English

At every level of English instruction at University Prep, English department instructors ask their students for fluency in reading, writing, and speaking, for recognition of the requirements of the rhetorical context at hand, and for the cognitive self-awareness that permits intellectual courage, social responsibility and global citizenship. Our program challenges students to see a meaningful reflection of themselves in the literature they read and to present, by publishing or speaking, that meaning to the school community and beyond. In addition, the English department believes strong technical ability in reading, writing, and speaking is essential to the clear creation and dissemination of meaning.

The primary goal of the Middle School English department is to develop each student's skill with the rhetoric of writing and speaking, and formative assessment techniques shape the way teachers both present instruction and evaluate student work. Instruction in writing begins with development of coherent paragraphs and moves through full length essays. Instruction in reading includes vocabulary development, reading comprehension for literal understanding, and reading comprehension for figurative understanding. At all points of instruction, students are given feedback from their teachers. Assignments are accompanied by rubrics that make clear what skills are being learned and how new skills build on those already covered.

The Upper School English program at University Prep begins with a strong foundation in the rhetoric of writing, speaking, reading, and film in the 9th grade and culminates in a senior thesis (a persuasive essay of 4,000-5,000 words) written on the topic of the student's choosing during the 12th grade Comparative Literature course. Over the four years of Upper School, the English program reinforces the student's assessment and understanding of the rhetorical context required for each writing assignment and seeks to provide students with tools they need to decode texts for both literal and figurative meaning. Formative assessment takes the form of in-class work and drafts of written work, while summative assessments appear as traditional or essay exams, final drafts of written work, and culminating presentations.

Faculty

• Nell Brewer, English Teacher
• Catherine Nelson Civjan, English Teacher
• Alec Duxbury, English Teacher and Department Head
• Carl Faucher, English Teacher
• Judy Ghavamian, English Teacher
• Susan Patella, English Teacher
• Christina Serkowski, English Teacher
• Eli Yim, English Teacher