TESTIMONIALS
English Department Overview + Courses The English curriculum challenges students to use literature as a tool for discovering, understanding, analyzing, and evaluating self, society, national identities, and global responsibilities. Over the course of four years of English, our students engage with a diverse body of texts, with each grade level approaching the study of literature through a specific lens: • English 9 • English 10 • English 11 • English 12
Discovering Self through Literature Understanding Society through Literature Analyzing American Identities through Literature Evaluating Global Responsibility through Literature
In addition to this broad study of literature, there is a structured scope of formal writing assignments across all four grade levels, with an emphasis on the research process and critical analysis. Honors classes are offered on each of the grade levels, and the Advanced Placement Program provides juniors and seniors the opportunity to engage with an introductory-level college English curriculum. AP English Language and Composition (Grade 11) focuses on rhetorical analysis of non-fiction texts and the development of evidence-based analytical and argumentative writing, while AP English Literature and Composition (Grade 12) focuses on critical reading and analysis of poetry and fiction.
Advanced Placement As a result of the quality of instruction and personal attention that our AP students receive, they perform well above the state average, as indicated by our most recent AP test results: • AP Language and Composition - Juniors who took the exam in 2021 earned a mean score of 3.94 (compared to 2.98 for Maryland) with a 100% pass rate (compared to 61.8 for Maryland). • AP Literature and Composition - Seniors who took the exam in 2021 earned a mean score of 3.06 (compared to 2.5 for Maryland) with a 70.6% pass rate (compared to 46.1% for Maryland).
Faculty Matthew Blair, chair M.A., The Catholic University of America Allison Hall ’89 M.A., Notre Dame University of Maryland Hope Hemphill M.A., Loyola University of Maryland Hayley Howe M.A., Johns Hopkins University Lindsey McCumber ’14 B.A., University of Maryland, College Park Tara Milburn M.A.T., Monmouth University Lisa Schultz M.A., Notre Dame of Maryland University Christine Zurkowski M.A.T., McDaniel College Sherri Cook Woosley M.A. University of Maryland, College Park
I will always be grateful for the many different English classes I took at John Carroll. They all contributed something towards my writing that helped prepare me for writing in college, as well as define who I am as a writer. Pierce Berger ’19, University of Delaware
My English experience at John Carroll thrived in my senior year. A memorable novel was The Handmaid’s Tale, which really opened my mind to real-world issues that we face today. In our class, we had extensive discussions about power, social classes, and a variety of social issues. Ms. Howe taught us how to annotate and read for the deeper meaning. I have not only used these skills in my first-year English class at college, but I have used these skills in Sociology. We have a lot of passages that need to be annotated and interpreted for the true meaning. I feel as though I have been very well-prepared to write a thorough academic essay. Thanks to JC for how much they have done! Claudia Bruce ’19, Virginia Tech
At John Carroll, I learned to love English. It sounds cliché, but I truly did fall in love with the subject, especially poetry. In my senior year, I had Ms. Howe as a teacher and she really helped me view poetry in a much more beautiful way. Because of that English class, I gathered a great amount of appreciation for the subject; so much so, that it is now my major in college. In addition to that, the passion I saw in my English Department teachers pushed me to want to be a high school English teacher myself! Macy McFerren ’19, High Point University