Fall Workshop on State Dept. Evaluation for High Schools

SCCA is planning a workshop in the fall on October 17, 2009, at Cardinal Newman in Columbia, in conjunction with other language associations. or the Latin portion of the workshop, I will address the State Department's evaluation of high-school Latin programs. N.B.: the evaluation is voluntary this year but will resume in 2010-2011.
I will offer the following:
--step-by-step composition of unit plans, including developing themes, writing the integrated performance assessment (oral, interpretive, and presentational modes), composing essential
questions, how to develop interim performance assessments, etc.
--writing lesson plans
--writing interim assessment plans
--composing rubrics for the three modes of communication
--how to avoid pitfalls and point deductions
My qualifications: I helped develop the Latin template for the unit plans (so that we were not being assessed by modern language standards), I wrote the sample units for levels 1 & 2 at the SDE, and I passed the assessment myself with top marks. For more information, please email Tracy Seiler.

AP Latin Syllabus Decided

The College Board has decided on the syllabus for AP Latin. Their proposal:
*Revise the future AP Latin course to be a two-author course that contains poetry and prose readings.
*Retain Vergil, but reduce significantly the number of lines of the Aeneid currently required in the AP Latin: Vergil syllabus.
*The prose author will be Caesar.
AP teachers should bear in mind that it will take three to four years to develop and launch any revisions to the AP Latin course and exam. This means that for May 2010 and May 2011, and probably May 2012 as well, the current AP Latin: Vergil course and exam will remain in place without modifications." According to Mary Pendergraft, "there should be an announcement of the new syllabus before the new year, Jan. 1. And the first year this course will be offered is /probably/ 2012-13, with the first administration of the exam May 2013."

Clemson Declamation 2009

Clemson University will host its 37th annual declamation contest Saturday, November 14, 2009. For more information, visit the website.

SCFLTA Conference February 19 and 20, 2010

SCFLTA's conference will be held February 19-20, 2010 at the Brookland Conference Center in Columbia SC. The theme is "Languages: More Than Just an Elective." For more information, visit the webpage. The deadline for presentation proposals is November 1, 2009. Please consider proposing a Latin session so that we can have a full slate this year!
The SCCA plans a spoken Latin workshop on Friday, Feb. 19 with David Morgan of Furman University. Please plan to attend!

AP Course Audit

Beginning in January 2007, teachers of Advanced-Placement courses in all subjects will be required to submit syllabi to the College Board in order to have their courses authorized and labeled "AP". To obtain more information and to see the current timeline for completion of requirements, see the Audit page at the AP Central site.

SC JCL Spring Forum

was held at Hammond School in Columbia, SC on Saturday, March 7, 2009. Visit the website. Questions? Email Matt Ramsby.

Latin Sample Units for State Assessment Available on State Dept. Site

The South Carolina Department of Education Modern and Classical Languages website is now posting sample Latin level one and level two units. These include rubrics. Scroll down to "Classical Language Sample Units".

Nota bene: The new template for Classical languages is posted on the site. Be sure to use it rather than the template for the modern languages!

Idem nota: Email Ruta Couet for information about Jeanne Neumann or Bonnie Adair-Hauck's presentations about the new Latin IPA unit assessment. Both presentations were taped by ETV.

Faculty Achievements at College of Charleston

New Faculty
Brian Lush (Ph.D. Wisconsin) has joined the Classics Department at the College of Charleston as a visiting assistant professor. His research interests include Greek tragedy and Homeric epic, and as such, provide an enriching complement to the faculty and program.

Recently Published Articles
Carmichael, Noelle
2007 “Perfecting the Ideal: Molding Roman Women in Statius’ Silvae,” Arethusa 40: 165-181.
2007 “Statius’ Language of Wealth” (from Nothing Ordinary Here, Routledge 2005), reprinted in Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism 91: 359-375.

Gulizio, Joann
2007 "Mycenaean Religion at Knossos.” In Colloquium Romanum. Atti del XII Colloquio Internazionale di Micenologia, Roma 20-25 Febbraio 2006, edited by A. Sacconi, M. del Freo, L. Godart, M. Negri. Rome.

Newhard, James
2007 "Appendix D: The Chipped Stone" in G. Walberg, Midea: The Megaron Complex and Shrine Area. Excavations on the Lower Terraces 1994 - 1997. (Prehistory Monographs 20) Institute for Aegean Prehistory, Philadelphia, pp. 483-508.

Phillips, Darryl, W.J. Hellenius, and S.J. Rehorek
2007 “A new lachrymal gland with an excretory duct in red and fallow deer by Johann Jacob Harder (1694): English translation and historical perspective.” Annals of Anatomy 189: 423-433.


News from the Department
The Avkat Archaeological Project completed its first full season of fieldwork on August 8. The project is a long-term interdisciplinary study of human activity in north-central Anatolia, under the direction of John Haldon (Princeton), Hugh Elton (Trent University) and James Newhard (College of Charleston). During their 1-month field season, the international team surveyed nearly 6.5 square kilometers, yielding one of the largest and most detailed datasets for understanding long-term patterns of human activity and organization. The team of 40 undergraduates, graduate students, and senior researchers included 10 students from the College of Charleston. For more information, contact James Newhard, Assistant Director of the project (843-696-5485; newhardj@cofc.edu).

After leading the department for 5 years, Darryl Phillips has stepped down as chair of the Department of Classics. During his tenure, the program in Classics grew from 3 tenured/tenure-track lines to 5, and became its own academic and administrative unit. The new chair, James Newhard, began on July 1.

National Board for Latin Update

Latin is still not available as of 3/12/08.
Last update: August 2008:

ACL, ACTFL and the Standards Collaborative Board have been working with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) on expanding the languages and teaching levels available for National Board Certification. NBPTS has assembled a committee of language educators to draft a revision to the original standards developed in 2001. There was an ACL member on this committee. The revision of the standards is a necessary step before new assessments can be developed to expand National Board Certification to additional languages and levels. Link to the National Board Standards for World Languages Other than English web page and the survey. The survey deadline was Sept. 5, 2008.

Columbia Teacher Wins Scholarship

George Kaupp of Cardinal Newman School in Columbia SC received an Ed Phinney Commemorative Scholarship to attend the ACL Institute in June 2008. George teaches Latin at CN and will be offering a new Introduction to Ancient Greek class in 2008-2009.

College Board Cancels AP Latin Literature

The College Board has decided to cancel the Latin Literature syllabus after the 2009 examination. Their excuse? They want to "significantly scale up [their] support for AP world language and culture teachers, and [they] cannot continue to offer two separate AP Latin courses and exams." They plan to "enhance" the AP Vergil syllabus instead. This will eliminate all Catullus syllabi (Catullus-Horace, Ovid, and Cicero).
If you would like to protest this decision, please write to the College Board, 45 Columbus Avenue, New York, NY 10023-6992. I suggest putting something about Latin Literature on the envelope so that the letter does not go astray. You can also add your name to the petition on Andrew Reinhard's eLatin site.

USC OPENS UNDERGRADUATE FL TEACHING CERTIFICATION PROGRAM (Including Classics)

This a four-year degree program offered by the Dept. of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures with a major in Classics. For more information about the program, visit the website, call 803-777-4881, or email Catherine Smith, program adviser.

PUBLICATION OPPORTUNITIES FOR CLASSICISTS

• The Classical Outlook, published by the American Classical League, invites submissions of articles, poetry, and books for review. Contact: Mary C. English, Dept. of Classics, Dickson Hall, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ 07043.
• The editors of the Newsletter of the American Classical League welcome submission of news or essays. Submission deadlines: 1 December (Winter Issue), 1 March (Spring), and 1 August (Fall).
• Pro Bono, newsletter of the National Committee for Latin and Greek, seeks submissions of news, announcements, or articles from your classical organizations. Send to Virginia Barrett, 11371 Matinicus Ct, Cypress, CA 90630-5458. Submission deadline: March 1.
  
• The Classical Association of the Middle West and South accepts manuscripts for The Classical Journal. See the submission guidelines and editor contact information on the CAMWS site.
• Prima: Excellence Through Classics (elementary and middle school levels) invites submission of articles (300-500 words in Microsoft Word) from teachers of Latin and Greek. Submit to Jacque Myers via email (include Prima in the subject line). Current deadline: March 15.
  
• The American Philological Association welcomes scholarly contributions for its Transactions. Submissions will be refereed anonymously. Click here to see the guidelines.

CARISTIA GRANTS FROM CAMWS

CAMWS' Committee for the Promotion of Latin is giving out Caristia grants of $200-400 for projects of your choice. For more information, contact Carin Green of the University of Iowa or visit the CAMWS website.