Welcome to Lord Byng's English Department 

Each English course consists of six sub-skills: reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing, and representing design in a critical thinking framework. By completion of high school, students should have acquired the skills required for post-secondary options. Each English course requires habitual reading outside of class, the patience for revision and accuracy, open-mindedness, and willingness to participate. The goals of English are to develop a proficiency in communication and a lifetime appreciation for language and texts in multiple modes and media.  

Underpinning every English course in the BC Curriculum are the “Big Ideas” that text and story deepen our understanding of complex ideas, our identity, and our world; that people understand text differently depending on their worldviews and perspectives; that texts are socially, culturally, geographically, and historically constructed; and that language shapes ideas and influences us. While literary studies and written composition still form the foundation of English courses overall at Lord Byng, key changes compared to the previous curriculum include more attention to oral language, Indigenous ways of knowing and learning, varieties of media, and expanded definitions of “text.”    

English First Peoples courses carry the same weight for graduation requirements as do courses in the regular English stream. English First Peoples places an even stronger emphasis on spoken language, Indigenous texts, and Indigenous ways of knowing. The English First Peoples courses at any grade level (10, 11, or 12) will fulfill the new Indigenous-focused graduation requirement.  

English First Peoples 11 and English First Peoples 12 can each be taken on its own, but each can also be taken in conjunction with an English course from the regular stream (e.g., you may register for both English First Peoples 11 and Literary Studies 11; you may also register for both English First Peoples 12 and English Studies 12).