English Education

Program Overview

About Our Programs

Our English Education programs are built around the concept that an English teacher’s first and foremost goal must be to encourage a lifelong love of reading and writing in students. As a teacher of English, you will be nurturing in students the skills of reading and writing, skills that are foundational to a productive and satisfying life.

We offer two programs in English education: an elementary program, Language Arts, and a secondary one, English Language and Literature. Each program pairs a literature track with a pedagogical one, providing you with a balanced training in content and in theory and practice. In the literature track, you will engage in the study of topics such as American literature, literature by diverse writers, composition theory, comics and film, grammar, and children’s and young adult literature. The education track provides you with the practical and pedagogical training to become an effective teacher. Each degree culminates in a senior project in which you conduct research on a topic of your choice and fieldwork in local schools.


English Language & Literature – Secondary Teaching

A major or minor for those wishing to certify to teach English to middle or high school students. As an English Language and Literature–Secondary Education major, you can take courses on YA Literature and visual texts such as graphic novels. You can learn how to publish your own future students’ work in student journals by working as an editing intern in the department or lead a community writing workshop. You’ll also get to practice your teaching skills in our 21st century learning environment.


see program catalog

Program Objectives

This program prepares you:

  • To become a critical thinker, being able to evaluate evidence in order to draw a reasoned and logical conclusion
  • To become an effective writer and communicator, being able to convey your ideas with clarity and persuasion
  • To become a successful teacher, being able to practice pedagogical methods to effectively guide students in their learning experience

Program Learning Outcomes

  • Written and verbal communication
  • Critical thinking
  • Creative thinking
  • Global learning
  • Research and analysis

Degree Requirements

A minimum of 124 credits (at the 100 level or higher) must be earned for graduation with a cumulative gpa of 2.70 or higher.  A gpa of 2.70 or higher is required in your Major, and a gpa of 2.00 or higher is required in your General Education Requirements.

Job Outlook

$59,170

English Teacher Median Salary

First-Year Writing Program

Welcome to the Lake Superior State University First-Year Writing Program website! We offer three classes, ENGL 110 First-Year Composition I, ENGL 105 First-Year Composition Workshop, and ENGL 111 First-Year Composition II. Below is a brief introduction to our placement policy, followed by answers to frequently asked questions about our program.

English Directed Self-Placement

At Lake State, all students may sign up for ENGL 110 First-Year Composition I (3) and begin earning college credit their very first semester in English. Incoming students have three choices when selecting an ENGL 110 section:

  • Honors sections of ENGL 110 meet three hours a week. These sections are open to students who have been accepted into the Honors Program. English majors or other students with a particular talent for reading and writing may also wish to seek instructor permission to sign up for an Honors section. Honors sections are smaller than traditional sections and help you get to know other honors students or English majors.
  • Traditional sections of ENGL 110 meet three hours a week. These sections are open to students who feel prepared to write college-level papers independently.
  • Workshop sections of ENGL 110 meet three hours a week in a traditional classroom plus two hours a week in a computer lab for ENGL 105. During ENGL 105, you will meet with your ENGL 110 professor to work on ENGL 110 writing assignments. Workshop sections are open to students who expect to need assistance learning how to write college-level papers.

Research shows that a range of factors must be considered in order to predict whether you are ready to take ENGL 110 without the workshop. Some of these factors are writing and reading experience, self-confidence as a writer and reader, high-school GPA, proofreading ability, and understanding of grammar. Many universities force students with low test scores or low GPAs to take college prep courses that do not count toward graduation. At Lake State, ENGL 105 is for credit, and taking it is your choice.

Frequently Asked Questions

First-Year Composition I introduces you to the discipline of writing through an exploration of your own writing processes and products. In this course, you will learn to think critically about your own writing and address issues of coherence, grammar, mechanics, organization, clarity, and content. You will also consider the role of literacy in society, the ways in which readers engage text, and the role of writing at the college level.

ENGL 105 is a co-requisite skill-building course that you can take at the same time as ENGL 110. It is limited to 10-11 students per section and meets two hours a week in a computer lab. During workshop hours, you will consult with your ENGL 110 professor and your classmates to write and receive individualized feedback on ENGL 110 writing assignments. You will learn to write clearly, proofread your own work, practice effective peer-editing strategies, improve writing self-confidence, and independently apply the writing process, with emphasis on development, revision, editing for clarity and meaning, and proofreading final products.

In deciding whether to add ENGL 105 to your schedule, you should consider a range of factors. Standardized tests alone cannot predict whether students are ready to take English 110 without help. ENGL 110 is designed for the student who agrees with five or more of the following statements:

  • I regularly read the news and other periodicals, such as magazines.
  • I read biographies, novels, story collections, comics, or poetry for fun.
  • I wrote 3 or more essays per year in high school.
  • I wrote a research paper in high school.
  • I see myself as a good reader and writer.
  • My ACT English score was 18 or above, or my new SAT Writing and Language Arts was 25 or higher.
  • My high school GPA was above a 3.0.
  • I earned As or Bs in all of my high school English courses.
  • I understand the rules of grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.
  • I am good at proofreading my work.

If you agree with five or fewer of these statements, consider choosing a workshop section with an affiliated ENGL 105 section and adding both to your schedule.

  • If you want to register for an honors section, look for a section with an “H” in the section number (e.g., ENGL 110-H01).
    • Acceptance into the Honors Program or Honors Director permission is required. For permission, contact Dr. Jason Swedene, [email protected].
  • If you want to register for a traditional section, look for a section with no “W” in the section number (e.g. ENGL 110-001).
  • If you want to register for a workshop section, look for an ENGL 110 and 105 pair with matching “W” section numbers (e.g. ENGL 110-0W1 and ENGL 105-0W1).
    • Please note that to register for an ENGL 110/105 pair, you must sign up for an ENGL 110-0W section and the matching ENGL 105-0W section simultaneously (e.g., if you register for ENGL 110-0W1, you must also enter the CRN for ENGL 105-0W1). Otherwise, you will get an error message.
  • Copy down the CRNs for the sections you want. Enter them into the registration screen in Anchor Access.
  • Questions? Contact Mary McMyne, Chair ([email protected], X2327) or Jillena Rose, Administrative Head ([email protected], X2091).

By the end of the first-year composition program, you must be prepared to independently find and evaluate sources, conduct academic research, and write papers of ten or more pages using a recursive writing process. Some students are ready to do this after six credits of study. Others take eight. Ultimately, first-year composition courses are intended to prepare you for success with the sort of advanced writing assignments required in upper-level courses at Lake State, such as research papers, case study analyses, critical analyses, case studies, annotated bibliographies, reviews of the literature, and senior theses.

First-Year Composition II prepares you for the complex demands of academic literacy and research. These require you to be able to critically observe personal and public knowledge; ask questions of reading and research; formulate hypotheses; design and conduct research projects, both in the library and in the field; and identify further avenues of inquiry. To help you develop these abilities, the course also teaches the basic skills of analysis, interpretation, critical thinking, and documentation. Required coursework includes completion of an extended 10-page research project. Prerequisite: C or higher in ENGL 110.

Acknowledgments

The LSSU Department of English would like to thank Royer and Gilles, authors of the article “Directed Self-Placement: An Attitude of Orientation” in College Composition & Communication, and Nicola Blake, author of “Embedded Remediation: A New Paradigm” in NADE Digest, for their important contributions to the field of composition pedagogy.

First-Year Writing Program Post-Test

How Have Your Beliefs About Writing Changed?

Complete and submit the following form, reflecting upon what you have learned in ENGL 110 and ENGL 111.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
ex: A00012345
Rate yourself on the following statements.

Please fill out this survey honestly and thoughtfully. (1 = Do not agree, 3 = Neutral, 5 = Agree )

I understand the writing process.*
I can develop and organize an essay effectively.*
I read, regularly and closely, for enjoyment or interest.*
I understand the conventions of grammar.*
I am good at proofreading my own work.*
I know how to use sources with academic integrity.*

Select Yes or No for the following statements.

I regularly read the news and other periodicals, such as magazines.*
I read biographies, novels, story collections, comics, or poetry for fun.*
I see myself as a good reader and writer.*
I understand the rules of grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.*
I am good at proofreading my work.*