Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Summer 2025 - EDUC 412W E100

Designs for Learning: Secondary Language Arts (4)

Class Number: 4359

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    May 12 – Aug 8, 2025: Wed, 4:30–8:20 p.m.
    Surrey

  • Prerequisites:

    EDUC 401/402 or corequisite EDUC 403.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Focuses on teaching secondary school language arts and addresses aspects of the theory and practice of language arts education. Students examine their own thinking about language arts education through critical reflection, work with the prescribed curriculum, and explore various ways to develop engaging learning experiences for young adults within a consistent framework using appropriate instructional materials and methods. Writing.

COURSE DETAILS:

Being an English languge arts teacher has changed markedly over the last decade. Courses such as Spoken Langauge and New Media, which were created in the most recent curriculum revison, (2016-2018) broadened curricular focus beyond print-based texts. The English First Peoples courses have come to constitue the primary means of addressing the newly revised graduation requirements (2022/2023) for Indigenous-focused coursework. The ubiqitousness of Gen AI has fundamentally altered the purview of the English Langauge Arts teacher, as novels and plays can be summarized and essays, stories, and journal entries can be created in moments. Each of these recent changes in the English language arts classroom have created generative curricular and pedagogical opportunities as well as significant unknowns for pre-service and in-service teachers alike. This course will focus on developing understandings and dispositions to construct an engaging and engaged secondary language arts program that is aligned with the revised curriculum and shifting technologies. Critical issues in language arts education will be examined, including the nature of literature, the efficacy of inquiry, the complexity of censorship, the politics of canonicity, and work of anti-colonial approaches to the classroom.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

Throughout the course, students will:

  • Develop a greater understanding of critical issues in designing language English Language Arts curriculum.
  • Develop a greater understanding of assessment practices in the context of English Language Arts.
  • Develop greater familiarity with and fluency in the current 8-12 English Language Arts curriculum.

Grading

  • One analytical response paper 20%
  • One analytical or arts-based response paper 25%
  • Annotated Secondary Language Arts Unit Plan 35%
  • Class Participation* 20%

NOTES:

*Class participation

Please note that weekly attendance and self-assessment will be taken into account in determining this grade.

REQUIREMENTS:

There is no final exam for this course.

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

Beach, R., Appleman, D., Fecho, B., Simon, R. (2021). Teaching Literature to Adolescents (Fourth ed.). New York: Routledge.
ISBN: 9780367366209

RECOMMENDED READING:

Additional readings will be provided via Canvas.

REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.

To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit: 


RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.