Postgraduate Course: Language Awareness for Second Language Teachers (EDUA11283)
Course Outline
| School | Moray House School of Education and Sport |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The main aims of this course are to develop students' awareness of aspects of language that are most relevant to second language instruction, and to enable students to critically evaluate the presentation and coverage of language in pedagogical descriptions, textbooks, and forms of language assessment. |
| Course description |
Course Delivery
This course will be taught through lectures (8 hours) and workshops (16 hours):
The Lectures will inform the students about:
- up-to-date information on research on language description which is relevant to second language instruction (e.g., in weeks 3 and 4 the findings of corpus research on formulaic language and spoken grammar will be relayed to the students);
- the different ways in which elements of language are presented to L2 learners (e.g., the way in which many spoken dialogues are stripped of all pragmatic and discourse elements in some learning contexts but not in others);
- metalinguistic terms which will enable them to describe elements of language with precision.
In the Workshops the learners will:
- review their understanding of key points from the lectures.
- carry out a variety of tasks which require: critical reflection on their own language as well as their own experiences of teaching and/or learning a second language in relation to the areas of language under focus; critical analysis of empirical research that has focused on the presentation of language in textbooks or the teaching of an area of language or testing of an area of language; short presentations based on critical analysis of language use by second language learners; critical evaluation of teaching materials focusing on the area of language under focus.
The course also involves pre-workshop groups in which students meet in designated groups (without their class tutor) to go over tasks in preparation for the workshop. These pre-workshops will typically last for between one and two hours.
Indicative Content
Week 1 Course Overview + The Language Continuum
The focus will be on the range of elements which constitute language from micro elements (e.g., phonemes and lexemes) to macro elements (e.g., discourse-level phenomena and the interaction between language and culture).
Week 2: Pronunciation: Segmentals and Supra-segmentals
The focus will be on developing students¿ awareness of the importance of covering both segmentals and supra-segmentals in second language instruction. Particular focus will be given to the role of understanding supra-segmentals (elision, linking, assimilation, etc.) in developing effective listening skills.
Week 3 Grammar: Form, Meaning and Use
The focus will be on the importance of language instruction covering all aspects of grammatical elements: form (syntax); meaning (semantics) and function (pragmatics and discourse).
Week 4 Lexis: From Lexemes to Formulaic Language
The focus will be on developing students¿ awareness of the role of formulaic language in learners¿ vocabularies. Focus will also be given to the view that lexis and grammar form a continuum as opposed to clearly defined categories of language. Findings from corpus analysis and research on construction grammar will be presented to students.
Week 5 Grammar and Lexis: Written Language vs. Spoken Language
The focus will be on developing students¿ awareness of the differences between spoken and written grammar and vocabulary which have mainly been discovered through analysis of large corpora over the past few decades.
Week 6 Pragmatics: Pragmatic Competence vs. Grammatical Competence
The focus will be on developing students¿ awareness of the importance of pragmatic competence in effective communication. The issue of whether pragmatic competence can be taught will be covered as well as research which has compared the relative importance of pragmatic and grammatical competence in successful communication.
Week 7 Discourse: Genres and Registers
The focus will be on developing students¿ awareness of features of language at the discourse level. Focus will be given to both spoken discourse (IRF sequences; overlapping; interrupting, etc.) and written discourse (cohesion, coherence and contrastive rhetoric,etc.).
Week 8: Language and Culture - World Englishes; English as a Lingua Franca
The focus will be on the issues of: what version(s) of English should be taught to learners?; the development of world Englishes (e.g., Singlish); and intercultural communication.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2022/23, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
| Course Start Date |
16/01/2023 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 8,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 16,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
172 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
25% - A portfolio of 5 written critical reflections (5 x 200 words) on different aspects of language in use. Each reflection will receive up to 5 marks (5 x 5%)
25% - A 10-minute individual recorded presentation* of language data analysis.
50% - Written report* based on the analysis of language data (2000 words): the report will focus specifically on: (1) the methodology applied in the data analysis for the presentation; (2) critical discussion on the results presented.
*Both the presentation and report are based on the same language data analysis. |
| Feedback |
Each student will submit a one-page structured outline of their assignment around one month prior to submission of the final assignment. Workshop tutors will provide formative feedback on each plan at an individual level, and the course organiser will provide generic formative feedback in an assignment-oriented lecture. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Apply an up-to-date knowledge of findings from research on language description which are relevant to second language instruction;
- Use a meta-language of linguistic terms to describe language with precision;
- Analyse and evaluate the interaction between micro and macro aspects of language;
- Critically appraise the degree to which pedagogical descriptions, textbooks, and forms of language assessment, cover a full range of language elements.
- Critically evaluate the linguistic needs of learners in different language learning contexts.
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Reading List
English Language: Description, Variation and Context.
Edited by Jonathan Culpeper, Francis Katamba, Paul Kerswill, Ruth Wodak and Tony McEnery Palgrave Macmillan, 2009
Indicative Reading
Carter, R., & McCarthy, M. (2006). Cambridge grammar of English: A comprehensive guide: spoken and written English grammar and usage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Celce-Murcia, M., & Larsen-Freeman, D. (1998). The grammar book: An ESL/EFL Teacher's Course. (2nd Ed.). Boston: Heinle & Heinle.
Celce-Murcia, M., & Olshtain, E. (2000). Discourse and context in language teaching: A guide for language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Cutting, J. (2014). Pragmatics: A resource book for students. (3rd ed.). London: Routledge.
Cutting, J. (2015). Language and context in TESOL. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Kasper, G., & Rose, K.R. (2002). Pragmatic development in a second language. Oxford: Blackwell.
Kelly, G. (2000). How to teach pronunciation. London: Longman.
Kramsch, C. (1993). Context and culture in language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Nation, I.S.P. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Wray, A. (2002). Formulaic language and the lexicon. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Yule, G. (2010). The study of language (4th ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Second language |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Kenneth Fordyce
Tel: (0131 6)51 6411
Email: |
Course secretary | Ms Tara Kay
Tel:
Email: |
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