AP Literature and Composition 12

This is an advanced English course at college freshman level designed for the student working above grade level who is university bound. In addition to being an honors level course, it also prepares students to gain college credit through the Advanced Placement (AP) Exam. The AP English Literature and Composition Exam employs multiple-choice questions that test the student’s critical reading of selected passages. But the exam also requires writing as a direct measure of the student’s ability to read and interpret literature and to use other forms of discourse effectively. Course content is dictated by College Board’s Advanced Placement requirements and by District and state standards which includes elements of British and world literature. The course includes intensive study of representative works from various genres and periods. Students will read deliberately and thoroughly, taking time to understand a work’s complexity, to absorb its richness of meaning, and to analyze how the meaning is embodied in literary form. Through the close reading of selected texts, students deepen their understanding of the ways writers use language to provide both meaning and pleasure for their readers. In addition to considering a work’s literary artistry, students reflect on the social and historical values it reflects and embodies. Writing is heavily emphasized, encompassing essays, research papers, the writing domains specified in the District Writing Portfolio, and especially the study of the artistic use of language of increasing complexity. Writing assignments focus on the critical analysis of literature and include expository, analytical, and argumentative essays. The writing in this course involves extended discourse in which students develop an argument or present an analysis at length. To that end, writing instruction includes attention to developing and organizing ideas in clear, coherent, and persuasive language. Other areas covered include vocabulary development, listening and speaking activities, and further improvement of library and research study skills.