instructional process throughout each unit rather than being an isolated event at the end. Often, the learning and assessment tasks are the same, with formative assessment provided throughout the unit. In every case, the desired demonstration of learning is articulated clearly and the learning activity is planned to make that demonstration possible. This process of beginning with the end in mind helps to keep focus on the expectations of the course as stated in the course guideline. The evaluations are expressed as a percentage based upon the levels of achievement.
A variety of strategies are used to allow students opportunities to attain the necessary skills for success in this course and at the post-secondary level of study. To facilitate learning, the teacher uses a variety of activities engaging the whole class, small groups, and individual students.
Some of the approaches to teaching/learning include
Strategy |
Who |
Assessment Tool |
Class discussion |
Teacher |
Observation Checklist |
Response Journal |
Teacher |
Anecdotal Comments |
Student Chosen Song |
Teacher |
Observation Checklist |
Narrative Poem/Song |
Teacher |
Rubric and Anecdotal Comments |
Character Sketch |
Self |
Checklist |
Journal Responses |
Self/teacher |
Anecdotal comments |
Short Story Analysis |
Teacher |
Rating scale |
Short Story Outline |
Teacher |
Rating scale |
Anecdote |
Teacher |
Direct Observation |
Found poem |
Teacher |
Direct Observation |
Journal Entries |
Teacher |
Anecdotal |
Research Notes |
Self/Teacher |
Checklist |
Non-fiction Report/Presentation |
Teacher |
Rubric |
Presentation to group |
Self/Peer |
Self-and peer assessment rubric |
Sight passage |
Teacher |
Marking scheme |
Narrative piece |
Teacher |
Rubric |
The assessment will be based on the following processes that take place in the classroom:
Assessment FOR Learning | Assessment AS Learning | Assessment OF Learning |
---|---|---|
During this process the teacher seeks information from the students in order to decide where the learners are and where they need to go. |
During this process the teacher fosters the capacity of the students and establishes individual goals for success with each one of them. |
During this process the teacher reports student’s results in accordance to established criteria to inform how well students are learning. |
Conversation | Conversation | Conversation |
Classroom discussion Self-evaluation Peer assessment |
Classroom discussion Small group discussion Post-lab conferences | Presentations of research Debates |
Observation | Observation | Observation |
Drama workshops (taking direction) Steps in problem solving | Group discussions | Presentations Group Presentations |
Student Products | Student Products | Student Products |
Reflection journals (to be kept throughout the duration of the course) Check Lists Success Criteria |
Practice sheets Socrative quizzes |
Projects Poster presentations Tests In Class Presentations |
The evaluation of this course is based on the four Ministry of Education achievement categories of knowledge and understanding (25%), thinking (25%), communication (25%), and application (25%). . The evaluation for this course is based on the student’s achievement of curriculum expectations and the demonstrated skills required for effective learning.
The percentage grade represents the quality of the student’s overall achievement of the expectations for the course and reflects the corresponding level of achievement as described in the achievement chart for the discipline.
A credit is granted and recorded for this course if the student’s grade is 50% or higher. The final grade for this course will be determined as follows:
- 70% of the grade will be based upon evaluations conducted throughout the course. This portion of the grade will reflect the student’s most consistent level of achievement throughout the course, although special consideration will be given to more recent evidence of
- 30% of the grade will be based on final evaluations administered at the end of the course. The final assessment may be a final exam and , a course Culminating
Textbook
English 10 by Phil Davison, Michael Kunka – Nelson Publisher
Potential Resources
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger Macbeth by William Shakespeare
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams
Various Supplemental Texts (including poetry, essays, exercises, assignments, and critical material) will be provided by the teacher in digital and/or paper form.