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High School Sci-Fi Literature Lesson Plans?
JBoelke asks : "I currently teach science fiction at the high-school level, this is my first semester teaching the course and I have been shocked by the lack of resources available. The reference book I am using for story selection is Groking the Future, which was made in the 1970's. It has been rather difficult to get the selections of stories recommended. I did not take a science fiction literature course in college and I was wondering if anyone from the of Slashdot community had, and could recommend provide me with contact address of the professor and University, so I could ask for their curriculum? I know these books may be more complicated for high-school students but I can modify the curriculum." Similar to this thread from 2000, this question focuses more on the curriculum aspect, rather than book recommendations. While I'm sure recommendations not mentioned in the previous thread would be appreciated, actual lesson structure ideas would be better.
William Gibson, noted sci-fi author, is a prof at the University of Kansas and has taught a course in Literature Of Science Fiction (there are many "Lit Of..." classes there). He may be able to provide a syllabus and lesson plans.
I unfortunately did not take his course while there, I just missed it. Alas.
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This is actually the first time I've ever heard of a High School Sci-Fi Literature class, well one that centers on sci-fi anyway, I might've been more interested in my english class if my school offered it.
I found this from a high school's course selection web site:
Hanover High's Sci-Fi Lit course
SCIENCE FICTION
Grades: 10-12
CR: 1/2
Prerequisite: None
Phase: 2
Science Fiction is an important genre in modern literature. In this course, students will read and view some of the classics as well as modern examples found in novels, short stories and videos. Major works will include Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, Wells' The Time Machine, Orwell's 1984, and Asimov's I, Robot. Videos include The Day the Earth Stood Still, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and the contemporary Independence Day. Class discussion, papers and tests will comprise the major work in the course.
I'm assuming that this is some sort of elective class, considering how most normal lit classes avoid scifi like the plague. If so, I would actually recommend keeping the college level material as much as possible. The re are a few reasons for this...
First off, I would hope making the class a bit challenging will be an effective counter to those in the administration and other teachers in your department who are likely to view a new course in scifi literature as trivial fluff, taking valuable resources away from their pet projects.
Then there are the students to Consider. Since I'm assuming this is an elective course, you won't have to cater to the lowest common denominator quite as much as in a requited core course. Now, it may be a stereotype that nerds like scifi, but it's not entirely unfounded in my experience. If you can get them interested enough, the kids from that demographic should have no problem with college level material.
And of course, if you don't make the course challenging, you're likely to start attracting people just looking for an easy course they can blow off.
If you must make changes, I would advise making them via some leniency on the grading end, rather than using simpler content or asking dumbed down questions.
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this yalies idea for a curriculum
Glancing through, it appears the lesson plan has it's moments, though it's not entirely too deep (jobs of the future?), but the bibliography included seemed to supply some good jumping off points for the submitter.
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McGill University has a sci-fi lit course. I haven't taken it but I found an old syllabus.
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I'd love to take a science-fiction class if given the oppertunity. Actually, I'm sick of how much emphasis is put into the study of classical literature in regular english classes. Of course it is important be familiarized with classical literature, but I wish teachers would take just one masterfully written modern book and put it into the curriculum. Many science fiction novels are equally as intriquing politically, social-economically, and well crafted in language as any classical novel. Unfortunately, over emphasis on classical lit. is often what causes students to lose interest. Perhaps having a science-ficiton class will give some students an option, but I would rather see implementation of perhaps some quality sci-fi studies into regular english classes.
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"I currently teach science fiction at the high-school level, this is my first semester teaching the course and I have been shocked by the lack of resources available."
How many high-quality, well-written books are there an the various chroniton particles used in Star Trek? About how the force works at a cellular level? There are far, far too few science fiction resources available to teach young people how to properly understand the technobabble in their favourite science fiction shows and books.
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i am currently enrolled in a Sword and Sorcery class at college. we read mostly fantasy, but some of our stuff touches on science fiction. you can check out the course at wabash.edu there was a write up of the course in the indy star, you might be able to find out about it on the web.
mostly we read the books, and find the major themes, how the author develops them via different linguistic techniques with the ultimate goal of writing our own fantasy story at the end of the semester
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Highschool students will learn that they can some how "think" themselves to be fit.
And sleeping with multiple women is great! -not that they need to learn that.
Wow. Big question and sort of hard to answer since you don't state what the course objectives are. With that in mind, here's what I would do if I were you...
I would base the reading around various big themes that are relevant to adolescents who are trying to figure out theirselves and their relation to the world. Fortunately, Science Fiction excels in looking at these "big picture" issues. Some examples:
There's so much you can do here both in terms of education and engendering a life-long appreciation for literature (and I certainly believe that Science Fiction is literature). As some others have mentioned, I wouldn't worry too much about grade-level appropriate reading here, unless you are dealing with more of a middle-school crowd. Good Science Fiction is naturally challenging, and the kids (yound adults really) will appreciate being challenged.
I recently read the book on writing Sci-Fi and Fantasy by Orson Scott Card and he had a lot of good information on the basics and theories of Sci-Fi, and a lot of the "rules" as it were that I think could be pretty beneficial in developing a curriculum on the subject.
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I did take a sci-fi grad course in college, but I would not recommend contacting that prof. However, in working through that course, I learned that Kent State not only published a scholarly journal in sci-fi, but had a few professors on staff that specialized in it. This was many years ago, but the journal is still going.
I had a sci-fi lit class in high school, and was less than impressed.
I'd just like to take this opportunity to say that you shouldn't neglect the old-school stuff like Verne, Wells, E.E. Doc Smith, Lin Carter, and E.R. Burroughs. There's some great stories there, despite having very out of date science. Later classic authors should include Heinlein, Poul Anderson, Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, among many others. Don't just cover the new stuff!
Canticle might get you fired if you're in a very liberal school district. Someone who wouldn't blink at the pseudo-science-religion in Stranger in a Strange Land might get upset at what could be interpreted as Catholic apologetics. :-)
* And remember, it's spelled N-e-t-s-c-a-p-e, but it's pronounced "Mozilla."
I would recommend at least a unit on Speculative Fiction and/or Alternate Histories (Perhaps Card's Alvin Maker series). Students can explore the differences between the world of the story and our own, and begin to understand how small changes can have big impacts.
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Canticle might get you fired if you're in a very liberal school district. Someone who wouldn't blink at the pseudo-science-religion in Stranger in a Strange Land might get upset at what could be interpreted as Catholic apologetics.
Luckily, with the US educational system emphasis on Latin and understanding various theologies, there's a great chance that nobody will understand that Canticle is actually about the Catholic church. :)
Great book, btw, but I see any book (especially an SF book) that details revelations being a really hard sell in a public school. (Atheist Left: Ewww, it has religion! Catholic Right: Ewww, it has science! )
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English 256: Science Fiction Literature
Art Schuhart
Asst. Prof. of English
English 256-01
Office: CC122A
Office Hours: MW 1:30-2:30pm
TR 10am-12pm
The remainder of the contact information is at http://www.nvcc.edu/
Required Texts:
The Prentice Hall Anthology of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Garyn Roberts, ed.
Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
The War of the Worlds, by H. G. Wells
Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke
(Frankenstein and War of the Worlds are Dover Thrift Editions)
Prerequisite is ENG 111 and 112 or division approval. Examines the literary and social aspects of science fiction, emphasizing development of ideas and techniques through the history of the genre. Involves critical reading and writing. Lecture 3 hours per week.
Organized as a historical survey, this course will introduce the student to the diverse genre of science fiction lterature. Beginning with Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, we will trace the growth of "sf" from its Romantic/Gothic roots into the modern day, paying particular attention to that form of sf known as "hard science fiction".
Students in this course will read 4 siminal sf novels, as well as a number of stories. Included in this reading will be representative works of sf criticism, and other forms of literature such as poetry, drama, and hypertext. As well, students will view some film.
Course Objectives:
Students will...
I'm as mimsy as the next borogove but your mome raths are completely outgrabe.
It might be appropriate for modern times, and is relatively unknown, but a good book, "Heart of a Dog".
A kind of Frankenstein parable, Heart of a Dog is the story of a stray dog that gains a human intelligence after a prominent Moscow professor transplants human glands into the unfortunate canine's body
Throw "The Forever War"on there for some serious relevance. It packs in a whole bunch of takes on the issue of faster-than-light travel, as well as lots of asides that will blow the minds of many kids (like the ways cultural atttitudes change over time, and the military experience, and child-rearing attitudes and...).
I took a Literature of Fantasy course at Boston College as an elective for my English degree, and while good, it tended to ease kids in via "Alice in Wonderland" and such. n the other hand, the prof. included Borges, which I'd never read before, so that was good.
Anyway, consider the Haldeman book.
You should also check out Michio Kaku's website at http://www.mkaku.org/ and perhaps email him. He teaches a class at CCNY on the Physics of Science Fiction (all theory- no math). The textbook was his book "Hyperspace". I had the chance to take it in 1994, and it was the only class that my gaming friends who never went to class attended. And they weren't enrolled in it! Great fun.
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I'd say go for an eclectic selection. I was a very very bad reader in school, perhaps by shear luck I happened upon a couple of books that pretty much opened the door for me. A pattern that in many ways continue(d/s).
My first exposure to Hemmingway was through something of a personal challenge from a teacher I liked in high school. He understood something of the fact I wasn't a great reader, and thought I could benefit from The Old Man and the Sea. Well I didn't and still don't much care for that book. But later on, experpts from another Hemmingway story resonated strongly. That lead me to A Farewell To Arms, and most importantly For Whom The Bell Tolls. Which I can say without reservation, is the best book I've ever read. One of a few debts I owe to Mr. Dillon. Many of my other teachers were quite forgetable. But I don't think anyone ever forgets the person who introduces them to something they love.
In contrast to the poster I'm responding to, I would make a concerted effort to emphisise readability as well. Your time is limited, kids have enough busy work, and you can't teach them everything in a semester. Maybe a solid overview would sever kids better by providing not only broad perspective, but also the best chance of finding something that resonates with as many of them as possible through the shear volume of opportunities.
To that end, I'd recommend emphisining short stories, excerpts from more difficult but generally considered important works and maybe a selection shorter novels. Possibly with a few movies thrown in.
Philip K. Dick is an obvious choice for short stories, or even Do Androids Dream Electric Sheep. Others have already mentioned Gibson. I don't think I've seen mention of Kurt Vonnegut, Harrison Bergeron might make for nice movie, Cat's Cradle is a pretty good book.
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Is it a semester-length class or a year-long course? In my own lesson planning, length of the class greatly limits how much actual reading material I can cover. If the class is only one semester long, I might suggest choosing several short stories coupled with one to three novels. If the class will run the full year, then you will have greater leeway in choosing a wider variety of novels and authors.
As for the curriculum itself, to what degree must you include a writing component? You may want to consider, in addition to a literary analysis essay, some kind of research paper that explores one or more aspects of the "sciences" you'll be reading about. Even something as simple as a reading journal/log that allows the students to informally explore thematic connections among the works themselves, or between the works and real life, could be valuable. Tracking current events in scientific fields related to the reading might interest you as well. Of course, the actual works you choose ultimately depend on the make-up of your class. Are you teaching seniors, juniors, sophomores, or freshmen, or some combination of them all? While something like Huxley's Brave New World, for example, is a valid choice for a sci-fi class, I don't know if it would be the best choice (in terms of themes, readability, etc.) for a class full of 9th graders. I know the majority of the ninth graders I teach currently would have a difficult time reading that particular book. I digress.
Now for the literature itself: I mentioned short stories earlier, and there are several very good pieces that could work for you. Almost anything by Bradbury or Asimov would be suitable, in addition to many other good authors. Your choice of novels is almost boundless. Clarke is good, especially Childhood's End if you need to include a shorter novel. Herbert's Dune would be an excellent choice, depending on the focus of your class, as it allows exploration and discussion of many subjects and themes beyond just the science itself (which is quite good in its own right). Le Guin, Chrichton, Card, Stephenson (Snow Crash), to name a few, might also make good choices.
Take a look at this NCTE link that addresses this very question for more suggestions.
I really want to continue discussing this topic, but I have to get back to grading a batch of essays. If you will be including Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, let me know because I have several resources, links, and related lesson plans I can share with you.
I'm champing at the bit waiting for my school to allow such a class, so I envy your position.
Best of luck to you, and I would enjoy hearing how this class works out for you.
JB