EPPING HIGH SCHOOL
COURSE SYLLABUS
Course Title:
Course
Description
District
Competencies
for Learning
District Skills
Competencies
for Learning
Literature of the Vietnam War
This course will provide students with a deeper understanding of the literature that has
come out of and been influenced by the Vietnam War. It attempts to include
representatives from the different sides of the war: the American soldiers and nurses,
American protesters, Vietnamese soldiers, Vietnamese civilians, and the children of fathers
and mothers who served in Vietnam. This course will also increase students' awareness of
the historical, political, and social ramifications of the war and explore the relationship of
historical events to artistic depiction of those events through the examination of multiple
mediums, including literature, essays, films, music, documentaries, and art.
Students will understand concepts and demonstrate ability to transfer skills across
content areas and apply concepts and skills to real-life situation.
Reading - Students will demonstrate the ability to read closely and analytically to
comprehend a range of increasingly complex literary and informational texts.
Writing – Students will demonstrate the ability to produce effective and well-grounded
writing for a range of purposes and audiences.
Speaking & Listening – Students will demonstrate the ability to employ effective
speaking and listening skills for a range of purposes and audiences.
Research & Inquiry – Students will demonstrate the ability to engage in research and
inquiry to investigate topics, and to analyze, integrate, and present information.
Students will become a:
Collaborator – Students will understand that respect, collaboration, and leadership
are critical to interacting and working effectively with others.
Communicator – Students will demonstrate the ability to communicate clearly using
the most appropriate and effective means.
Contributor – Students will demonstrate the ability to contribute toward a better
world through community service, acceptance and tolerance of diverse people, and
responsibility for the environment.
Evaluator – Students will demonstrate the ability to access, evaluate, use, and
manage information.
Learner – Students will demonstrate the ability to be flexible, adaptable, and
accountable throughout the learning process.
Producer – Students will demonstrate the ability to manage projects, produce
results, and create media products.
Technology User – Students will demonstrate the ability to use technology
respectfully and apply it effectively.
Thinker – Students will demonstrate the ability to think critically, creatively, and
systemically to define and solve problems.
The Epping High School community educates and empowers students within a safe environment to
become Respectful, Involved, and Knowledgeable citizens.
EPPING HIGH SCHOOL
COURSE SYLLABUS
School Based
Course
Competency
Statements
(CCS linked to
DCL)
Units of Study
Course Unit
Content and
Skills
1. Students will demonstrate the ability to interpret and critically analyze literature to
understand the human experience. (Reading)
2. Students will demonstrate the ability to effectively communicate through writing for a
variety of purposes and audiences. (Writing)
3. Students will understand that speaking purposefully and articulately, and listening and
viewing attentively and critically, are essential to becoming effective communicators.
(Speaking and Listening)
4. Students will demonstrate the ability to acquire and express knowledge by reading
nonfiction and informational texts. (Reading, Research and Inquiry)
5. Students will understand that effective learners use specific cognitive and metacognitive
strategies to solve problems, overcome obstacles, and reflect on their own learning.
(Reading, Writing, Research and Inquiry)
6. Students will demonstrate the ability to effectively research, organize, and critically
evaluate information in assessing problems. (Research and Inquiry))
1. History of the Vietnam War
2. During the Vietnam War
3. After the Vietnam War
4. Putting it all Together
History of the Vietnam War (CCS: 2, 4, 6) (DCC: Reading, Writing, Research and Inquiry)
(DSC: Collaborator, Communicator, Learner, Producer, Technology User)
1. Students will describe the events that led to our involvement in Vietnam.
2. Students will express an understanding of the draft and the lottery, as well as the choices
young Americans had to make.
3. Students will identify common military terms of the time.
4. Students will label a map of Vietnam, identifying important locations.
5. Students will research major politicians and military leaders and their roles in the war,
presenting this information to the class.
6. Students will critically view and analyze films with live footage of the Vietnam War.
7. Students will relate to those who lived during the Vietnam War.
During the Vietnam War (CSS: 1, 2, 5) (DCC: Reading, Writing) (DSC: Communicator,
Thinker, Learner, Evaluator, Producer)
1. Students will recognize the importance of letter writing to Vietnam soldiers.
2. Students will critically analyze a work of literature for its historical accuracy.
3. Students will identify the impact of racial tension among American soldiers.
4. Students will analyze the use of figurative, idiomatic, and symbolic language in literature.
5. Students will formulate and articulate appropriate oral responses to complex messages.
6. Students will understand the use of persuasive techniques to influence the reader or
listener to elicit the desired response in the viewer/reader/listener.
7. Students will analyze a text, using textual citations to support their analysis.
8. Students will understand and evaluate the American bias towards Asians prior to the
The Epping High School community educates and empowers students within a safe environment to
become Respectful, Involved, and Knowledgeable citizens.
EPPING HIGH SCHOOL
COURSE SYLLABUS
Vietnam War, identifying how that bias influenced America’s actions in the war.
9. Students will compare and contrast the Vietnamese soldier and the American soldier.
After the Vietnam War (CCS: 1, 2, 3) (DCC: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening) (DSC:
Communicator, Learner, Evaluator)
1. Students will explore the results and effects of the Vietnam War on the people and
places involved.
2. Students will use learning strategies to engage in a work of fiction.
3. Students will compare the experiences of a fictional character to those of actual
returning soldiers.
4. Students will identify the techniques used to create propaganda, then
demonstrate their understanding of these techniques by analyzing the role
propaganda played during the Vietnam War.
5. Students will identify the health issues, including psychological issues, many
Vietnam War Veterans carry and why.
6. Students will compare and contrast the treatment of returning veterans during
the Vietnam War with the treatment of our returning veterans today.
7. Students will examine the significance/symbolism of the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial design
Putting it All Together (CCS: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) (DCC: Reading, Writing, Research and Inquiry,
Speaking and Listening) (DSC: Communicator, Evaluator, Producer, Technology User,
Thinker)
Instructional
Strategies
1. Students will debate/defend their judgments as to what extent America should
have been involved in the Vietnam War.
2. Students will plan, draft, and write an essay using elements of persuasion.
3. Students will synthesize their learning from the course to debate the question
"Was Vietnam worth it?".
4. Students will identify the health issues, including psychological issues, many
Vietnam War veterans carry and why.
5. Students will be able to present a speech to the class using effective speaking
skills.
Individual and group learning through direct instruction, discussions, modeling,
research, think/pair/share, group work, learner’s strategies, documentaries.
Assessment
Strategies
Approved
Homework, “do now” activities, exit tickets, quizzes, journal entries, papers, tests,
projects, presentations, performances, student self-assessments
February 2012
The Epping High School community educates and empowers students within a safe environment to
become Respectful, Involved, and Knowledgeable citizens.
EPPING HIGH SCHOOL
COURSE SYLLABUS
The Epping High School community educates and empowers students within a safe environment to
become Respectful, Involved, and Knowledgeable citizens.