Course module - Explorations in Language
Code : EDUC70152 (Null) Credit rating: 15 Semester : 2
Aims
This unit aims to:
• develop awareness of how language differs across different discourse modes and contexts;
• develop an understanding of how a range of theoretical perspectives can be used to represent, analyse and/or evaluate language across different discourse modes and contexts;
• develop the skills and understanding necessary to represent, analyse and/or evaluate a range of uses of language in the participants’ professional practice.
• develop the skills and understanding necessary to invest the above abilities in pedagogic practice.
Objectives
Upon completion of the unit, students should be able to:
• understand that no single perspective on language can explain everything about language;
• understand that differing language use opens up different perspectives on how language can be well described and analysed;
• understand that relationships between language analysis and teaching are more complex than ‘applying theory to practice;’
• demonstrate their understanding of the knowledge base of two distinct perspectives on language analysis.
• conceptualise a variety of analytical schemes;
• identify and explore perspectives of particular interest to themselves;
• carry out analyses and invest their discoveries in their teaching.
• independently use two theoretical perspectives to represent, analyse and/or evaluate self-selected samples of discourse;
• critically reflect on the two theoretical perspectives in terms of professional practice;
communicate their ability to carry out analyses and invest their discoveries in their teaching.
On successful completion of this course unit, participants should have developed:
• enhanced skills in the use of the given perspectives to analyse data and in the evaluation of such perspectives via the processes of such analysis;
• enhanced skills in academic literacies, including academic presentation and information processing;
• increased autonomy and enhanced metacognitive strategies with regard to study skills and further professional development.
Assessment
The participants prepare two project reports of up to 2000 words each. Each report should include (1) a brief description of the selected sample of text/discourse/language use, (2) a demonstration of analytical ability, and (3) a discussion of what was learned about the perspective and its use in professional practice.
WORD LENGTH:
4000
WEIGHTING:
100%
Information
Course Content
This course unit introduces the participants to five different perspectives on language, each of which is used to explore a particular mode of discourse. These perspectives will correspond to tutor interests and availability, and will therefore vary from year to year. The current list of perspectives available includes:
Analysing written discourse - a relational approach to written discourse
Analysing spoken language use - a cognitive linguistics perspective on spoken language use
Analysing L2 phonological acquisition - theorising L2 phonological acquisition
Analysing literary texts - a stylistics perspective on literary texts
Analysing video as text - a cognitive perspective on visual literacy
Analysing corpora - using a tagged corpus to understand spoken and written discourse
Analysing internet English - an ecological perspective on internet English
The participants will spend additional time exploring and using two of these perspectives in more depth (for details see ‘Teaching and Learning Methods’ and ‘Assessment’).
Tutor(s)
Timetable
Students wishing to take this unit should discuss its suitability with a tutor before registering.
For onsite and distance students on the MA TESOL and Educational Technology & TESOL courses
Teaching Methods
The first six weeks of the semester will include two input sessions per week (with the ‘equivalent’ progression through tasks and materials in the distance study mode) to cover introductions to all five perspectives on the menu in any one academic year. These introductions include exemplification and hands-on experience using the perspective to understand samples of discourse.
For the final six weeks of the semester the participants need to identify two perspectives that they wish to pursue in more depth and for assessment. This work takes the form of two independent mini-projects and involves independent work on self-selected samples of discourse. There will be tutorial support for each of the two blocks selected.
The above schedule of teaching/learning applies to both distance and onsite study modes.
Preliminary reading
Core/Initial Reading
(Note that this reading list will vary depending on which perspectives are covered in any one academic year; an up-to-date reading list is available at the beginning of each academic year from the course unit tutors.)
Analysing written discourse
Edge, J. & Wharton, S. 2003. Research in teacher education: reading it, doing it, writing it. In (eds.) B. Beaven, & S. Borg, The Role of Research in Teacher Education. Whitstable: IATEFL/Oyster Press. Pp. 49-53.
Hoey, M. 1994. Signalling in discourse: a functional analysis of a common discourse pattern in written and spoken English. In (ed.) M. Coulthard, 1994. Advances in Written Text Analysis. London: Routledge. 26-45.
Analysing spoken language use
Chafe, W. (1996). How consciousness shapes language. Pragmatics and Cognition 4(1): 35-54.
Du Bois, J. W., Schuetze-Coburn, S., Cumming, S. and Paolino, D. (1993). Outline of discourse transcription. In J. A. Edwards and M. D. Lampert (eds.) Talking Data: Transcription and Coding in Discourse Research. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 45-89.
Analysing L2 phonological acquisition
Flege, J. E. (1995). Second language speech learning: Theory, findings, and problems. In W. Strange (Ed.), Speech perception and linguistic experience: Theoretical and methodological issues (pp. 233 - 277). Timonium, MD: York Press.
Flege, J. E. (2003). Assessing constraints on second-language segmental production and perception. In A. Meyer & N. Schiller (Eds.), Phonetics and phonology in language comprehension and production: Differences and similarities (319-355). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Analysing video as text
Kozma, R.B. (1991). Learning with media. Review of Educational Research, 61, 179–211. http://rer.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/61/2/179
Turner, G. (1988). Film languages. In Turner, G., Film as Social Practice, London, Routledge reproduced in D. Graddol and O. Boyd-Barrett (eds.), Media texts: Authors and readers (pp. 119–135). Clevedon, Multilingual Matters. http://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/texts2/educ70150/educ70150_turner.pdf
Analysing internet English
Leu, D., Kinzer, C., Coiro, J. and Cammack, D. (2004). Toward a theory of new literacies emerging from the Internet and other information and communication technologies. In. R. Ruddell and N. Unrau (eds.), Theoretical models and processes of reading, (5th edn.) (pp. 1568-1611). Newark, DE: International Reading Association. Available from: http://www.readingonline.org/newliteracies/leu/
Kern, R. and Schultz, J. (2005). Beyond orality: investigating literacy and the literary in second and foreign language instruction, Modern Language Journal, 89, (3), 381-392.
Analysing corpora
Hunston, S. (2002) Corpora in applied linguistics. Cambridge: CUP.
Analysing internet English
Leu, D., Kinzer, C., Coiro, J. & Cammack, D. (2004). Toward a theory of new literacies emerging from the Internet and other information and communication technologies. In. Ruddell , R. & Unrau, N. (Eds.), Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading, Fifth Edition (1568-1611).DE.
Kern, R. & Schultz, J. (2005). Beyond orality: investigating literacy and the literary in second and foreign language instruction. Modern Language Journal, 89 (3), 381-392.