Fostering academic excellence and biblical virtue to equip students for lives as local and global Christian servants.

English 5/6 College Composition

Course Catalog ID:
3464
Subject Categories:
College Dual Credit, English Language Arts, Writing and Composition
Description

This course enables students to develop their technical skills in writing and familiarizes them with the habits of subtle, nuanced critical thinking. In the first semester, students will read, analyze, and engage with the works of various non-fiction authors, both ancient and modern (ranging from Seneca, Montaigne, and Kenko to G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, and Virginia Woolf); students thus encounter a wide array of writing-styles and techniques. The course turns in the second semester towards fiction and poetry, again emphasizing a range of genres, from John Steinbeck’s Chrysanthemums to P.G. Wodehouse’s The Inimitable Jeeves, from Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Shakespeare’s sonnets to the twentieth-century poems of W.H. Auden and Wislawa Szymborska. In addition to learning the techniques of close-reading and analysis, students also learn the techniques of effective, meaningful, and persuasive writing, such as how to fashion engaging introductions; the crafting of precise and meaningful thesis statements; building coherent and focused essay-structures; the use of rhetorical appeals; and the use of MLA, Chicago, and APA styles of citation. Students craft original, argumentative compositions of their own in a variety of genres, including proposal, analytical, narrative, and research essays. Through this course, students learn both to expand and to give expression to their thoughts and ideas — articulating them, honing them, and ultimately conveying them skillfully and meaningfully to others through writing.

Prerequisites
Grade Levels*:
11, 12
* Enrollment restricted based on Date of Birth and Grad Year (whichever is more limiting). Enrollment outside these levels requires written concurrence from TPS Support.
Readiness
• Successful completion (75% or higher) of any TPS English 3 Lit and Comp (or higher) course
━ OR ━
• Successful completion of Readiness Test
Notes and Conditions

College Credit: This course is pre-approved for college credit (Belhaven ENG 101, 3 credits). Upon successful completion of this course, the student may apply for a college transcript from Belhaven University for this course. These transcripted credits may be transferred to other colleges. More information is here.

Flexible Scheduling: This course may be taken with live class attendance reduced or waived (recording only) if the student has a time zone or schedule conflict. Select this option when you enroll or notify TPS for approval.

TPS College Comp vs. TPS Advanced Comp: TPS College Composition is ideal for students seeking to complete their “freshman comp” college requirement in high school and probably not planning to take AP English courses. TPS Advanced Comp – Classical Style and Rhetoric is ideal for students seeking to advance their writing to a college level in preparation for upper high school literature, social studies, AP English, and college dual credit courses taught from a biblical worldview, or for standardized college prep writing tests (SAT, ACT, CLT).

Transcript Planning: Students typically take two or more English 4/5/6 courses. They may generally be taken in any order, though some sequences may be better for some purposes (e.g., preparation for a particular AP course).

“This course helped me to gain confidence in writing. It takes you through many different styles and has prepared me for my college writing. The teacher and peer feedback was an amazing and helpful opportunity. I now have more confidence going into college that I will be able to write well and submit college-level papers.”

Micaiah H
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Student

“I definitely have become a stronger writer through this course. It’s focus on defending arguments has really pushed me to think through my objective and write in a clear, concise, way.”

Peter C
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Student

“I would recommend College Composition because it productively helps to prepare students for college. My goal is to be an English teacher and this course really helped to improve my writing skills and give me more experience in the English language.”

Hope H
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Student

“The College Composition class has greatly improved my writing this year. I came in with little confidence as a writer and found myself very nervous about the class. The teacher worked to help me increase my confidence and to provide feedback that elevated my style of writing. After this class, I now feel ready to attend college next year with confidence that I have the foundation I need to be successful in my college writing courses. I would highly recommend this class to anyone.”

Rachel C
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Student

“The College Composition class has greatly improved my writing this year. I came in with little confidence as a writer and found myself very nervous about the class. The teacher worked to help me increase my confidence and to provide feedback that elevated my style of writing. After this class, I now feel ready to attend college next year with confidence that I have the foundation I need to be successful in my college writing courses. I would highly recommend this class to anyone.”

Rachel C
-
Student
Reviews from Students and Parents