General Information

General Information

Edward de Vere is the "REAL" Shakespeare! For centuries controversy has surrounded the authorship issue and there is still much that remains to be learned about the whole secretive world of Elizabethan society, and why the Shakespeare authorship ruse came into being. As Charles Burford (Oxford Society President, 1995-1997) has said in his talks on the authorship, "If you get Shakespeare wrong, you get the whole Elizabethan era wrong." The Oxfordian theory that a court insider and lifelong confidante of Queen Elizabeth is the true Shakespeare transforms one's understanding of the works of Shakespeare, which in turn does transform one's understanding of the history of this critical period in world history.

For more information on this fascinating subject check websites listed in AP Literature Links.

Introduction

Advanced Placement Language and Composition explores the ways in which language is used effectively. Rhetorical devices used in writings from many eras are analyzed in detail. Students write essays using effective techniques of argumentation and support.

Advanced Placement Literature and Composition is an in-depth study of literary genres such as short story, novel, poetry, and drama. Students learn to recognize and write about a variety of literary techniques.

American Literature Honors is a preparatory class for advanced placement language arts classes. Students will learn terminology, writing techniques, and analytical skills.

Advanced placement classes are open to juniors and seniors. Freshmen are required to take English Honors I. Sophomores are encouraged to take pre-AP. Those wishing to accelerate will need teacher recommendations, an interview, and examples of their writing before permission is granted to do so.

Attendance

The attendance policy established by the Brevard County Board of Education is strictly followed. Please check your student handbook. It is the student's responsibility to keep track of his/her absences. Please do not argue about what constitutes a tardy. Six minutes between classes is sufficient for your needs. I will not keep you after the bell rings so that you may get to your next class on time. I expect the same courtesy from your other teachers.

Homework

Homework assignments are made several weeks in advance (check syllabus for specific dates). Assignments are due on those dates whether or not you are in attendance. Failure to comply will result in a failing grade for that assignment. If you are absent on the day your group projects are due, team members will present without and will be graded accordingly. Each term students are assigned from six to ten essays, book reviews, and a term/group project in addition to daily class work. Students who do not plan wisely may find the workload overwhelming, and reluctant readers may find themselves falling behind.

Grading

Grades may initially be lower than those to which students have been accustomed. It is important to remember that advanced placement grades are weighted and that only the semester average is reported on a student's transcript. Student grades are based upon essays, presentations, and group work. Each assignment should demonstrate a student's grasp of the concepts and content discussed.

All assignments are evaluated using a scale of one to nine (1=55%; 2=60%; 3=65%; 4=70%; 5=75%; 6=80%; 7=85%; 8=90%; 9=95%). A ten-point grading spread is used (60-69=D; 70-79=C; 80-89=B; 90-99=A) for term and semester averages. Please note that I do not "round up" grades.

All assignments are returned in a timely manner. Approximately 4000 essays are graded each year. Because of this volume, written commentary is necessarily kept to a minimum, but each returned assignment is discussed in detail. Students make seek individual attention before or after school.

Students are expected to keep a portfolio of their work for evaluation purposes and as a record of the assignments they have completed. Failure to have a complete portfolio will affect your semester exam grade. Keep all assignments in a safe place.

National Advanced Placement Exam

National advanced placement exams are given in early May. Each language arts test lasts three hours. Students answer 56 multiple choice questions and write three essays. Those who receive a three or higher (out of five) may receive college credit. Please check with the college or university you plan to attend regarding its policy about advanced placement scores.

It is important to remember that while passing the test is important, the real benefit is gained from learning skills that are helpful in all of you classes both in high school and in college.

Visit the College Board for more information.

Florida Sunshine Standards

1.	LA. A. 1.4.1	Pre-reading strategies, previewing	8/26 (Literature)	8/13 (Language)
2.	LA. A. 1.4.2	Understand words, text, inference charts, etc.	9/3	daily
3.	LA. A. 1.4.3	Vocabulary – different meanings/contexts	9/18	weekly
4.	LA. A. 1.4.4	Responding to reading (notes, personalize)	9/19	weekly
5.	LA. A. 2.4.1	Main ideas, details, development	9/16	weekly
6.	LA. A. 2.4.2	Author’s purpose/point of view	9/9	9/15
7.	LA. A. 2.4.3	Personalize preferences (fiction & nonfiction)	9/24
8.	LA. A. 2.4.4	Locates, gathers, etc. information/research	9/29	12/15
9.	LA. A. 2.4.5	Identifies devices of persuasion		9/3
10.	LA. A. 2.4.6	Study & research skill (almanacs, microfiche, etc.)	9/29	12/15
11.	LA. A. 2.4.7	Validity & reliability of primary source		12/15
12.	LA. A. 2.4.8	Synthesizes info from multiple sources (draw conclusions)	12/10	12/15
13.	LA. B. 1.4.1	Prewriting strategies	8/26	1/2
14.	LA. B. 1.4.2	Drafts and revises writing	1/8	1/2
15.	LA. B. 1.4.3	Produces final document	1/9	weekly
16.	LA. B. 2.4.1	Writes text, notes, outlines, etc	1/8	1/11
17.	LA. B. 2.4.2	Organizes information	12/10	weekly
18.	LA. B. 2.4.3	Writes fluently for a variety of occasions	weekly	weekly
19.	LA. B. 2.4.4	Selects and uses a variety of electronic media	12/10	12/15
20.	LA. C. 1.4.1	Listening strategies to solve problems, interpret, etc.	daily	daily
21.	LA. C. 1.4.2	Personal preferences in listening (non/fiction, drama, etc.)
22.	LA. C. 1.4.3	Informal and formal discussions	daily	daily
23.	LA. C. 1.4.4	Identifies bias, prejudice, etc. in oral messages		daily
24.	LA. C. 2.4.1	Main concept/supporting detail, nonprint media	daily	daily
25.	LA. C. 2.4.2	Understands factors that influence nonverbal cues	daily	daily
26.	LA. C. 3.4.1	Speech volume, stress, gestures, etc	12/10	12/15
27.	LA. C. 3.4.2	Speaking strategies to clarify meaning and reflect understanding	12/10	12/15
28.	LA. C. 3.4.3	Speech – details, illustrations, analogies, visual aids	12/10	12/15
29.	LA. C. 3.4.4	Speech – group presentations, formal, impromptu	12/10	12/15
30.	LA. C. 3.4.5	Speech – develop & sustain line of argument – support	12/10	12/15
31.	LA. D. 1.4.1	Understand language and literature are ways to transmit culture	daily	daily
32.	LA. D. 1.4.2	Make appropriate adjustments to language for various uses	daily	daily
33.	LA. D. 1.4.3	Understand differences in dialects of English		daily
34.	LA. D. 2.4.1	Understands ways language has shaped communities
35.	LA. D. 2.4.2	Understand subtleties of lit devices and technique in communication	daily	weekly
36.	LA. D. 2.4.3	Recognizes production elements that contribute to specific medium
37.	LA. D. 2.4.4	Integrate multimedia & technology into presentation
38.	LA. D. 2.4.5	Critically analyzes elements of mass media	weekly	first nine weeks
39.	LA. D. 2.4.6	Understands laws control delivery and use of media		first nine weeks
40.	LA. E. 1.4.1	Identify characteristics that distinguish literary forms	1/9	weekly
41.	LA. E. 1.4.2	Understands why certain literary works are considered classics	8/15
42.	LA. E. 1.4.3	Identifies universal themes prevalent in the lit of all cultures	first nine weeks
43.	LA. E. 1.4.4	Understands characteristics of drama
44.	LA. E. 1.4.5	Understands qualities present in lit of different cultures and periods
45.	LA. E. 2.4.1	Analyzes effectiveness of elements of plot	first nine weeks
46.	LA. E. 2.4.2	Understands relationships between elements of literature	1/10	first semester
47.	LA. E. 2.4.3	Analyzes poetry	1/16
48.	LA. E. 2.4.4	Understands use of images and sounds to elicit emotions	1/16	weekly
49.	LA. E. 2.4.5	Analyzes relationships between author’s style and impact on reader	weekly	daily
50.	LA. E. 2.5.6	Recognizes & explains elements in texts prompting personal response
51.	LA. E. 2.4.7	Examine a literary selection from several critical perspectives		weekly
52.	LA. E. 2.4.7	Knows that people respond differently to texts	daily	daily

What AP Readers Long to See

This list was compiled during the 1994 AP English Reading at Trinity University in San Antonio.

Read the prompt. It hurts to give a low score to someone who misread the prompt but wrote a good essay.
Do everything the prompt asks. Most writers focus on a few strategies and never fully answer the question.
Think before you write. Which strategies are used and how do the answer the prompt?
Plan your response. It is not easy for the reader to pick over an essay attempt to decipher sentences. A little organization will help you avoid extensive editing.
Make a strong first impression. Build your opening response. Don't parrot the prompt word for word. The reader knows it from memory.
Begin your response immediately. Do not take a circuitous route with generalizations.
Be thorough and specific. Do not simply "point out" strategies. Explain how they are used, give examples, and show how they establish what the question is asking. No long quotes!
Use clear transitions that help the reader follow the flow of your essays. Keep your paragraphs organized; do not digress.
Resist putting in a "canned" quotation or critic's comment if it does not fit. You will get a response from your reader but it will not be the one you want.
Write to express, not to impress. Keep vocabulary and syntax within your zone of competence. Students who inflate their writing often inadvertently entertain, but seldom explain.
Demonstrate that you understand style. Show the reader how the author has developed the selection to create the desired effect. This indicates that you understand the intricacies of the creative process.
Maintain an economy of language: saying much with few words. The best student writers see much, but say it quite succinctly. Often ideas are embedded rather than listed.
Let your writing dance with ideas and insights. You can receive a 6 or a 7 with a lockstep approach, but the essays that earn 8's and 9's expand to a wider perspective.
Write legibly. If a reader cannot read half the words (especially at 4:30 P.M. on the sixth day of a reading) you will not get a fair reading - even if your essay is passed on to a reader with keener eyesight. Patience decreases as the the reading progresses.
Let your work stand on it's own merits. Avoid penning "pity me" notes ("I was up all night." "I have a cold," etc.) to the reader.

The Advanced Placement Reading

The AP Reading Process

Before the exam a small group of experienced readers and college professors select literature and create appropriate questions
the questions are subsequently field-tested with groups of freshman English students in colleges and universities around the U.S. and are then reexamined and refine for validity.
After the exam, the Test Development Committee and exam leadership meet to select potential samples.
The table leaders arrive one day prior to the start of the reading to validate, refine, and even challenge scores. Samples to be used by all readers are selected and sequenced.
Readers are broken into three large groups - one for each question, and question leaders are introduced.
Readers are further divided into tables consisting of one table leader and six readers.
First morning (and sometimes part of the afternoon) is dedicated to training readers using pre-selected samples and scoring guides.
Later in the day, each reader receives a packet with a scoring sheet and twenty-five exams, which they read and record in numerical order. When finished, readers turn in packet for new one (this goes on forever or seven days, whichever comes first.) Table leader checks by "reading behind" new readers and reading "selected samples" from all readers throughout at least the first several days and usually the entire reading.
Every session (even after breaks and lunch) begin with normed readings which diminish as the week progresses.
Chief reader and question leaders offer, inspiration, and humor.

2. The Reading Atmosphere

Friendly, collegial, academic, enlightening
Many activities - both intellectual and inane: barbecues, cultural events, poetry/fiction readings, symposia, films, dances, receptions, sports, tours, etc.
Good food and plenty of it, great conversation and opportunities for insight as well as inspiration and exchange of ideas.

3. Readers

About 60% college instructors, 40% AP teachers.
Remarkable egalitarian spirit - nobody tries to "pull" rank.

Contact Me

My e-mail address is hammondc@brevard.k12.fl.us This is probably the best way to contact to me and will result in the quickest response. My phone number is 242-6400 ex. 373. Contacting me by phone usually results in a longer response time, but I will return your call as soon as possible. Conferences may be scheduled 7:00 A.M. until 7:15 A.M. or from 3:00 until 3:15P.M. Please take advantage of regularly scheduled parent conference nights.