Set Yourself Up For Success: ENG4U

Should grade 12 University level English be a requirement for entry into all university programs? 

Image: ccboe.com

In all honesty, English is not my favourite subject in school. In fact, it never was. As a student who is looking to take engineering in university, I often find myself contemplating the significance of the grade 12 English credit universities want to see on my transcript.  How exactly does this contribute to my success in the future? I was dubious, to say the least. If I'm fluent enough to carry on with day-to-day life, why bother trying to decipher Shakespeare's outdated diction and why compose essays that will only ever be read by the teacher?

The rebel in me was ready to rebuke the high school curriculum for governing my educational pathways, but the diplomat in me figured it would be best to reconsider that approach... For many of us, English is our first language and the truth is, we likely don't need high school English to survive adulthood. But wait! Don't go dropping the course quite yet. There are still a few more things to consider: 
1) This isn't any adulthood, this is university-adulthood *shudders*; 
2) We aren't looking to survive, we are looking to STRIVE! 

In my experience, English teachers rarely scrutinized spelling and grammar in detail the way French teachers did - I figured this was because Spellcheck was doing a pretty decent job at it already. Instead, we were evaluated on our thought process when analyzing texts, or our volubility when writing with a specific audience in mind. 

Thinking back on it now, English class was not designed to teach students to just read, write and speak. Its purpose was to help students build skills applicable in other academic or professional environments. The curriculum includes analyzing cryptic poems to enhance problem-solving and writing comprehensive dissertations to stimulate critical thinking.

A course like ENG4U will not dictate your survival out in "the real world", but I can see why it is a prerequisite for university programs. The aptitudes you'll have learned from taking English classes are valuable. They will help you investigate problems thoroughly and communicate effectively with peers in school or at work. In other words, by taking English in high school, you're setting yourself up for success. Who wouldn't want that?

Now, please don't get me wrong. This spiel doesn't change the fact that I'm more of a math and science kind of girl, but I can tell you that ENG4U might be a little more useful than what it gets credit for. I've made up my mind on the subject, but I'll let you decide whether or not you agree with Ontario's Ministry of Education when it comes to making the credit compulsory. 

Till morrow, happy learning! :) 

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Visit goodreads.com for a list of great books to get you started. 

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Check out John Green's take on the importance of literature in this awesome video: 

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 "English - Charles County Public Schools." http://www.ccboe.com/schools/lackey/index.php/login/2016-04-22-21-38-11/english. Accessed 16 Feb. 2018.
"How and Why We Read: Crash Course English Literature #1 | TED-Ed." https://ed.ted.com/on/T2iMvjO4. Accessed 16 Feb. 2018.