This course is an introduction to writing prose for a public audience--specifically, prose grounded in, but not confined to, personal narrative. That is, you will write essays that engage elements and aspects of contemporary American popular culture and that do so via a vivid personal voice and presence. In the coming weeks we will read a number of articles that address current issues in popular culture along with essays, pieces of carefully-crafted nonfiction, by writers, scientists, philosophers, poets, historians, literary scholars, and many others. These essays will address a great many subjects from the contemporary world, using personal narrative and memoir to launch and elaborate an argument or position or refined observation. And you yourselves will write a great deal in the variety of forms that the essay genre embraces, attending always to the ways your purpose in writing and your intended audience shape what and how you write.

These units, and the supporting resources of Global Words, aim to build the essential knowledge, skills and values young people need to participate actively, critically and creatively as global citizens. This curriculum integrates the teaching and learning of English, across strands of language, literature and literacy, with Global Citizenship Education, using explicit and exploratory teaching and learning activities. The four units use a range of text and text-types to address the themes of Sustainability, Refugees and migration, Neighbours, Asia/Pacific, and Indigenous peoples, with a focus on literacy with Geography and Human Society and its Environs curricula. All units of work include an overview, description of focus, four teaching and learning activities, and links to the curriculum content, strands, outcomes and indicators.

An interdisciplinary subject that draws on literature, history, anthropology, film, and cultural studies to examine the experiences of Asian Americans in U.S. society. Covers the first wave of Asian immigration in the 19th century, the rise of anti-Asian movements, the experiences of Asian Americans during WWII, the emergence of the Asian American movement in the 1960s, and the new wave of "post-1965" Asian immigration. Examines the role these historical experiences played in the formation of Asian American ethnicity, and explores how these experiences informed Asian American literature and culture. Addresses key societal issues such as racial stereotyping, media racism, affirmative action issues, the glass ceiling, the "model minority" syndrome, and anti-Asian harassment or violence. Taught in English.

Helping Hands explores fiction, non-fiction and multi-modal texts related to the 2004 Asian tsunami and its tragic aftermath. Unit elements include an overview, description of focus, teaching and learning activities, and links to the Australian Curriculum and the NSW English syllabus for Stage 4. The unit addresses the cross-curriculum priority of Asia and Australia's engagement with Asia through the Australian Curriculum: English, and strands of language, literature and literacy, applied to a range of texts and text types.

Seeking refuge — The journey, allows students to explore the human face of the journey undertaken by refugees and asylum seekers, and to create a digital story to reflect what they learn. Texts used are non-fiction, fiction, print and multimodal and include The Happiest Refugee: A memoir by Anh Do, Mahtab’s Story a novel by Libby Gleeson, the non-fiction text Children of War: Voices of Iraqi refugees by Deborah Ellis, and the graphic novel The Arrival by Shaun Tan. Unit elements include an overview, description of focus, teaching and learning activities, and links to the Australian Curriculum. The unit addresses the topic of refugees through the Australian Curriculum: English, and strands of language, literature and literacy, applied to a range of texts and text types.S

Drawing in part from their own interests and ideas, students write about science within a broad cultural context. Students employ a broad repertoire of literary tools, such as narrative, scene-setting, and attention to larger issues of structure. Students study the work of other science writers, but subject's focus is less critical and analytical than synthetical--on creating works of substance, grace, and flow that have science and technology as their subjects.

" The science essay uses science to think about the human condition; it uses humanistic thinking to reflect on the possibilities and limits of science and technology. In this class we read and practice writing science essays of varied lengths and purposes. We will read a wide variety of science essays, ranging across disciplines, both to learn more about this genre and to inspire your own writing. This semester's reading centers on "The Dark Side," with essays ranging from Alan Lightman's "Prisoner of the Wired World" through Robin Marantz Henig's cautionary account of nano-technology ("Our Silver-Coated Future") to David Quammen's investigation of diseases that jump from animals to humans ("Deadly Contact")."

In the first of five lessons in this Family, History and Memory module, students are encouraged to research and write about their family stories and to share their memories with the class. The lessons can be delivered as a module or as individual units.