English 280: The English Language
Syllabus
Fall 2011, Section 0101
TuTh 12:30 – 1:45 p.m.Instructor: Linda Coleman
0214 TawesEmail:
Office Hours: Th 11 a.m.– 12 n.;Office: 3208 Tawes Hall
W 10 a.m. – 12 n., or by appointmentPhone: (301)405-7632
English 280 will introduce you to the facts and phenomena of the English language. You will learn about the structure and history of the language, its rhetorical and discourse patterns, and the kinds of variation it presents. We will examine varieties of language use, the writing and sound systems of the language, its national, regional and social diversity, and the ramifications of its current status as a world language.
COURSE GOALS
By the time you finish this course, you will:
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know what it means to analyze a language scientifically;
have an understanding of how humans organize concepts and present information;
be able to recognize the structure of the vocal tract and understand how speech sounds are
created;
have explored, in overview, the structure and phenomena of English, including—
how English vocabulary is structured,
where English words and phrases come from, and
how new terms are developed;
English grammatical structure, and
how grammatical differences tie in with meaning differences;
the difference between good grammar and good taste. (Ask your grandparents where that comes from.) That is, you will understand why it is important to distinguish between facts about the structure of a language and conventions governing the use of that language in specific contexts;
the inventory of speech sounds in English and how that inventory has changed over time;
why the English spelling system is so inefficient that Anglophone schoolchildren must spend several years learning it, while Hungarian or Turkish schoolchildren pretty much have it locked up once they’ve learned the alphabet;
have a grounding in the history of the language, beginning with the Anglo-Saxons, and will understand how the history of Anglophone populations has affected the language, up to the present day, when the majority of English speakers are native speakers of other languages.
know some ways in which a language like English is likely to vary regionally and socially.
understand what a dialect is and what it means for one dialect or dialect cluster to become the “standard.”
have learned some ways in which language use can vary in different contexts.
TEXTBOOK AND COURSE MATERIALS
Readings will be from our textbook, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, 2nd edition, by David Crystal (paperback edition by Cambridge University Press, 2003, ISBN0-521-53033-4). Other short readingswill be available online. Reading assignments are presented on study guides, which will be made available online. Complete the readings before the class day for which they are listed. You don’t need to bring the textbook to class unless directed to do so. (I will notify you via email if you need the textbook on any given day.)
Reading the textbook. The main text (the text with white background) is, unless otherwise specified, the most important thing to read. Sidebars usually supply examples to help you understand the concepts in the main text. Some sidebars have primarily entertainment value, but some contain important information. I will specify which sidebars you need to read. If I don’t specify “main text” or “main text only,” read everything on the page.
Complete the readings before the day on which they’re listed. If a topic carries over two days, complete the readings before the first day.
Integrate your knowledge from reading and lecture. I won’t simply walk through the material in the same order Crystal does, and often I won’t spend class time on material that I think the textbook covers clearly. This means you should read the textbook carefully and ask questions if something puzzles you or if you want more information.
BLACKBOARD
We have a Blackboard online space, which gives us several conveniences, among them the ability to carry on discussions online, and space to post notes, announcements and save course documents. Access the space at Check out your access to this site early and, if you have difficulty with access or with posting for discussion, get help right away.
GRADES AND COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Expectations: On average, you should expect to spend 2-3 hours reading, studying or doing homework (including constructing posts for our online discussion) for each hour you spend in class (5-9 hours weekly). Note that this is an average. If you have difficulty with the material, you may need more time.
Grades will be calculated as follows.
Exams 50% of final grade
Tests 1-4 (6.25% each)25%
Final exam25%
Other coursework50% of final grade
homework 20%
Blackboard group discussion15%
Reading quizzes 5%
class participation10%
Tests 1-4. We will have a 30-minute test after each major section of the course. Each test covers, for the most part, just the material in the preceding section. (However, I don’t rule out the possibility of revisiting previous material.) The test will be given as part of the full class period on the day it is listed, and the 30-minute time limit will be strictly enforced.
Final exam. The final exam is cumulative and will be given on our assigned exam date, Tuesday, December 20. If you cannot take the exam on that day, and you have documentation for a university-sanctioned exception, let me know by Sept. 13 so we can make other arrangements. If you have three exams scheduled for the same day, you should be able to reschedule one. Again, let me know by Sept. 13 if you wish to reschedule our exam. For other issues, including late-arising conflicts, please see “What to do if…” on the last page of these policies.
Homework assignments. The best way to learn about language is to work with it. The homework is designed to provide practice in applying concepts learned in class and in the readings and to indicate (to both you and me) whether you understand the material. Expect regular assignments. Because of the nature of the course material, assignments are more frequent earlier in the semester. All assignments count equally, unless otherwise indicated. Assignments are due at the start of class on the date indicated. If we go over an assignment in class, you are permitted to make corrections, provided you make clear that they are corrections. (Use a different color pen.)
You may work together on homework assignments, provided you acknowledge on the homework who you worked with. Of course, make sure you personally understand all of each assignment. It’s not much good if you and your friend each understand only half of what you’re supposed to know.
Late assignments. We sometimes go over assignments when they are handed in. Unless otherwise specified, an assignment will not receive credit once the answers have been given out in class. If for some reason I do accept an assignment late, it will be docked one letter grade per calendar day of lateness and will not be accepted more than three class days late.
Reading quizzes. These are short quizzes, given either online before the class period in which the readings are due or at the start of class. If given online, they will be due by 6:00 p.m. the night before class and will be available for at least 24 hours before that time. They will generally have a time limit of 15-30 minutes, so complete the reading before you take the quiz. Expect 10-20 quizzes. I will drop the two lowest quiz grades.
Online discussion. Notice that a substantial portion of the grade is based on your contribution to our online discussion. Every week or so, a question will be posted, and you will be responsible for replying to that question or to someone else’s reply.
A good reply contains one or two examples of language use and some analysis. While appropriate length will of course differ for different questions, 50-100 words is a good length for most questions. Here are the rules: (1) if you are answering the posted question, create a new subject line, clearly indicating what your point is; if responding to someone else’s post, you can simply reply, extending that thread; (2) you can’t repeat someone else’s contribution; (3) if your posting contains material from a source, such as a dictionary or one of the many excellent online locations where language is discussed, identify the source (informally is fine) and make sure any direct quotations are in quotation marks.
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Good (satisfactory) posts get 2 points. Poor posts (weak in analysis or reasoning) get one point or no credit. Exceptional posts get 3 points. You are welcome to post more than the required amount. (I am of course delighted when actual conversations start online.) However, only two posts per week will count.[1] If you respond to at least 10 questions and have more than the required number of points, any additional points will be taken into account informally as extra credit. I will not post points for each reply (although I do try to send individual email messages giving you an idea of the quality of posts during the first week), but you’re always welcome to ask about the quality of a particular post.
Class participation. The most important part of class participation is showing up on time and being prepared. That is, for a minimum of C in class participation, you are in class (on time); you have done the reading and any homework, have thought about it, and are prepared to answer questions about it, as well as to ask clear and specific questions about it, if you have any. You involve yourself in the class by presenting your own ideas thoughtfully and judiciously and responding thoughtfully and judiciously to the ideas of others. Finally, participation includes creating a good learning environment for the class as a whole. Allowing yourself to create a distraction via cell phone, or going in and out during class poses a problem for everyone’s concentration and will be reflected in the participation grade.
Absences: Experience has shown that not attending class almost always results in poor work on assignments and exams. To help you do your best, and to make sure I know you and can give you credit for participation, I take attendance most days. I don’t correct for late arrivals, but if you let me know ahead of time that you will be late, I’ll try to keep an eye out for you. No guarantees, though. I expect students who are serious about the course to show up and arrive on time. You are responsible for what goes on in class, whether you are there or not. (Obviously, not there = not participating.) More than eight unexcused absences cuts your participation grade in half. More than eleven reduces it to zero (over and above any penalties for work not done).
If you must be absent, get assignments and notes from a classmate. If you must miss two or more days, contact me before the second absence, so we can talk about making up work, and so you can avoid falling too far behind. We adhere to the University’s “Policy for a Medically Necessitated Absence From Class,” which you will find in the Syllabus area of our Blackboard space. See also “What to do if …” at the end of this document.
If you must be absent due to a religious observance or other university sanctioned activity, please let me know within the first two class days. Email notification is fine. Make sure you get a reply from me confirming receipt of your message.
SCHEDULE OF READINGS AND ACTIVITIES
Study guides containing reading assignments and topics will be provided for each segment of the course. It may be necessary to make some changes in the syllabus; these will be announced in class and/or via Blackboards’ “Announcements” area, and/or via the class email list.
Introduction
Week 1a: Tuesday, Aug. 30 – Thursday, Sept. 1
Introduction to the course. What does it mean to study a language? What are the characteristics of different languages, and of the English language in particular? The difference between studying the structure of a language (its grammar, pronunciation, vocabulary) and the cultural aspects of language use (social and regional variation, and the “artful” uses of language, including rhetoric and poetry). A brief overview of the history and present situation of English. Learning English.
Reading for September 1: Chapter 1, “Modelling English.”
Semantics: The Words of English
Weeks 2 - 3: Tuesday, Sept. 6 – Thursday, Sept. 15
In this section we examine what is perhaps the most obvious feature of language from a non-specialist’s perspective: the words. We consider word as a concept (are “realize” and “realized” two different words or just two forms of the same word? what about “realization”?), examine how word meanings are assigned, and look at relations between words. We’ll learn about how dictionaries are constructed and look at the origins and histories of some English words. We’ll also discuss jargon, slang, idioms, borrowings, etc.
Readings: selections from Chapters 8-12, “The Nature of the Lexicon,” “The Sources of the Lexicon,” “Etymology,” “The Structure of the Lexicon,” “Lexical Dimensions.”
From Semantics to Pragmatics
Week 4: Tuesday, Sept. 20 - Thursday, Sept. 22
The study of word meaning leads naturally into the study of how language is used, an area that includes both pragmatics and sociolinguistics for our purposes. We will talk later in the semester about both of these in more detail. For this week, however, we will consider matters of register, rapport and specialized language.
Readings: selections from Chapters 6, “Modern English,” and 19, “Varieties of Discourse.”
Exam 1: Semantics and Pragmatics: Tuesday, Sept. 27
The Grammar of English
Weeks 5 - 7: Tuesday, Sept. 27 - Thursday, Oct. 13
This section begins with a discussion of notions of correctness (“verbal hygiene,” in Deborah Cameron’s excellent phrase) throughout the history of English and then goes on to examine the structure of the language, from the classes of English words through the ways in which sentences and clauses are constructed and the ordering of information at the level of the sentence.
Readings: selections from Chapters 13-16, “Grammatical Mythology,” “The Structure of Words,” “Word Classes,” and “The Structure of Sentences.”
Exam 2: Morphology and Syntax: Thursday, Oct. 13
The Sounds and Writing System(s) of English
Weeks 8 - 9: Tuesday, Oct. 18 - Thursday, Oct. 27
We will examine the inventory of sounds used in English, observe some differences between regional and social dialects, and learn a system for representing sounds with some accuracy. We should at this point start wondering how previous speakers of English represented the sounds of their language, and how their efforts can help us see how the language has changed over time.
Readings: selections from Chapters 17 and 18, “The Sound System” and “The Writing System.”
Exam 3: Phonetics, Phonology, and Writing Systems: Tuesday, Nov. 1
The History of English
Weeks 10 – 14a: Tuesday, Nov. 1 - Thursday, Dec. 1
We are now ready to look in detail at the history of the language, from Old English through contemporary Modern English. We will spend approximately a week each on Old English (Anglo-Saxon), Middle English (the English of Chaucer’s time), and Early Modern English (the language of Shakespeare). Discussions of literary patterns and texts will be included.
Readings: selections from Chapters 2 through 7, “The Origins of English,” “Old English,” “Middle English,” “Early Modern English,” “Modern English,” and “World Englishes.”
Exam 4: The History of English: Thursday, Dec. 1
The Varieties of English
Week 14: Tuesday, Dec. 6 – Thursday, Dec. 8
In our discussion of words, we observed that some words were typical of some dialects but not of others, that we might use a particular word in some contexts, but not in others. We made the same observation about certain grammatical structures and about pronunciation (often the most easily observed type of variation). We examined variation in more detail during week 13 when we considered the varieties of English spoken and written around the world. Now, in this section of the course, we study variation in greater depth and, to some extent, as a phenomenon in itself. We look at regional, social, and personal variation, language typical of different activities, the artful use of rhetorical devices, and the mass media’s influence on language use.
Readings: selections from Chapter 7, “World Englishes,” and 19-23, “Varieties of Discourse,” “Regional Variation,” “Social Variation,” “Personal Variation,” and “Electronic Variation.”
Review and Wrap-Up: Tuesday, Dec. 13
Final Exam:Tuesday, Dec. 20, 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.
OTHER MATTERS
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If you have a documented disability or a chronic condition requiring accommodation, let me know; if you have a disability that has not yet been documented by the Disability Support Service, contact them at 301-405-7682.