ENG4U GRADE 12 ENGLISH (UNIVERSITY)
ENG4U Course Overview
ENG4U online emphasizes the consolidation of the literacy, communication, and critical and creative thinking skills necessary for success in academic and daily life. Students will analyze a range of challenging literary texts from various periods, countries, and cultures; 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 using academic language coherently and confidently, selecting the reading strategies best suited to particular texts and particular purposes for reading, and developing greater control in writing. ENG4U online is intended to prepare students for university, college or the workplace. Whether students take ENG4U online or on campus, the course ENG4U fulfills Ontario curriculum and helps prepare students for the next steps in their education, covering skills necessary for success in the classroom and beyond in academic and daily life.
ENG4U Course Outline
Below is a course outline for the online ENG4U course offered by Blyth Academy. As the Ontario ENG4U curriculum is set by the Ontario Ministry of Education, the course and skills learned remain the same whether you take it in person or online.
Short Stories, Media & Non-Fiction: UNIT ONE
Essential Question: How do we shape an opinion?- In this unit, students will be introduced to the major terms and concepts that will build a foundation for this course. Within the unit, students will be examining a variety of short stories and non-fiction pieces using a variety of mediums and media styles.
Classic Fiction: The Great Gatsby: UNIT TWO
Essential Question: How does the historical context contribute towards the theme of Gatsby?- In this unit, students will be introduced to the concept of social commentary. Students will explore the genre of the novel as a product of its cultural milieu and seek to understand how a work of literature serves as an effective tool for social commentary. Skills taught include an understanding of literary terms, narrative style, as well as, how these techniques enhance meaning in literature. Through the study of this novel, students gain a deeper understanding of the bi-directional relationship between themselves and their environment.
Elizabethan Drama: Hamlet: UNIT THREE
Essential Question: How did Shakespeare create one of the most complex characters in Hamlet?- In this unit, students will be provided with the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they have developed in previous units while extending their facility with literary analysis. Students will read and critically analyze a Shakespearean play. Students will explore the concept of an archetype and its relationship to imagery and classical allusion. Students will enhance their understanding of the phonological and semantic aspects of language through the study of allusion, imagery, and metaphor in Elizabethan drama. At the same time, students will engage in an examination of a wide variety of literary devices. Students will plan oral presentations, conduct research, and write an essay. All activities in this unit relate to the same Shakespearean play Hamlet.
Modern Fiction: A Thousand Splendid Suns: UNIT FOUR
Essential Question: How do the literary devices contribute towards theme?- In this unit, students will read a modern fiction novel. The novel chosen for this unit A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini reflects a more modern look at the culture of a different country. It will help foster the students awareness of diversity within cultures, and some of the current social issues going on today. This novel study will challenge students and prepare them for their potential to make social commentary.
GRADING RUBRIC
- Below is a grading rubric and breakdown of the course. The course is the same whether students take it online or in person. Course evaluation is based on a student's achievement of curricular expectations as well as a demonstration of skills required for effective learning and success in academic settings.
- Students should expect to receive their final grade approximately four days after writing the final exam. Please be advised that this timeline may vary depending on how much work a student submits close to the completion of the course.
- Curriculum expectations include:
- Oral Communication: Oral communication focuses on literacy communication and critical skills, including:
Listening to, understanding, and appropriately responding to oral communication.
Developing skills and strategies to communicate with various audiences.
- Reading and Literature Studies: Students will closely explore texts and the particular purposes behind each text, coherently and confidently selecting strategies for:
Reading and demonstrating understanding of various literary, informational, and graphic texts.
Understanding various text forms, features, and stylistic elements, while demonstrating an understanding of how these communicate meaning.
Reading with fluency.
- Writing: Students will build on the knowledge and skills they have learned, developing greater control of their own writing by:
Generating, gathering, and organizing information and ideas to write with purpose for an intended audience.
Using gained knowledge of form and style to draft and revise writing, incorporating stylistic elements that are appropriate for the audience and purpose.
Applying knowledge of conventions with a consolidation of literacy skills to edit, proofread, and effectively present work.
- Media Studies: Students will demonstrate an understanding of media texts, including:
Understating forms, techniques, and conventions that create meaning as suited to particular texts and purposes.
Creating media texts for various purposes and audiences, with an important focus on using the appropriate forms, techniques, and conventions for each text.
- Students will also learn to reflect on and identify skills and strengths, as well as areas for improvement, in all above curriculum areas.
- The final grade a student achieves will represent the quality of their overall achievement of expectations for the course. The final grade will be determined following these percentages:
70% of the grade: Determined by evaluations conducted throughout the duration of the course.
30% of the grade: Based on final evaluations a student completes at the conclusion of the course. Final evaluations include a culminating project (10% of the final grade) and a final proctored exam (20% of the final grade).
Listening to, understanding, and appropriately responding to oral communication.
Developing skills and strategies to communicate with various audiences.
Reading and demonstrating understanding of various literary, informational, and graphic texts.
Understanding various text forms, features, and stylistic elements, while demonstrating an understanding of how these communicate meaning.
Reading with fluency.
Generating, gathering, and organizing information and ideas to write with purpose for an intended audience.
Using gained knowledge of form and style to draft and revise writing, incorporating stylistic elements that are appropriate for the audience and purpose.
Applying knowledge of conventions with a consolidation of literacy skills to edit, proofread, and effectively present work.
Understating forms, techniques, and conventions that create meaning as suited to particular texts and purposes.
Creating media texts for various purposes and audiences, with an important focus on using the appropriate forms, techniques, and conventions for each text.
70% of the grade: Determined by evaluations conducted throughout the duration of the course.
30% of the grade: Based on final evaluations a student completes at the conclusion of the course. Final evaluations include a culminating project (10% of the final grade) and a final proctored exam (20% of the final grade).