Program of Studies
English Courses
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The State of Ohio establishes learning standards that describe what students should understand and be able to do. Pickerington Schools English language arts curriculum supports these standards and prepares students for success in ELA I and ELA II state testing. Students must earn a minimum of 4 credits in English language arts. Pre-Advanced Placement, Advanced Placement, and College Credit Plus courses may count toward these credits. Please check with your school counselor.
CCP Literature courses are based on the time period covered. Courses may be taken in any sequence. College Credit Plus students will receive additional information for the next steps via email after scheduling is complete.
English Language Arts (ELA)
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ELA 9
This course is designed to develop and expand on Ohio’s Learning Standards for English Language Arts. This course is required unless taking ESL English, Pre-AP English 1, or CCP for ELA credit. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
Course Number: 405
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 9
Fees: $22
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ELA 10
This course is designed to develop and expand on Ohio’s Learning Standards for English Language Arts. Required unless taking ESL English, Pre-AP English 2, or an AP or CCP for ELA credit. End-of-Course State Test required. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
Course Number: 411
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 10
Fees: $22
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ELA 11
This course is designed to develop and expand on Ohio’s Learning Standards for English Language Arts. Required unless taking ESL English or an AP or CCP course for ELA credit. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
Course Number: 417
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 11
Fees: $10
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ELA 12
This course is designed to develop and expand on Ohio’s Learning Standards for English Language Arts. Required unless taking ESL English or an AP or CCP course for ELA credit. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
Course Number: 429
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 12
Fees: $9
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English Learners Courses
Students who are identified as English Learners (EL) may be assigned to a course with an English Learner Teacher in addition to their ELA class to develop their English language skills in the areas of reading, writing, speaking, and listening. This is on an as-needed basis and is determined by parents, teachers, building administrators, and district administrators in collaboration.
Pre-AP & AP English
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Pre-AP English 1
Pre-AP English 1 extends learning beyond regular courses through a greater depth of content exploration and enrichment/mastery of Ohio’s Learning Standards, and obtaining the skill sets required for success in AP and college-level course work.
In addition to covering English 9 skills, Pre-AP English 1 classes will develop analytical and critical thinking skills in both text analysis and writing. Vocabulary acquisition, additional independent reading, and the development and refinement of editing skills will also be utilized. Discussion and presentation skills will be refined using multi-modal projects. The work will prepare students for higher-level coursework and provide them with college and career development skills.Course Number: 408PreAP
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 9
Fees: $22
Additional: Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
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Pre-AP English 2
Pre-AP English 2 builds on the foundation of Pre-AP English 1, with an emphasis on the recursive moves that matter in preparing students for the challenges of college-level reading, writing, and discussion. While Pre-AP English 1 introduces the fundamental routines of close observation, critical analysis, and appreciation of the author’s craft, Pre-AP English 2 requires students to apply those same practices to a new host of nonfiction and literary works.
As readers, students develop a vigilant awareness of how the poet, playwright, novelist, and writer of nonfiction alike can masterfully manipulate language to serve their unique purposes. As writers, students compose more nuanced analytical essays without losing sight of the importance of well-crafted sentences and a sense of cohesion. Each unit of Pre-AP 2 culminates in a writing task that reflects the rigor of similar tasks they will eventually encounter on standardized writing exams in AP English courses, and in college classes.Course Number: 414PreAP
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 10
Fees: $22
Additional: End-of-Course State Test required. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
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AP English Language & Composition
The AP Program is intended for any student who wishes to work at a collegiate level in high school. The College Board encourages high schools to remove all barriers to admittance for AP courses.
This course emphasizes the development of skills in critical reading of texts from a variety of historical periods and disciplines. American literary and non-fictional texts are emphasized and include literature, speeches, sermons, historical documents, personal narratives, novels, short stories, and poetry.
This course is for students capable of doing college-level work in English while they are in secondary school and willing to devote the energy necessary to completing a course more rigorous and demanding than other high school English courses designed for the college-bound student. Advanced Placement courses are demanding and require daily homework. The class concludes with a college level exam, prepared by the College Board, which, if passed, may result in college credit.Course Number: 418PreAP
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 9-12
Fees: $22
Additional: Students eligible for free or reduced lunch should check with their counselor about AP exam fee waivers. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
Note: while AP English Language and AP English Literature may both be used for separate high school credits, colleges typically award “Composition 1”credit for successful passage of either exam and may only offer elective credit for a second AP English exam.
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AP English Literature and Composition
The AP Program is intended for any student who wishes to work on a collegiate level in high school. The College Board encourages high schools to remove all barriers to admittance for AP courses. This is a course emphasizing the development of skills in critical reading of “texts of recognized literary merit” and in writing about literature and related ideas. Response to classic and modern literature will be used in class discussions, informal and formal writing assignments, oral presentations, and research.
This is for students capable of doing college-level work in English while they are in secondary school and willing to devote the energy necessary to completing a course more rigorous and demanding than other high school English courses designed for the college-bound student. Advanced placement courses are demanding and require daily homework. The class concludes with a college level exam, prepared by the College Board, which, if passed, may result in college credit.Course Number: 419PreAP
Duration: Full Year
Credits: 1
Grade: 9-12
Fees: $22
Additional: Students eligible for free or reduced lunch should check with their counselor about AP exam fee waivers. Students may be asked to obtain an independent reading text on their own.
Note: while AP English Language and AP English Literature may both be used for separate high school credits, colleges typically award “Composition 1”credit for successful passage of either exam and may only offer elective credit for a second AP English exam.
English Electives
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African-American Literature
This course is a comprehensive description of the African-American Experience in Literature. Students enrolled in this course are introduced to the works of African-American authors, and they are used as tools to highlight important issues affecting the African-American community (i.e., cultural, historical, social, political, and economical).
Through exposure to authors whose ideas and values reflect diverse backgrounds, students will appreciate the differences as well as the similarities among all people. Reading selections will include fiction, nonfiction, drama, and poetry. The writing assignments will include the modes of exposition, literary analysis, narration, and description.
There will be opportunities to express learning in more creative or artistic modes as well. Students will also view supplemental video to support historical chronology and will gain an appreciation for the music (i.e., gospel, spirituals) that is a fundamental component of slave narratives and African-American literature. Units comprising this course include Slave Narratives and Resistance, Women’s Voices, The Rise of the Black Middle Class, Harlem Renaissance, Blacks in Business, and Contemporary Literature.
Course Number: 409
Duration: Semester
Credits: 0.5
Grade: 9-12
Fees: None
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Creative Writing
This course is designed for students who enjoy writing as a form of art and personal expression. In this course, students will explore the elements of numerous literary genres (short fiction, poetry, drama, film) and the power of both print and multimedia formats. To develop original writing pieces, students will engage in writing workshops, literary element development lessons, writing/author studies, and peer reviews/conferences. To show evidence of writing development throughout the course, students will be required to engage in community writing activities that require sharing one’s work and in publishing one’s writing beyond the classroom setting.
Course Number: 406
Credits: 0.5
Grade: 9-12
Fees: None
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Film & Genre Studies
This course will explore the characteristics of different genres of storytelling and study how these elements have been used, evolved, and been changed by different filmmakers for different audiences and eras. Films and literature will be used in this course.
Course Number: 407
Duration: Semester
Credits: 0.5
Grade: 9-12
Fees: None
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Journalism I
This course will introduce the basic skills necessary to be a journalist and will greatly benefit students interested in a career in communications. It will cover assorted topics: mass media, reporting, editing, advertising, and news on the journalism site. In addition, the students will write articles for the school site and an emphasis will be placed on writing.
Course Number: 444
Duration: Semester
Credits: 0.5
Grade: 9-12
Fees: None
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Journalism 2
This course is offered for students who wish to advance their skills in the field of journalism. The course will concentrate on the production of the high school journalism site. Students will construct and publish a school article on the site each month. News reporting, photography, advertising, and article make-up will be emphasized.
Course Number: 446
Duration: Full year
Credits: 1
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Journalism I required.
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Public Speaking & Discourse
This course is designed to build a student’s confidence and improve communication skills in public speaking. The student will study effective ways to communicate, i.e., learning the vocalization process; using nonverbal and verbal techniques to communicate effectively; developing key listening skills; making language choices in speech preparation; organizing and delivering speeches for various purposes; and becoming more effective in group discussions.
The emphasis in this class is on active participation and on presenting a variety of speeches. Speaking in front of others will no longer intimidate the student who successfully completes this course.Course Number: 410
Duration: Semester
Credits: 0.5
Grade: 9-12
Fees: None
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Yearbook
Students learn the basics of magazine layout and design, copywriting, marketing, desktop publishing, photography, and deadline production. Students will produce pages in the yearbook. As students learn, they will earn the opportunity to work toward editorial positions. Yearbook may be offered as an independent study with the approval of the instructor.
Course Number: 807
Duration: Full year
Credits: 1
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Enrollment in course requires instructor approval.
College Credit Plus (CCP) English
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British Literature I CCP
(Note: this course may be taken prior to any other CCP Literature Course)
This course provides the student with a general background in the literary, philosophical, and historical trends from the Middle Ages through the eighteenth century in Britain. The student will examine representative works from this historical period, tracing developments in style, language, and genre. The student will also make connections between the literature and the social and political events that contributed to its production. The student will use literary criticism and theories including, but not limited to, biographical criticism, gender criticism, historical criticism, psychological theories, and reader-response theories.
Through a series of close readings, discussions, reader responses, critical essays, and argumentative papers, the student will trace the development of historical, cultural, and literary movements, such as the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Restoration, and Enlightenment.Course Number: ENG2200CCP
Duration: Semester
Credits: 1 High School English/3 College
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Students must have an active application on file with the college partner; college-readiness measures as established by the college – please review the district’s CCP information page for details.
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British Literature II CCP
(Note: this course may be taken prior to any other CCP Literature Course)
This course provides the student with a general background in the literary, philosophical, and historical trends from 1800 to the present in Britain. The student will examine representative works from this historical period, tracing developments in style, language, and genre.
The student will also make connections between the literature and the social and political events that contributed to its production. The student will use literary criticism and theories including, but not limited to, biographical criticism, gender criticism, historical criticism, psychological theories, and reader-response theories.
Through a series of close readings, discussions, reader responses, critical essays, and argumentative papers, the student will trace the development of historical, cultural, and literary movements, such as the Romantic period, the Victorian period, and the Twentieth Century.Course Number: ENG2210CCP
Duration: Semester
Credits: 1 High School English/3 College
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Students must have an active application on file with the college partner; college-readiness measures as established by the college – please review the district’s CCP information page for details.
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Early American Literature CCP
Early American Literature is designed to expose students to a wide range of early American literature. In this course, the student will examine the works of major writers in the U.S., from the early settlements to 1865. The student will read and critically analyze various genres, including essays, short stories, fiction, and the novel.
The student will also use literary criticism and theories including, but not limited to, biographical criticism, gender criticism, historical criticism, psychological theories, and reader-response theories.
Through a series of close readings, discussions, reader responses, critical essays, and argumentative papers, the student will trace the development of both literary and cultural movements such as Puritanism, Romanticism, and Transcendentalism.Course Number: ENG2000CCP
Duration: Semester
Credits: 1 High School English/3 College
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Students must have an active application on file with the college partner; college-readiness measures as established by the college – please review the district’s CCP information page for details.
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English Composition I CCP
The student will compose papers using expository writing while incorporating one’s own thinking with credible research using MLA format. The student also will be introduced to APA format guidelines.
The course emphasizes critical thinking, analytical reading, thesis development, and deep revision of one’s own compositions.
The course also includes analysis of the audience and themes in one’s own writing and the writings of others, while developing the student’s critical reading skills.Course Number: ENG1000CCP
Duration: Semester
Credits: 1 High School English/3 College
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Students must have an active application on file with the college partner; college-readiness measures as established by the college – please review the district’s CCP information page for details.
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English Composition II CCP
In this course, using the framework of the American experience theme, the student will continue to develop proficiencies in analytical reading, critical thinking, thesis development, deep revision, and research of credible sources.
This course emphasizes problem-solving with writing-intensive assignments grounded in argumentation. The student will evaluate readings from historical, social, and political perspectives. Examination of one’s own position in relation to the audience and evidence facilitates awareness of a writer’s ethical responsibilities. Research of multiple sources using the APA format is required. Students will write a variety of texts, including at least one researched essay.Course Number: ENG1100CCP2
Duration: Semester
Credits: 1 High School English/3 College
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Students must have an active application on file with the college partner; college-readiness measures as established by the college – please review the district’s CCP information page for details.
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Modern American Literature CCP
Early American Literature is designed to expose the student to a wide range of later American literature. In this course, the student will examine the works of major writers in the U.S., beginning with the years following the Civil War and leading up to the present day.
The student will read and critically analyze various genres, including essays, short stories, fiction, drama, and the novel. The student will also use literary criticism and theories including, but not limited to, biographical, gender, and historical criticisms, psychological theories, and reader-response theories.
Through a series of close readings, discussions, reader responses, critical essays, and argumentative papers, the student will trace the development of both literary and cultural movements such as Realism and Modernism.
Course Number: ENG2100CCP
Duration: Semester
Credits: 1 High School English/3 College
Grade: 9 – 12
Fees: None
Additional: Students must have an active application on file with the college partner; college-readiness measures as established by the college – please review the district’s CCP information page for details.
