Because strong communication skills are essential to
scholarship, work, citizenship, and personal fulfillment, the
English department at Cerro Coso Community College offers a
comprehensive series of courses to improve the writing and
reading skills of its students: those completing A.A. and A.S.
degrees, those transferring to four-year colleges and
universities, those achieving professional/technical
certificates, and those working on improving their basic
skills. The department also provides classes in speech and
oral communication as well as a full array of literature
courses to satisfy humanities requirements for the Associate's
degree and for transfer.
Course Materials and Critical Thinking/Diversity
All Associate and transfer-level English courses at Cerro
Coso Community College require the reading of at least one
novel or other work of imaginative literature. In these works
students may encounter material that challenges their
viewpoints and/or beliefs. The English department feels
strongly that a student's ability to examine carefully and
write seriously on ideas that he or she may not agree with is
a crucially important critical thinking and interpersonal
skill in our diversified community. For this reason,
alternative materials will not be assigned. If a student feels
that he or she simply cannot study the works assigned, then
the student should consider dropping the class.
