Courses
At THHS, all students take at least five English courses across their four years of study. In freshman year, students take two classes: Ninth Grade English and Writing Process. After freshman year, students must take one English course a year, culminating in the Senior Humanities Seminar at Queens College. All course from grades 10-12, however, are "selectivized." This means that they are mandatory courses, but students can choose what theme or topic they want to study each year. Below is a list of all the courses currently offered.
As a result of students having a wide variety of course options from sophomore to senior year, there is no set text list that all students must read in order to graduate from THHS. However, teachers use a guide created by the English Department to ensure that there is some level of coordination and shared expectations with regard to reading lists. This department encourages teachers and students to experiment with new texts and topics, so the text guide is more a series of potential readings than a required reading list. However, the below guide will offer a window into the type of texts students will encounter at different grade levels.
As a result of students having a wide variety of course options from sophomore to senior year, there is no set text list that all students must read in order to graduate from THHS. However, teachers use a guide created by the English Department to ensure that there is some level of coordination and shared expectations with regard to reading lists. This department encourages teachers and students to experiment with new texts and topics, so the text guide is more a series of potential readings than a required reading list. However, the below guide will offer a window into the type of texts students will encounter at different grade levels.
Freshman Year
English 9
This course introduces students to the fundamentals of literary study. Through exploring a mixture of assigned and independent readings, students develop crucial skills in close reading. Though all sections explore world mythology and excerpts from Homer's Odyssey, freshman teachers draw upon student interest and their own areas of interest to develop unique, engaging text lists.
Writing Process
This course introduces students to the fundamentals of writing that inform all coursework at Townsend Harris. Students study and experiment in a variety of writing forms (such as analytical, argumentative, personal, research-based and more). All freshman take this course.
This course introduces students to the fundamentals of writing that inform all coursework at Townsend Harris. Students study and experiment in a variety of writing forms (such as analytical, argumentative, personal, research-based and more). All freshman take this course.
These are two separate courses. Freshmen experience English 9 and Writing Process in a daily, 100-minute double block, featuring the same teacher for both courses.
Sophomore Year Selectives
Selectives are English classes unified by a theme. Sophomores at THHS choose a selective from below as their regular English class for the year, not as an elective.
A Coming of Age Tale: Contemporary Literature
This course will introduce a few coming of age novels that relate to the very issues sophomores are often facing at this point in their lives. Each narrative speaks to the characters’ quest for an adult identity, which is influenced by their cultural and religious backgrounds. This course is designed to give students the opportunity to explore their own voices and the cultural stories that shape their individual identities.
This course will introduce a few coming of age novels that relate to the very issues sophomores are often facing at this point in their lives. Each narrative speaks to the characters’ quest for an adult identity, which is influenced by their cultural and religious backgrounds. This course is designed to give students the opportunity to explore their own voices and the cultural stories that shape their individual identities.
All the World's a Stage
When we think of theater today, top Broadway hits such as Hamilton, The Lion King, and Dear Evan Hansen come to mind. These popular shows, however, represent only a sliver of the full realm of theatrical possibilities. From Puppet Theater in China to Realistic Theater in Eastern Europe, this course will examine varied forms of theatrical expression from around the globe, opening our eyes to new perspectives in a way only performance can.
When we think of theater today, top Broadway hits such as Hamilton, The Lion King, and Dear Evan Hansen come to mind. These popular shows, however, represent only a sliver of the full realm of theatrical possibilities. From Puppet Theater in China to Realistic Theater in Eastern Europe, this course will examine varied forms of theatrical expression from around the globe, opening our eyes to new perspectives in a way only performance can.
To fully engage with these theatrical forms, we will periodically view performances, both in-person and via recording. Additionally, we will work as a class to stage our own performances, providing all students with ample opportunity to discover their preferred avenue of creative expression, whether that's acting, directing, set design, tech design, costuming, or multimedia promotion. There will also be numerous opportunities for students to develop their skills in dramatic writing, either by writing plays or by applying what they learn from plays to other forms of creative writing.
As this course will serve as your sophomore English course, we will also cover a variety of other genres as we travel the globe, including novels, films, poetry, paintings, and nonfiction. Thus, by the end of the year, not only will you have been exposed to all the required content and skills of sophomore English, but you will have also had the unique opportunity to explore global perspectives and experience the true joy of working with your peers on a variety of theatrical projects in a role of your choosing.
(THHSWA - Drama)
Everyone’s a Critic
In recent years, the growth of streaming services has led to a remarkable expansion in storytelling. This, in turn, has led to an increase in demand for commentary that helps viewers analyze, evaluate, and debate what they choose to watch. This course will be focused, in part, on learning how to write and think about the world of art and entertainment around us. That’s not to say that students must write about the latest show streaming on Netflix, but they could if they choose to do so. They could also create commentary on video games, music, theater, comics, anime, etc. The focus is not so much on what we comment upon but how. Students will begin learning how to write strong reviews and commentaries by choosing a genre to focus upon for class readings. From there, students might work on reviewing the books they choose to independently read (our class will come equipped with a classroom library), they might develop a podcast about a new Marvel series, they might create video game walkthroughs for YouTube; whatever they choose, the goal will be to learn how to produce polished, insightful commentary in ways that appeal to audiences. Students will be encouraged to create professional work for publication (they will be able to submit their work to the arts section of the school newspaper for review by student editors).
In recent years, the growth of streaming services has led to a remarkable expansion in storytelling. This, in turn, has led to an increase in demand for commentary that helps viewers analyze, evaluate, and debate what they choose to watch. This course will be focused, in part, on learning how to write and think about the world of art and entertainment around us. That’s not to say that students must write about the latest show streaming on Netflix, but they could if they choose to do so. They could also create commentary on video games, music, theater, comics, anime, etc. The focus is not so much on what we comment upon but how. Students will begin learning how to write strong reviews and commentaries by choosing a genre to focus upon for class readings. From there, students might work on reviewing the books they choose to independently read (our class will come equipped with a classroom library), they might develop a podcast about a new Marvel series, they might create video game walkthroughs for YouTube; whatever they choose, the goal will be to learn how to produce polished, insightful commentary in ways that appeal to audiences. Students will be encouraged to create professional work for publication (they will be able to submit their work to the arts section of the school newspaper for review by student editors).
In the past, writers from this course earned press credentials to cover arts & entertainment stories. Working with studios like Warner Brothers, Universal Studios, and The Walt Disney Company, we were able to gain access as film critics to see movies at screenings before they came out and review them in advance. The Classic’s Operation Tomatometer film review podcast has renewed those press credentials, and students in this course will be invited to help continue producing it. We should also seek out other experiences: Broadway shows, television premieres, art exhibit openings, and more. We will set ambitious goals: gaining access to film premieres, press junkets, covering Fashion Week, getting smart phones in advance for review, and more. Throughout this process students will experiment with developing their skills as a critic; they will also work on making connections with professionals and building an audience within and beyond the Townsend Harris community.
(THHSWA - Journalism)
(THHSWA - Journalism)
I ♥ NYC, A Love Letter
This is a course dedicated to those who would like to spend more time learning about our great city and then express their love creatively. Throughout the year, students engage our city through a variety of ways: books, films, music, history, trips, art, and even food. Students will be continually asking themselves questions such as: What does it mean to be a New Yorker? Why is everyone attracted to NYC? How has it changed over time?
This is a course dedicated to those who would like to spend more time learning about our great city and then express their love creatively. Throughout the year, students engage our city through a variety of ways: books, films, music, history, trips, art, and even food. Students will be continually asking themselves questions such as: What does it mean to be a New Yorker? Why is everyone attracted to NYC? How has it changed over time?
Reboots, Remakes and Ripoffs
“There is nothing new under the sun,” so goes the saying. Nowhere is this clearer than in our current media landscape. Modern storytelling is full of reboots, remakes and ripoffs of earlier stories, to varying degrees of success. The recent success of shows like Wednesday and long awaited sequels like Top Gun and Avatar owe much to the demands of modern culture to reinvent stories from the twentieth century for a contemporary audience. Literature is also full of reboots; Homer rebooted the myths of his predecessors, Shakespeare rebooted the histories of the ancients, and far too many, in turn, have ripped off Shakespeare. This course will examine how stories get told and retold in different settings and genres. We will look at how classical works and historical events are retold for a modern audience, what gets translated and what is lost to the cutting room floor of time. We will ask the questions: Why are people drawn to remake certain stories over and over again? What changes are made for a modern audience, particularly in regards to race, sexual orientation or gender? Why do these stories still resonate with us? Are there certain narratives that seem central to humanity? In addition, students interested in creative writing will be offered various chances to reboot stories themselves in a variety of genres, with the potential for publication in The Starling Press. Text titles range from Twelfth Night, She’s the Man, Emma, Clueless, Fangirl, The Color Purple, Fun Home, Little Women, Speak and others.
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
“There is nothing new under the sun,” so goes the saying. Nowhere is this clearer than in our current media landscape. Modern storytelling is full of reboots, remakes and ripoffs of earlier stories, to varying degrees of success. The recent success of shows like Wednesday and long awaited sequels like Top Gun and Avatar owe much to the demands of modern culture to reinvent stories from the twentieth century for a contemporary audience. Literature is also full of reboots; Homer rebooted the myths of his predecessors, Shakespeare rebooted the histories of the ancients, and far too many, in turn, have ripped off Shakespeare. This course will examine how stories get told and retold in different settings and genres. We will look at how classical works and historical events are retold for a modern audience, what gets translated and what is lost to the cutting room floor of time. We will ask the questions: Why are people drawn to remake certain stories over and over again? What changes are made for a modern audience, particularly in regards to race, sexual orientation or gender? Why do these stories still resonate with us? Are there certain narratives that seem central to humanity? In addition, students interested in creative writing will be offered various chances to reboot stories themselves in a variety of genres, with the potential for publication in The Starling Press. Text titles range from Twelfth Night, She’s the Man, Emma, Clueless, Fangirl, The Color Purple, Fun Home, Little Women, Speak and others.
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
Wherever You Go, There You Are
Do you believe in fate? Do we each have an inescapable destiny? Maybe. But what if our fate is inescapable only if we refuse to look within ourselves at the patterns in our lives and the circumstances that have shaped them? Perhaps fate is just the force within that we are unaware of, pushing us in its own direction-- until, that is, we begin paying attention, and only then might we have free will. In this course we will be exploring how characters come to understand who they are and how they became that way, as well as what happens when they refuse to acknowledge reality as something that they co-create. This will inevitably lead to you taking a look within and around yourself, getting acquainted with your “shadow,” and increasing your capacity for self-reflection and understanding the role you play in your own life, and your fate. We will analyze the paths characters take, and what they do to have more ownership in their lives in works such as Oedipus Rex, Back to the Future (film), Fahrenheit 451, The Shadow Hero, and The Wizard of Oz (film).
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
Do you believe in fate? Do we each have an inescapable destiny? Maybe. But what if our fate is inescapable only if we refuse to look within ourselves at the patterns in our lives and the circumstances that have shaped them? Perhaps fate is just the force within that we are unaware of, pushing us in its own direction-- until, that is, we begin paying attention, and only then might we have free will. In this course we will be exploring how characters come to understand who they are and how they became that way, as well as what happens when they refuse to acknowledge reality as something that they co-create. This will inevitably lead to you taking a look within and around yourself, getting acquainted with your “shadow,” and increasing your capacity for self-reflection and understanding the role you play in your own life, and your fate. We will analyze the paths characters take, and what they do to have more ownership in their lives in works such as Oedipus Rex, Back to the Future (film), Fahrenheit 451, The Shadow Hero, and The Wizard of Oz (film).
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
Junior Year AP English Selectives
Selectives are English classes unified by a theme. Juniors at THHS choose an Advanced Placement selective from below as their regular English class for the year, not as an elective.
AP English Language and Composition: Framing Femininity: Gender, Power, and Media
This course is designed to foster creative and critical thinking skills through the study and application of rhetoric and feminist literary theory. There will be lively discussions about many gender related controversial issues including: feminism, the B-word, #MeToo, toxic masculinity, parenting, abortion, marriage, stereotypes, Disney princesses, women’s “crazy” emotions, and so much more. You will develop the skills necessary to examine different kinds of media from essays, to articles, to speeches, to satire, to advertisements, to songs, to film and television. We will synthesize these diverse sources to come to conclusions about our culture and our common human experience. You will analyze a variety of texts that are of literary, historical and cultural significance from a feminist lens to examine the social norms depicted in the texts and the relevance these texts have to our lives today. The clear communication of your ideas and experiences is essential to this class. You will improve your ability to craft sophisticated written and verbal arguments. You will closely analyze works of rhetorical genius and master the strategies modeled in the texts so that you can wield them to argue a position effectively. After the AP exam, we will focus on writing college personal essays so that you have an essay that you love before your fall college deadlines (and all the stress of the application process).
11th (THHSWA - Journalism)
This course is designed to foster creative and critical thinking skills through the study and application of rhetoric and feminist literary theory. There will be lively discussions about many gender related controversial issues including: feminism, the B-word, #MeToo, toxic masculinity, parenting, abortion, marriage, stereotypes, Disney princesses, women’s “crazy” emotions, and so much more. You will develop the skills necessary to examine different kinds of media from essays, to articles, to speeches, to satire, to advertisements, to songs, to film and television. We will synthesize these diverse sources to come to conclusions about our culture and our common human experience. You will analyze a variety of texts that are of literary, historical and cultural significance from a feminist lens to examine the social norms depicted in the texts and the relevance these texts have to our lives today. The clear communication of your ideas and experiences is essential to this class. You will improve your ability to craft sophisticated written and verbal arguments. You will closely analyze works of rhetorical genius and master the strategies modeled in the texts so that you can wield them to argue a position effectively. After the AP exam, we will focus on writing college personal essays so that you have an essay that you love before your fall college deadlines (and all the stress of the application process).
11th (THHSWA - Journalism)
AP English Language and Composition: The Rhetoric of Love: Examining the Portrayal of Love in Classic and Contemporary Literature
Love, as the Ancient Greeks defined it, is one of the most basic needs, expressed in a myriad of ways, with the power to fill and shape our lives. It is instinctual -- a natural inclination to love and be loved. In this introductory, college-level course, students will have an opportunity to examine this vital aspect of the human experience, to explore the evolution of dating, the institution of marriage, the concept of divorce (and all that comes before and in between – meet cutes, talking, situationships, shacking and engagement) in the context of classic and contemporary literature.
Love, as the Ancient Greeks defined it, is one of the most basic needs, expressed in a myriad of ways, with the power to fill and shape our lives. It is instinctual -- a natural inclination to love and be loved. In this introductory, college-level course, students will have an opportunity to examine this vital aspect of the human experience, to explore the evolution of dating, the institution of marriage, the concept of divorce (and all that comes before and in between – meet cutes, talking, situationships, shacking and engagement) in the context of classic and contemporary literature.
AP English Language and Composition: Hello Cruel World
What on Earth is wrong with people? Why do people engage in acts of cruelty? Why do those same people often think that what they are doing is actually pretty good? Through literature and an exploration of humanity's worst moments in history and current events, join us on a journey to discover why people still haven't figured out how to be kind. We will take a look at instances of cruelty in literature and the real world, and try to make sense of it all. Ultimately, you'll research a real-world instance of man's inhumanity to man of your choosing. Why do people make the world worse? How can reading and writing possibly make it better?
What on Earth is wrong with people? Why do people engage in acts of cruelty? Why do those same people often think that what they are doing is actually pretty good? Through literature and an exploration of humanity's worst moments in history and current events, join us on a journey to discover why people still haven't figured out how to be kind. We will take a look at instances of cruelty in literature and the real world, and try to make sense of it all. Ultimately, you'll research a real-world instance of man's inhumanity to man of your choosing. Why do people make the world worse? How can reading and writing possibly make it better?
AP English Literature and Composition: First Generation (Stories of Identity, Culture, and Belonging)
Description: American literature is full of stories about characters who could have walked the halls of Townsend Harris High School. This course will explore narratives about immigrant experiences, particularly by exploring cultures that largely make up our school community. Students will analyze these narratives in novels, music, and television, and explore their own identities by working throughout the year to craft a series of personal narratives that can be transformed into personal statements for college admissions. Through the Lambda Literary Writers in Schools program, students will have the opportunity to meet published authors. Past author visits have included G.M. Johnson, Mitali Perkins, Camryn Garrett, Mark Oshiro, and Soraya Palmer. Previous creative writing experience with the Starling Press or the Phoenix is not required; any rising juniors interested in the subject matter can select this course.
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
Description: American literature is full of stories about characters who could have walked the halls of Townsend Harris High School. This course will explore narratives about immigrant experiences, particularly by exploring cultures that largely make up our school community. Students will analyze these narratives in novels, music, and television, and explore their own identities by working throughout the year to craft a series of personal narratives that can be transformed into personal statements for college admissions. Through the Lambda Literary Writers in Schools program, students will have the opportunity to meet published authors. Past author visits have included G.M. Johnson, Mitali Perkins, Camryn Garrett, Mark Oshiro, and Soraya Palmer. Previous creative writing experience with the Starling Press or the Phoenix is not required; any rising juniors interested in the subject matter can select this course.
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
AP English Literature and Composition: They Are Out There
This course will focus upon literature wherein characters combat forces of domination and control. We will be analyzing novels, poetry, plays, documentaries, and music lyrics that explore our relationships with societal structures built to oppress its citizens. Relatedly, we will examine characters who toil with inner demons of supremacy and oppression. Humankind’s struggle with monastic, political, corporate, and social assimilation has been decried by authors for centuries leaving us with a panorama of literary and correlated materials. In order to strengthen critical thinking when reading a text, we will be studying a range of critical perspectives. Think of each of these critical perspectives as a lens through which you can look at a piece of writing. Each offers a divergent view and produces a different kind of textual understanding. These types of criticism include reader-response, formalism, historical, biographical, psychoanalytic, archetypal, Marxist, feminist, race, queer, and ecocriticism. This course will improve your writing by honing organizational skills such as essay structure, and bolstering your ability to write about a text from a variety of viewpoints. Close reading of an author’s craft regarding literary elements and techniques promises development of your ability in analyzing works of fiction and non-fiction. They are out there, but how have characters handled them? How will you handle them?
This course will focus upon literature wherein characters combat forces of domination and control. We will be analyzing novels, poetry, plays, documentaries, and music lyrics that explore our relationships with societal structures built to oppress its citizens. Relatedly, we will examine characters who toil with inner demons of supremacy and oppression. Humankind’s struggle with monastic, political, corporate, and social assimilation has been decried by authors for centuries leaving us with a panorama of literary and correlated materials. In order to strengthen critical thinking when reading a text, we will be studying a range of critical perspectives. Think of each of these critical perspectives as a lens through which you can look at a piece of writing. Each offers a divergent view and produces a different kind of textual understanding. These types of criticism include reader-response, formalism, historical, biographical, psychoanalytic, archetypal, Marxist, feminist, race, queer, and ecocriticism. This course will improve your writing by honing organizational skills such as essay structure, and bolstering your ability to write about a text from a variety of viewpoints. Close reading of an author’s craft regarding literary elements and techniques promises development of your ability in analyzing works of fiction and non-fiction. They are out there, but how have characters handled them? How will you handle them?
Senior Year at Queens College
All seniors take the Queens College Humanities Seminar. Each section of the course has a similar structure according to the requirements of Queens College. The below selectives are related to the Writers Academy, and they offer students ways to relate the work they are doing in the Queens College program to their interests and to their Writers Academy work. Those would prefer to take the Queens College seminar without the Writers Academy connection should choose “Senior Humanities Seminar” as their first choice.
Fall Course Description for All Sections
HTH 101. Freshman Humanities Colloquium. 3 hr.; 3cr. Prereq.: Open only to Townsend Harris High School seniors by permission of College Preparatory Programs. Major works of world literature, both oral and written, from ancient times to the Renaissance. Readings may include works from among the following: the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Bible, the Qur’an, the Bhagavad Gita, Ancient Egyptian texts, African creation myths, the Popol Vuh, Plato, Greek tragedy, Laozi, Ibn Arabi, Lady Murasaki, and Dante. The course focuses on developing practices of close reading and academic writing in college, especially the effective use of language to discover ideas and engage in academic conversations.
Spring Course Description for All Sections
HTH 101. Freshman Humanities Colloquium. 3 hr.; 3cr. Prereq.: Open only to Townsend Harris High School seniors by permission of College Preparatory Programs. Major works of world literature, both oral and written, from ancient times to the Renaissance. Readings may include works from among the following: the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Bible, the Qur’an, the Bhagavad Gita, Ancient Egyptian texts, African creation myths, the Popol Vuh, Plato, Greek tragedy, Laozi, Ibn Arabi, Lady Murasaki, and Dante. The course focuses on developing practices of close reading and academic writing in college, especially the effective use of language to discover ideas and engage in academic conversations.
Spring Course Description for All Sections
[HTH 102. Freshman Humanities Colloquium]. 3 hr.; 3 cr. Prereq.: Open only to Townsend Harris High, HTH 102 is a continuation of its prerequisite, HTH 101. Major works of world literature in a range of genres, spanning the early modern period to the present day. Readings may include works from among the following authors: Rabelais, Shakespeare, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Basho. The course focuses on the study of global literature, close reading primary and secondary sources, conducting original research, engaging in scholarly conversations, and developing analytical arguments about literary texts.
Optional Selective Themes:
Finding Yourself in Drama
Who am I? Though this question seems simple on the surface, it's one of the hardest to answer. In this course, alongside the normal requirements of the Queens College Humanities Seminar syllabus, students will get additional opportunities to study a series of dramatic texts. These texts, ranging from William Shakespeare's Othello to Paula Vogel's Indecent (2017 Tony Award Winner), will help us explore these questions of identity. Students will also have enrichment opportunities to view stagings of these plays (via off-campus field trips and/or recordings) to aid us in our understanding of how a director's creative use of blocking decisions, character actions, and set choices can express the human struggle for identity in a way words alone never could. The Queens College syllabus will take us beyond dramatic texts, as we will also explore poetry, contemporary novels, films, and essays from a range of authors with varied backgrounds.
Who am I? Though this question seems simple on the surface, it's one of the hardest to answer. In this course, alongside the normal requirements of the Queens College Humanities Seminar syllabus, students will get additional opportunities to study a series of dramatic texts. These texts, ranging from William Shakespeare's Othello to Paula Vogel's Indecent (2017 Tony Award Winner), will help us explore these questions of identity. Students will also have enrichment opportunities to view stagings of these plays (via off-campus field trips and/or recordings) to aid us in our understanding of how a director's creative use of blocking decisions, character actions, and set choices can express the human struggle for identity in a way words alone never could. The Queens College syllabus will take us beyond dramatic texts, as we will also explore poetry, contemporary novels, films, and essays from a range of authors with varied backgrounds.
Other enrichment opportunities include engaging in a playwriting workshop that will not only instruct us in the craft of playwriting, but also help us to learn a bit more about our own complex identities along the way.
Grade Level: 12th (THHSWA - Drama)
Reading Like a Writer
Do you feel like your head is bursting with stories you wish you had the time or opportunity to put down on paper? Does a well written sentence make your heart beat faster and your spirits fly? This section of the Humanities Seminar will offer students opportunities to consider the Queens College syllabus from the eyes of a writer. How do authors use literary devices, structure, emphasis, and content to craft their narratives? Students will have enrichment opportunities to pair their analytical work with creative possibilities that enhance their portfolios as creative writers. In the spring, alongside the symposium research all seniors conduct, students will have opportunities to extend their work based on their own creative writing interests (short story writing, novel writing, poetry writing, memoir writing, etc.). Alongside the expectations of the Queens College syllabus, students will have opportunities to write creatively with inspiration from their QC readings. During the writing process, there will be additional enrichment opportunities to talk to authors, agents and editors about the publishing process.
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
Do you feel like your head is bursting with stories you wish you had the time or opportunity to put down on paper? Does a well written sentence make your heart beat faster and your spirits fly? This section of the Humanities Seminar will offer students opportunities to consider the Queens College syllabus from the eyes of a writer. How do authors use literary devices, structure, emphasis, and content to craft their narratives? Students will have enrichment opportunities to pair their analytical work with creative possibilities that enhance their portfolios as creative writers. In the spring, alongside the symposium research all seniors conduct, students will have opportunities to extend their work based on their own creative writing interests (short story writing, novel writing, poetry writing, memoir writing, etc.). Alongside the expectations of the Queens College syllabus, students will have opportunities to write creatively with inspiration from their QC readings. During the writing process, there will be additional enrichment opportunities to talk to authors, agents and editors about the publishing process.
(THHSWA - Creative Writing)
Science Fact versus Science Fiction: A Journalism Themed Version of the Humanities Seminar
Throughout the pandemic, the role of science journalism was pivotal in communicating the latest about an ever-changing crisis. Reliable reporting on the findings of the scientific community impacted public policy, the school system, and our personal lives. At the same time, it can be difficult to negotiate between journalism’s search for consistent facts and the experimental nature of science, where understandings consistently change as new information is discovered. Given this, in addition to the normal requirements of the Queens College Humanities Seminar syllabus, students will get additional opportunities to consider: (1) the role that science journalism has played in American society (particularly since the start of the pandemic), and (2) how efforts to report on science fact differ from literary traditions that draw upon science in order to imagine plausible futures. How do journalists tell narratives about science, and how does that differ from how fiction writers use science to create thought-provoking stories? How does science fiction draw on actual science to explore hypothetical situations? Why does science fiction, like science journalism, often have such large (and often grave) implications for the societies involved? Many people have compared life since 2020 to dystopian novels. How do these dystopian novels compare to what we’ve experienced? How do imagined futures take into account the disparities in society that the pandemic has heightened, such as differences in experiences based on race, social class, gender, and other related categories?
Across two terms, students will have opportunities to read excerpts or full pieces by authors/filmmakers like Isaac Asimov, Margaret Atwood, Ray Bradbury, Octavia Butler, Liu Cixin, Alfonso Cuaron, Kazuo Ishiguro, Ursula K. LeGuin, N.K. Jemisin, George Orwell, Mamoru Oshii, Mary Shelley, and Denis Villeneuve. These texts will be read alongside key texts from the Queens College seminar text list. In addition to reading science fiction in relation to journalism about scientific topics, students will be given enrichment options to work with writers from the PEN writers program to develop journalistic skills by studying and reporting on issues that are relevant to Townsend Harris High School (using samples written during the pandemic as guides).
(THHSWA - Journalism)
Throughout the pandemic, the role of science journalism was pivotal in communicating the latest about an ever-changing crisis. Reliable reporting on the findings of the scientific community impacted public policy, the school system, and our personal lives. At the same time, it can be difficult to negotiate between journalism’s search for consistent facts and the experimental nature of science, where understandings consistently change as new information is discovered. Given this, in addition to the normal requirements of the Queens College Humanities Seminar syllabus, students will get additional opportunities to consider: (1) the role that science journalism has played in American society (particularly since the start of the pandemic), and (2) how efforts to report on science fact differ from literary traditions that draw upon science in order to imagine plausible futures. How do journalists tell narratives about science, and how does that differ from how fiction writers use science to create thought-provoking stories? How does science fiction draw on actual science to explore hypothetical situations? Why does science fiction, like science journalism, often have such large (and often grave) implications for the societies involved? Many people have compared life since 2020 to dystopian novels. How do these dystopian novels compare to what we’ve experienced? How do imagined futures take into account the disparities in society that the pandemic has heightened, such as differences in experiences based on race, social class, gender, and other related categories?
Across two terms, students will have opportunities to read excerpts or full pieces by authors/filmmakers like Isaac Asimov, Margaret Atwood, Ray Bradbury, Octavia Butler, Liu Cixin, Alfonso Cuaron, Kazuo Ishiguro, Ursula K. LeGuin, N.K. Jemisin, George Orwell, Mamoru Oshii, Mary Shelley, and Denis Villeneuve. These texts will be read alongside key texts from the Queens College seminar text list. In addition to reading science fiction in relation to journalism about scientific topics, students will be given enrichment options to work with writers from the PEN writers program to develop journalistic skills by studying and reporting on issues that are relevant to Townsend Harris High School (using samples written during the pandemic as guides).
(THHSWA - Journalism)