La Porte High School - El Pe Yearbook (La Porte, IN)

Page 31 text:

Unique Course Selections Offered in Phase Electives Starting in fall of 197). the English Department of LaForte High School adopted the Phase Elective program Approximately 6) unique classes were available in Speech and English For the freshmen and sophomores the traditional single-semesters of Composition. Literature, and Speech were followed with sophomores choosing two speech courses Juniors chose four courses in Comp, and Lit. to meet their requirements, while seniors were not required to participate in the program to graduate The program was divided into two divisions. The lower division, which was meant to develop fundamental skills, was for students in ninth and tenth grades The upper division, for juniors and seniors, permitted the selection of a wide variety of courses. Contrary to the former one-semester class structure, each class was nine weeks long and was rated in difficulty from phase 1 to phase 5. Although the program brought about an extra burden upon teachers in scheduling and in setting up classes, the students appreciated the efforts of Shannon Rcffctt, his staff, and the administration for their diligent work The overhauling of the English Department has opened a door to students who can now combine English fundamentals and their own individual interests. 77

Page 30 text:

START!NO RIGHT. CLOCKWISE In Mi » Eviction'» tla»». Wallace B Stonier» relite» hi» rapenetvet of being black in our white society. while Grsdy Ellingcr buulr tike» note» Mr Skip Colbnt lectures to a Sport» Literature ilui at Lon Ohling and Ron Rosenbaum listen intentIv Bonnie Bailey pound» the gave! to call the meeting to order in Mr» Reffett’» Bonne» Communication» tiu The many late» id an English Un Get» Noguein. an AES trudent from Bran I. ALan Palmer. Mike Berlich. and Dan Fan find English a worthwhile course of trudv 26

Page 32 text:

English Develops a More Captivating Department The English Department added new dimensions to the program, aside from Phase Electives The department was busy all year introducing new teaching concepts and offering trips to further increase the knowledge of students. Separate from the regular Phase Elective programs, the Sophomore Composition- Literature classes gave sophomores a chance to prepare themselves for their junior and senior years of English. The classes were taught by the team of Mrs. Bums. Mrs. Shepard, and Mr Gierke, and offered students a study of world literature, coupled with composition, and the preparation of a short research paper. Students were given the opportunity to do various outside protects Many produced collages, while others showed their talents at rewriting stones into plays. For the first time, seniors were offered a chance to complete their freshman college English dunng first and second semesters. Being offered in conjunction with Purdue University, the courses were worth three hours of college credit. The classes, taught by Dr. Shannon Ref fett. met on Monday and Wednesday. The materials taught were comparably the same to that taught on campus. Once again this year, a trip was made to Stratford. Ontario, to attend the Stratford Shakespearean Festival. The group saw a production of PERICLES, as well as Molicre’s THE IMAGINARY INVAUD. Along with outside trips, the annual English Department fish fry was held on March 16th in the High School cafeteria. Innovating the Phase Elective Program, as well as offering every student the chance to become a better English student through many extra- curricular activities, made English a more interesting course of study 28