The English Department at Pacific American School is dedicated to equipping students with the critical skills needed for success in top-tier university programs and beyond. Through a robust and comprehensive curriculum, we cultivate advanced literacy, analytical thinking, and effective communication, ensuring our students are prepared for academic challenges and real-world applications.
Our program emphasizes both foundational and advanced writing skills, offering separate classes for literature and expository writing. Students focus on sentence-level revision and advanced composition techniques while mastering research fundamentals and research-based writing. To further enrich their academic journey, students have the opportunity to take AP Research, AP Seminar, and AP English Language and Composition, honing their abilities in evidence-based argumentation and inquiry.
The literature curriculum is crafted to inspire critical thinking, align with Common Core standards, and nurture intellectual curiosity. We utilize a spiral approach, where key concepts are introduced at increasingly sophisticated levels, allowing students to engage with texts and ideas in depth. This structure encourages students to refine their analytical and interpretive skills, ensuring they develop a nuanced understanding of literature.
We believe that literature is transformative—offering students a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them. It serves as a gateway for exploring diverse cultures, historical contexts, and philosophical ideas, helping students connect their own experiences to universal themes and timeless human questions.
In our commitment to enhancing communication, the English Department offers specialized courses and extracurricular programs such as Public Speaking, Speech and Debate, Model United Nation, and the Olympiad Linguistics Club. These opportunities enable students to develop strong oral communication skills, build confidence in expressing ideas, and engage in thoughtful, persuasive discourse.
Studying literature and communication enables students to gain insights into the lives and experiences of others across different times, places, and cultures, fostering empathy and cultural awareness. This aligns with our broader mission of shaping students into globally-minded citizens who can engage thoughtfully, respectfully, and compassionately with the world. By developing these essential qualities, students are equipped to contribute meaningfully to society and engage with the diverse, interconnected global community.
At PAS, the English Department empowers students to become confident readers, skilled writers, and critical thinkers, providing them with the tools to succeed in higher education and make lasting contributions to the global community.
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