English Department Goals 2024-25

Updated by Debbie Nishihama || English Department Chair || July 2024

The English Department is committed to creating an environment that promotes curiosity, upholds the pursuit of truth, and values integrity through excellent teaching, scholarly pursuits, and exceptional service.

Our objective is to equip ALL students with the skills to think, innovate, and communicate effectively. Language is an essential tool for accomplishing this objective.

In support of Connecting Waters Charter Schools’ Mission Statement, the English Department’s goals are to

• inspire an appreciation of the prolific history of the English language through the survey and analysis of a wide range of texts.
• encourage independent thought, curiosity, critical thinking, and problem-solving.
• teach students how to gather, analyze, and communicate information effectively and appropriately in writing and speaking.
• cultivate and improve communication skills through active engagement in various activities that honor different learning styles. 
• engage students in the learning process cooperatively and independently in preparation for college and the workforce.
• promote active engagement in the reading and writing process, encouraging students to collaborate, discuss, and reflect on varied texts and their writing.
• equip our students to read and write creatively and critically in diverse cultural and literary traditions.

Writing ||

Students will

• produce clear and coherent pieces of literary,  informative, argumentative, analytical, and narrative writing,
• develop and strengthen their writing through planning, revising, editing, and rewriting.
• utilize the Internet responsibly for research and the development of original written communication.
• create a compelling and captivating writing voice.
• synthesize a variety of themes between text and genres.  

Reading || 

Students will

• analyze the author’s literary and rhetorical strategies in fiction and nonfiction writing.
• determine the universal (central) ideas, literal and figurative meaning, and author’s point of view in literary and informational texts.
• evaluate the author’s purpose.

Speaking/Listening || 

Students will 

• initiate and participate in a range of collaborative discussions.
• evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning.
• present information, findings, and supporting evidence concisely and logically so listeners can follow the reasoning. 
• listen to learn as opposed to waiting for their turn to speak.

Technology ||

Students will

• harness technology and information skills to enhance their reading, writing, and research capabilities, with a strong emphasis on the ethical use of information. This includes mastering proper citation and eliminating plagiarism.
• integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally), evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source.
• strategically use digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest