Evidence indicates that the quality of a high school English department directly depends upon the effectiveness of the departmental organization. Despite the dangers of fragmenting and departmentalizing knowledge, some organization must be established for departmental work to be carried out. Among the variables which influence the organization and functioning of the English department are the school administration; the size, age, and stability of the department; and the nature of the school district. To evaluate the effectiveness of a department's organization, such factors as the department chairman, the authority structure, the written curriculum guide, the physical arrangements, and the climate of the department must be taken into account. The relation of the departmental organization to curriculum development and to the problems of staffing and supervising teachers are additional factors. The best organizational arrangement for any high school English department is that which most effectively and expediently does for the school and its students what the master teacher does for his classes. (LH)