SPEECH & COMPOSITION (SPCO)
GA Dept of Education codes: Speech/Forensics 1 (23.04600
elective) and Advanced Composition (23.03400 core or elective)
Course equals two elective half credits or 1.5 credits, depending
on the hours spent writing. Course name(s) flexible.

Course Description: This class combines oral and written
communication skills to strengthen the student’s ability to
organize data, determine various ways to present it, and
communicate it effectively to a designated audience.

General Course Objectives:
1.        The student will learn methods of formulating a point of
view and managing evidence.
2.        The student will improve timed and non-timed essay
writing, both technically and evidentially.
3.        The student will present formal speeches as delivered in
most college speech classes.
4.        The student will analyze and demonstrate the role of the
visual aid in communication.
5.        The student will research a topic using a variety of
sources and conclude the process with a research paper and
companion speech.
6.        The student will gain confidence in writing SAT, ACT, and
application essays.
7.        The student will practice skills necessary to interview for a
job.
8.        The student will explore methods of communicating within
a small group.

Primary Resources:
•        Frank, Bob and Frank Hildy. Speaker’s Notebook: A Guide
to Effective Public Speaking. Minneapolis, MI: Burgess Publishing
Co., 1982. (resourced by instructor, not for student purchase)
•        Weaver, Richard L. II. Speech Communication: A Student
Manual. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University.
1979. (resourced by instructor, not for student purchase)
•        20 Outstanding SAT Essays, College Board publication
provided by instructor.
•        Community resources in the form of speakers from various
vocations, and readings and materials from various media to
support class objectives.

Content and Objectives:
1.        The student will be present the following speeches to the
class: demonstration, poster/visual aid, formal introduction,
proposition, persuasive, impromptu, and informative.
2.        The student will demonstrate ability to analyze an SAT or
ACT essay prompt and plan an appropriate response using
actual prompts from past tests.
3.        The student will learn means of creatively and accurately
writing college and scholarship application essays using
questions from “real sources.”
4.        The student will practice writing formal business letters as
well as casual communication such as emails responding to
newspaper issues and thank you notes to guest speakers.
5.        The student will practice grammar and writing error
correction by analyzing and correcting his own writing and that of
his classmates. He will learn editing and revision skills.
6.        The student will keep files documenting progress in
speaking and writing assignments throughout the year, and then
summarize overall progress.
7.        The student will choose a career to research and work
toward a final product of a four-to-six-page typed paper complete
with outline, well organized and documented support, and proper
bibliographic style (MLA style). An informative speech with visual
aids will accompany this assignment.
The student will study and role-play job interviewing and resume
writing skills, as well as non-verbal communication, persuasion,
and use of PowerPoint (optional but encouraged).

 

Advanced Placement
 English Literature and Composition

DOE CODE 23.06500; ONE CORE CREDIT

 

Purpose: To provide a college-level classroom environment where students can analyze major themes and literary techniques employed by classic reading material, from the Ancients to the Moderns.  

 

Prerequisites: Junior or senior status, and at least a C in two previous high-school level English classes including American Literature.

 

Texts and Resources:

• Perrine’s Literature: Structure, Sound and Sense, Fifth Edition, ISBN 0155511084.
• Novels and plays such as Oedipus Rex*; Things Fall Apart; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead; Hamlet; Doll’s House; Cry, the Beloved Country; Death of a Salesman;* The Plague; A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. (*included in Perrine text)
• Teacher-provided handouts and practice tests to be collected in student binder.

 

General Course Objectives:

1. The student will explore basic world views found in selected works. These points of view are found in ground-breaking works in areas such as existentialism, feminism, realism, absurdism, romanticism, and new criticism.
2. The student will learn to locate, define, and analyze elements of writing styles from various periods of literature.
3. The student will analyze types of literary questions/prompts and formulate responses.
4. The student will do scholarly research on primary and secondary levels and write analytical essays in MLA style.
5. The student will improve writing skills by revision and correction, and will practice using rubrics.

6. The student will write in both timed and non-timed environments.
7. The student will defend his stances orally and in writing, both in small groups as well as individually.
8. The student will practice all elements of the AP Literature exam, using actual questions from previous exams.