LING 440/540 Linguistic Principles and Second Language Learning

Fall 2003

Class: 17:00-18:20 M W, 302 GER

Section: 18:30-19:20 W, 301 GER or 9:00-9:50 Th, 142 STB

http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~guion/LING440.htm

Prof. Susan Guion	GTF Mitzi Barker
220 Straub, 346-3682	228 Straub, 346-5616
guion@darkwing.uoregon.edu	mitzi@darkwing.uoregon.edu
Office Hours: TBA & after class	Office Hours: M 16:00-17:00, Th 10:00-11:00 & by apt.

 
The purpose of this course is to introduce both the fields of linguistics and second language acquisition (SLA). 
This is not a course on pedagogy. However, we will consider the implications of SLA research for language teaching. 
The course will provide you with a general introduction to linguistics and an introduction to some of the main areas of 
interest in SLA. The topics covered here are tested in the TESOL PRAXIS exam that some of you may be taking.
 

Materials

Books:

Yule, George. 1999. The Study of Language (2^nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.

Ellis, Rod. 1997. Second Language Acquisition. Oxford University Press.

Lightbown, Patsy, M. & Spada, N. 1999. How Languages are Learned. Oxford University Press.

Journal articles: on reserve at the Knight Library and on e-reserves (username fall03, password back)

Lecture notes: available on the web at the above URL.

 
Requirements

Grad	UG
30%	30%	Homework and Reading Summaries Homework will be assigned and collected in the discussion section. Homework and reading write-ups will be evaluated on correctness, carefulness, thoroughness, and thoughtfulness. In the case of unexcused late work, a letter grade will be deducted for each section meeting after the due date. Reading summaries should be about 2 typewritten double-spaced pages and should cover the major points discussed in the article as well as critically assess the contribution of the work to our understanding of second language acquisition.
30%	35%	Midterm
30%	35%	Final
10%	---	Article Presentation Graduate students in groups of 3-4 will lead the discussion and critical evaluation of the journal articles. The group should prepare about 30 minutes of presentation and then have questions to lead a discussion. Group assignments will be made during week 2 of the term.

Academic Honesty

All work submitted in this course must be your own and produced exclusively for this course. The use of sources (ideas, quotations, paraphrases) must be properly acknowledged and documented. Any suspected dishonesty will be taken seriously and reported. Students found guilty of academic dishonesty will fail the course.

Students with Disabilities

If you have a disability and are anticipating needing accommodation in this course, make arrangements to see me soon. Also, request a letter from disability services verifying your disability and stating needed accommodation.

 
Schedule
 

Date	Topic	Reading	Discussion Section
M 9/29	Introduction & Language Varieties	Yule 20
W 10/1	Phonetics	Yule 5
M 10/6	Phonetics cont.	Yule 5	HW 1 due
W 10/8	Phonology	Yule 6
M 10/13	Social Aspects of SLA	Ellis 4	HW 2 due
W 10/15	Input and Interaction	Ellis 5, L&S 42-44
M 10/20	The Input Hypothesis	Krashen (1985), L&S 36-40	Krashen write-up due
W 10/22	Morphology	Yule Ch 8
M 10/27	Grammar	Yule Ch 9	HW 3 due
W 10/29	Syntax	Yule Ch 10
M 11/3	Syntax cont. & HW 4 questions	Yule Ch 10	HW 4 due in class 11/5, no sections this week
W 11/5	MIDTERM
M 11/10	From Behaviorism to Mentalism	Ellis Ch 2,3 & L&S 35-36
W 11/12	Universal Grammar	Ellis Ch 7 & L&S 36-37
M 11/17	Psycholinguistic aspects of SLA	Ellis Ch 6 & L&S 76-88	Schmidt write-up due
W 11/19	Role of “Consciousness” in SLA	Schmidt (1990)
M 11/24	Learner Characteristics	L&S 3	Weber-Fox & Neville & Bialystok & Hakuta write-ups due
W 11/26	Critical Period Debate	Weber-Fox & Neville (1999) & Bialystok & Hakuta (1999)
M 12/1	Critical Period Debate Cont.		MacWhinney write-up due
W 12/3	A Functional, Connectionist Approach	MacWhinney (1997)
M 12/8	FINAL 19:00-21:00