Suggested LLP Electives

Instructor-Provided, Upper-Division Course Descriptions

Spring 2019

Engl 3120: Creative Writing Poetry
Instructor: Dr. Pinkard

A workshop in writing poetry, this course will emphasize trends and genres in African American poetic form. The course examines the techniques involved in writing poetry by folding in approaches to various poetic modes and relating poetry to other forms of art. Each week we will discuss the work of renowned poets, and critique the poems of workshoppers. By the end of the course, students will have a number of polished and completed poems. Understanding the demands and rewards of a poetry inspired life will be our shared goal and motivation.

Engl 3630: The American Novel
Instructor: Dr. Anderson

Catalog Description: A study of representative works designed to reflect formal developments in the novel, as well as intellectual and moral concerns of the American people. "We'll be exploring the theme of home, homespaces, homelessness, and what it means to be "at home."

ENGL 3710: Methods of Teaching High School English

Instructor: Dr. Shafer

This course offers students the opportunity to collect, organize, analyze, and evaluate multiple approaches for teaching ELA (English Language Arts) courses in secondary schools. While the first half of the course focuses on identifying and assessing various conventional ELA course delivery methods, the second half focuses on developing innovative techniques intended to serve specific grade levels, learning styles, and student populations. This course includes student-driven research, field-based experiences, and edTPA preparation. Students will ultimately produce a digital portfolio structured around edTPA’s three primary areas: 1) planning, 2) instruction, and 3) assessment. This course is required of all English majors in the Teacher Education Program. Prerequisite: official admission to Teacher Education Program.

Engl 3860: Women's Literature
Instructor: Dr. Hayes

Women play important roles in their neighborhoods, families, and work communities. However, their voices are not always considered. In Women in Literature, students will examine contemporary Multicultural American Women Writers’ works. In this class, students will investigate women’s roles within their communities and the strategies they use to fight against marginalization.

ENGL 4010: Special Topics Southern Literature Black and White
Instructor: Dr. Dixon

This course covers literature written by Southern African American and White American writers from around the turn of the 20th century to the emergence of the Civil Rights Movement. It focuses on racial mythology and various manifestations of Jim Crow social practices as reflected in Southern literature during this period- with writings by William Faulkner, Richard Wright, Eudora Welty, Zora Neale Hurston, Carson McCullers, and Flannery O’Connor.

ENGL 4130: Advanced English Grammar

Instructor: Dr. Shafer

This course introduces the key aspects of English grammar related to both speaking and writing: morphology, phonetics, phonology, word classes, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, etc. Special attention will be paid to the ways in which smaller units of linguistic expression can be combined in order to produce larger phrases, clauses, sentences, and other examples of discourse in various linguistic and social communicative contexts (face-to-face interaction, academic papers, texts, email). Students will practice using a range of available tools (pen and paper, smartphone apps, online mechanisms, etc.) not only to develop their own direct language analysis and annotation methods, but also to determine how to successfully incorporate these tools in secondary ELA (English Language Arts) classrooms.

Engl 4910: Creative Writing Short Story
Instructor: Dr. Phillips

This upper-level course reviews and builds upon the essential components of short story writing. It will also introduce students to different genres of short fiction, such as nonlinear narrative, flash fiction and electronic literature.

Fall 2018

Engl 3010: Critical Approaches
Instructor: Dr. Morgan-Curtis

Catalog Description: A writing-intensive introduction to major critical theories with emphasis on application to interpretation of literary works. Students interpret a number of literary works drawn from different genres and periods, applying several different theoretical perspectives, such as feminism, new historicism, Marxism, psychoanalysis, and cultural and gender studies. Prerequisites: ENG 1010, 1020, 2011 (or 2018), and 2021 (or 2028). The course is required of all English majors and is a prerequisite or corequisite for English majors to all upper-division courses in literature.

Engl 3106/7: Tech Report Writing (several sections)
Instructor: Drs. Field, Irby and Williams

Catalog Description: A study of fundamentals of written reports in a variety of professional fields, with the emphasis on grammar, sentence structure and style, as well as on specialized techniques. 3105 focuses on reports required in professional engineering. 3106 is the study and preparation of forms and reports required of students majoring in Criminal Justice. 3107 is the study and preparation of forms and reports required of social workers. Acquaintance with documents of various agencies is stressed.

Engl 3110: Creative Writing Short Story
Instructor: Dr. Phillips

Catalog Description: A workshop in short story writing. The course examines the techniques and problems involved in writing the short story and places emphasis on the use of the senses and the writing about the experience of living.

English 3150.01: The Film
Instructor: Dr. Wise

Catalog Description: A study of films: their makers, their message, and their appeal. Students not only view films but also read articles and books about movies. Instructor Description: In this class, you will learn: Film History, Film Techniques, Film Genres, Film Language and more.

English 3510: Twentieth Century British Literature
Instructor: Dr. Powers

Catalog Description: A study of the major trends in poetry, drama, and the novel of the twentieth century. Emphasis is placed on themes, techniques, and social criticism. Representative British, Irish, and Commonwealth writers are included.

Engl 3620: American Literature II
Instructor: Dr. Anderson

Catalog Description: A study of literary trends since the Civil War, with emphasis on such major figures as Twain, Crane, Dreiser, Frost, Eliot, Faulkner, Fitzgerald, Ellison, Lowell, Bishop, Baldwin, Rich, and Bellow and such movements as realism, naturalism, modernism, and postmodernism.

Engl 3710: Methods in Teaching High School English
Instructor: Dr. Shafer

Catalog Descriptions: A course in the methods of teaching English in the secondary schools. Clinical and field-based experiences which call for active participation by students are part of the course requirements. Required of all English majors in the Teacher Education Program. Prerequisite: official admission to Teacher Education Program.

Engl 3720: Adolescent Literature
Instructor: Dr. Shafer

A survey of literature relevant to the interests, concerns, and development of young adults. Required of English majors enrolled in the Teacher Education Program. This course provides an introduction to the interpretation of texts (books, poetry, short stories, music, films, TV shows, video games, etc.) that have been constructed for young adults. This course emphasizes the use of various literary, linguistic, and media-specific approaches as part of the analysis of these young adult texts. While this course includes a brief history of the development of young adult literature, its primary goal is to help students practice reading and evaluating young adult texts in order to cultivate engagement with different literary forms through the development of various cultural, interpretive, and modal literacies.

Engl 3730: Children's Literature
Instructor: Prof. Parham

English 3730 is a survey of literature written for children from preschool through elementary school ages. This course offers perspective teachers of the primary grades the opportunity to become familiar with literature suited to the needs and tastes of children. Principles that underline the selection of children’s literature for classrooms and libraries are considered. Required for all candidates for certification in Elementary Education.

English 4160.01: Writing for Publication
Instructor: Dr. Pinkard

Interested in publishing your creative vision? Want to explore how your writing can both reflect and change the world? In this course, we will learn about literary publishing processes, from manuscript construction through editing and production to distribution of the finished publication. Catalog Description: Writing principles and practices for a variety of professional and popular audiences.

English 4230-01: Literature of the Middle Ages
Instructor: Dr. Hennequin

Before Game of Thrones there was the Literature of the Middle Ages. Join us as we solve the mysteries of the Middle Ages:
• Why it’s impossible to date Beowulf!
• What women want most!
• How to properly divide a fart!
• How to find the Green Chapel without GoogleMaps!
Catalog Description: Studies in prose and poetry of the Middle Ages, including Beowulf and works of the Pearl poet, Langland, and Malory.