The English Major with Teaching Concentration (40 hours) offers students a clearly-articulated curriculum leading to state licensure in teaching English. (Students must also declare a second major in Secondary Education in the Education Department, which is an additional 33 hours.) The Teaching Concentration has a core of 24 hours in literature that has been adapted to licensure requirements and common secondary education teaching experiences. Beyond the core, students take up a specialized curriculum that includes courses in Young Adult Literature, Methods for Teaching Middle School English, Methods for Teaching High School English, and Teaching Writing. Each student will be individually mentored by one of the members of the English Department who has previously taught at the secondary level.
In addition to the 40 hours in English, students must also meet specific certification requirements. See the Education Department section of the catalog for additional information.
Requirements
Note: These are new requirements that will apply to incoming new majors effective Fall 2022. Please contact us at english@wheaton.edu if you have questions.
Foundational Courses (12 hours)
| ENGL 155: | Reading Writers: Introduction to Literary Studies |
| or ENGL 156: | Reading Writers: Introduction to Literary Studies (Shakespeare) |
| or: | any 100-level ENGL course with an LE tag |
| ENGL 215: | Literary Traditions through Time: Classical and Early British |
| ENGL 221: | Contemporary Literary Conversations |
Historical Contest and Deeper Focus Courses (12 hours)
Select 4 credits each from two categories: 18th—19th centuries and 20th—21st centuries.
Select 4 additional credits from any of the categories. Note: if the student has not taken ENGL 156, those additional 4 credits must be used for Shakespeare (ENGL 463).
Pre-18th century |
|||
| ENGL 329: | Old English Language and Literature | ||
| ENGL 331: | Medieval Literature | ||
| ENGL 336: | Renaissance | ||
| ENGL 337: | Seventeenth-Century Literature | ||
18th and 19th centuries |
|||
| ENGL 338: | Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Literature | ||
| ENGL 341: | Early American Literature | ||
| ENGL 352: | Transatlantic Crossroads in Modern Literature | ||
| ENGL 355: | The Romantic Period | ||
| ENGL 361: | Victorian Literature | ||
20th and 21st centuries |
|||
| ENGL 342: | American Modernism/Global Modernism | ||
| ENGL 343: | American Literature after 1945 | ||
| ENGL 344: | Diverse Traditions in 20th-Century American Literature | ||
| ENGL 364: | British Modernism 1900-1939 | ||
| ENGL 365: | British Literature after 1939 | ||
| ENGL 366: | British Black and Asian Literature | ||
| ENGL 367: | Postcolonial Literature | ||
| ENGL 371: | Modern European Literature | ||
Genre |
|||
| ENGL 421: | Studies in Literary Genre | ||
| ENGL 422: | Romance | ||
| ENGL 423: | World Drama | ||
| ENGL 424: | Science Fiction (2) | ||
| ENGL 425: | Fairy Tales (2) | ||
| ENGL 426: | Children's Literature | ||
| ENGL 427: | Young Adult Literature | ||
| ENGL 428: | Magical Realis Literature and Film | ||
| ENGL 431: | Christianity and Fantasy | ||
Exploration |
|||
| ENGL 415: | The Archeology of Texts: Bibliographical Investigation | ||
| ENGL 433: | Varied Literary Topics (2 or 4 Credits) | ||
| ENGL 434: | Modern Literary Theory | ||
| ENGL 435: | History of Literary Criticism | ||
| ENGL 442: | History of the English Language | ||
| ENGL 443: | Literature of the Bible | ||
| ENGL 444: | Christianity and Crime | ||
| ENGL 445: | Literature and Place | ||
| ENGL 446: | Advanced Research and Writing | ||
| ENGW 471: | Teaching Writing | ||
Author |
|||
| ENGL 388: | Jane Austen in Her Time and Ours | ||
| ENGL 461: | Selected Authors (2 credits) | ||
| ENGL 462: | Selected Authors (4 credits) | ||
| ENGL 463: | Shakespeare | ||
| ENGL 469: | C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien | ||
| ENGL 471: | Emily Dickinson | ||
| ENGL 472: | Herman Melville | ||
| ENGL 473: | Louisa May Alcott | ||
| ENGL 474: | T.S. Eliot | ||
| ENGL 475: | William Carlos Williams and Wallace Stevens | ||
| ENGL 476: | Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes | ||
| ENGL 477: | Flannery O'Connor | ||
| ENGL 478: | James Baldwin | ||
| ENGL 481: | Corma McCarthy | ||
| ENGL 482: | David Foster Wallace | ||
| ENGL 483: | Achebe and Adichie | ||
| ENGL 485: | Studies in Wade Center/Special Collections Authors (2 Credits) | ||
| ENGL 486: | Studies in Wade Center/Special Collections Authors (4 Credits) | ||
Teaching Concentration (16 Hours)
| Topical courses required for certification | |
|---|---|
| ENGL 427: | Young Adult Literature |
| Methods / Pedagogy courses required for certification (these courses must be taken before student teaching) | |
| (Note: ENG 324 and ENG 325 are co-requisites and must be taken concurrently.) | |
| ENG 324: | Methods of Teaching High School English (2 hours)--Offered in spring semester only. |
| ENG 325: | Methods of Teaching Middle School English (2 hours)--Offered in spring semester only. |
| ENGW 471: | Teaching Writing--Offered in fall semester only. |
| Integrative Senior Seminar | |
| ENGL 494: | Senior Seminar in English |
Total Credits: 40
“The Teaching Concentration focuses on the intersection between interpreting texts and helping students learn. It pushes me not only to sharpen my own interpretive skills but also to help others hone theirs. In my practica at local middle schools, I've begun to help students see how their "real life" experiences relate to the stories and other texts they read. I've begun to help them express what they see in writing. It's been a joy to see students experiencing the treasures of literature and communication. By beginning that process before I graduate, I'm better equipped for teaching in the future. I'm also confident that the Teaching Concentration has helped me prepare for pastoral ministry, which so often consists of helping people find their place in the story of Jesus.”