English 2

Syllabus

English II Syllabus

Ms. Bella Fines 

bfines@eanesisd.net

Conference: Period 4

Course Description

English II is dedicated to the cultivation of writing skills and the practice of deeper reading methods. These practices will ultimately enhance how to think, read, speak and write successfully in a 21st century environment. The class will emphasize various reading concepts that will elicit a better understanding of the structure within different modes of writing. This will be accomplished through analytical reading of a variety of literature. 

Course Objectives

• Effective written communication in a variety of modes and genres

• Critically examine literature and make broader connections to community, self, and other texts

• Develop digital literacy, oral and written communication, collaboration, creativity, and problem-solving skills

• Employ inquiry and research skills 

English II Units of Study

Fall: Fiction Focus

1. Summer reading

2. Poetry/Short Story Unit

3. Novel: The Catcher in the Rye (Salinger)

4. Screenplay: 12 Angry Men (Rose)

Spring: Non-Fiction Focus

1. Argument + Rhetoric 

2. STAAR Boot Camp

3. Memoir Lit Circles 

4. Passion Project

WHS Academic Integrity Honor Code

Artificial Intelligence Policy

The purpose of written assignments in English courses is to assess students’ ability to think critically and to effectively communicate their thinking; the use of Artificial Intelligence to complete these tasks prevents an accurate evaluation of student learning.  Therefore, the use of any Artificial Intelligence tools (e.g. ChatGPT or DALL-E) or essay writing services (e.g. Chegg or Course Hero) to brainstorm, draft, or revise and edit student work related to any formative or summative assessment is strictly prohibited.  Students who submit assignments with AI assistance will be subject to an honor code violation, as outlined in the WHS Student Handbook, and will receive a zero for the assignment. 

On the first violation of the WHS Academic Honor Code only, students may request to redo the assignment (or an alternate) for a maximum grade of 50. Any subsequent violations will not be eligible for resubmission. 

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is taking the words, ideas, and even structure of another person’s writing, whether from a website, tutor, video, blog, print source, or an essay written by someone else; claiming authorship for it; and submitting it for a grade. Writers must always cite any material (except what is common knowledge) taken from a source and included in their writing, whether it be quoted directly or paraphrased. Students should never submit one essay, even a refashioned version of it, for multiple courses (a.k.a. the “recycling fraud”).  Students who submit plagiarized assignments will be subject to an honor code violation, as outlined in the WHS Student Handbook, and will receive a zero for the assignment. On the first violation of the WHS Academic Honor Code only, students may request to redo the assignment (or an alternate) for a maximum grade of 50. Any subsequent violations will not be eligible for resubmission.

 Materials for Class
I kindly ask that you have the following for class each day:

• your school-issued iPad (charged) and any books we're reading as a class

• your ISR book / Lit Circle book

• A binder or folder to keep your handouts organized (does not need to be specific to English)

• Loose leaf notebook paper

• Pens (blue and black ink); Colored pens/pencils

• Highlighters (4+ colors)

Independent Silent Reading (ISR) / Lit Circles 

WHS is committed to an independent reading program rooted in student choice that will challenge students to become lifelong readers, to develop empathy, to engage in discussion of ideas, to make connections to themselves and the world, and to apply critical thinking skills, as they advance their literacy. Students are required to choose a book to read independently during class. There will be a requirement that students complete a project quarterly; this will constitute a valuable grade within the class. Students are welcome to request recommendations.

Opportunities for Tutoring

If you are struggling to understand concepts and materials covered in class, contact me. I WANT you to succeed and will give you every opportunity I can. It is your decision to take the help I offer and your responsibility to ask for help. Students should come in for assistance if they have questions about an assignment, want help improving specific skills, need to complete retakes/ make-ups, or just need a quiet place to complete work. 

Tutoring is available Monday-Wednesday from 4:30-6:30pm in the NGC Library and in the mornings by appointment only.

Feel free to drop by then if you'd like to chat about a piece of writing you're working on or received feedback on, would like to look over an assessment, or have questions about something we/you are reading or a specific assignment.

Tardies

Students are expected to be in their seats by the tardy bell. For first period, students are counted tardy up to the first 15 minutes of class. All other periods, 7 minutes. A student must be present for 90% of the class period to be counted present. That means for a 50 minute class, students must be present for at least 45 minutes to be counted present. Tardies and absences will be documented using the Skyward system. Upon the fourth (4th) tardy, a student is no longer eligible for exam exemptions.

Phone Policy

According to HB 1481, “any wireless electronic communication device, other than a device provided to students by a school for instructional purposes, capable of transmitting and/or receiving data, including cellular telephones, text messaging devices, laptop computers, and tablet computers” is prohibited from use during instructional time. For this reason, attendance will be taken by students placing their cell phone in a designated phone pocket at the beginning of class. Consequences are as follows:

• 1st offense: teacher conference with student, contact parents

• 2nd offense: administrator conference with student, contact parents 

• 3rd office: lunch detention 

• 4th offense: take phone, parent pick up, lunch detention 

• 5th offense: ISS 

Grades, Late Work, and Make-Up Work

Students are expected to check their grades regularly using their Skyward Student Access account. They are encouraged to consult with their teacher when there is a question regarding a grade. The only way to authentically grade lengthy written assignments is to read them, which takes considerable time. Your teacher will make a strong effort to provide students with written or verbal feedback within two weeks of the assignment due date. At that time students will also be able to view the impact of the assignment’s score on their nine-week average. On major writing assignments ONLY, if the assignment was turned in on time AND conferences with the teacher, the student may rewrite for up to an 80.

Nine-week averages consist of:

• 60% Major Grades (projects, essays, unit tests, etc.) 

• 35% Daily Work, Homework, Independent Silent Reading, etc

• 5% Timeliness (submission of assignments by date assigned)

Grading Policy

Each Quarter is worth 40% of a student’s semester grade. Final exams count for 20% of a student’s semester grade. Final exams will be administered in December and May. A student’s semester grades will be averaged together to determine their final grade. English 1 is a graduation requirement for all students. If a student does not pass English 1, they will be required to make up that credit in summer school through credit recovery. A passing grade is 70%. 

Daily Grades (35%) 

Journals, reading checks, writing process assignments, etc 

Assignments submitted on time are graded for full credit (100% of mastery). Daily assignments submitted late will lose 10 points for each calendar day they are late. Assignments more than 5 calendar days late will not be accepted. If you feel you have an extenuating circumstance, please discuss with me.

Major Grades (60%)

Unit tests, lengthy compositions, cumulative projects

These assignments are designed as assessments and are graded for mastery of TEKS. 

From time to time, emergencies happen - such as illness, hospitalization, injury, or a death in the family - that will interfere with a student’s ability to submit work in a timely manner.  In these cases, the student is expected to contact the teacher in person or by email as soon as the crisis arises to request a reasonable extension. Your schedule, extra-curricular activities, and technological issues are not “emergencies.”

Students are expected to submit their work by the assigned due date and time. To encourage the skill of meeting deadlines and to ensure skills are practiced when assigned, the following policy will be implemented:

• Major Grades will be accompanied by a 5% Timeliness Grade (100 for on time, 0 for not on time). When a student receives a zero for timelines, they will still have up to 1 week to turn in the late Major Grade assessment for up to 100%. 

• Late assignments are not eligible for a rewrite. 

• Major assignments turned in between 7-14 days late may earn up to a 70. After 14 days, assignments may earn up to a 50.

• Rewrites: Major grades (tests, essays, projects, etc) can be revised and resubmitted for a maximum grade of 80 if the following conditions have been met:

• Work was submitted by the deadline

• Conference with teacher 

• Original grade was 79 or lower

• Resubmission is done in a timely manner

Absences and Make-up Work

If you are absent, check Google Classroom, the daily slides or schedule a time to discuss what was missed in class. Send me an email for clarification or further instructions. Avoid spending active class time in pursuit of make up materials as it causes distractions to the learning environment. Students will be permitted to make-up work missed during any absence. Students who miss class for a prearranged or co-curricular activity will turn in work or take a test the day they return. If a student misses new instruction during a school-related absence, then they will not be held accountable the day they return. They will be allowed sufficient time to learn and make up work missed. Students who miss a class due to illness or any other absence have one (1) day to complete make-up work for each day absent. It is the responsibility of the student to contact the teacher regarding make-up work and appear at the time scheduled. 

Incomplete Work and Eligibility

It is important to remember that an “Incomplete” semester grade makes a student ineligible until the work from the previous semester is completed. Work from the previous nine weeks wherein an “Incomplete” was given will be used to re-average the semester grade; however, the earlier term make-up work cannot be used to change a student’s status from ineligible to eligible for the three-week eligibility period. All work that is turned in on or before the Friday prior to a UIL eligibility check can be included in the UIL Check. Any assignments turned in after the Friday deadline will be graded only at teacher availability and discretion.

Google Classroom

Westlake High School utilizes the Google Classroom platform to share classroom resources, many assignments, and assessment preparation materials to students. WHS students will receive a classroom code to access these materials, submit assignments, and track any missing work.