Use the Tab and Up, Down arrow keys to select menu items.
This course introduces students to the study of the English language, its words, sounds and sentences. It also introduces the conceptual and analytical tools which linguists use to understand how languages are constructed.
This course is designed to introduce you to the study of LINGUISTICS, particularly the linguistics of the English language. The aim of the course is to show you how English works as a system for connecting speech sounds with meaning. Throughout the course, we will be guided by the following over-arching question: when a baby learns English as its first language, what aspects of the linguistic system does it have to master if it is to have a successful conversation? To answer this question, we start with single speech sounds, and then think about how they are combined to make words. Then we consider how words combine to make phrases, and finally we examine the structure of whole sentences.In the first half of the course, we focus on how English speech is pronounced. How do we move our speech articulators when we produce sounds? How is a Kiwi accent similar to and different from accents from elsewhere? What tools do you need to analyse accent variation properly? In the second half of the course, we focus on the structure of English sentences. As well as practicing how to identify different words types (nouns, verbs, adverbs, etc), you will examine how are words structured into phrases, clauses and sentences, and you will learn how we combine words in different ways to generate new and complex meanings.An important part of the course is that we do not only examine the English language as an academic subject, but also learn how this knowledge can be applied and used across many different fields and careers.
By the end of the course, students will:1. be able to demonstrate their understanding of the basic technical terms used by linguists to describe the various systems of which languages are composed: sounds, morphemes and words, phrases and clauses. 2. be able to accurately transcribe in broad phonetics a section of written English,3. be able to demonstrate their understanding of how to analyse the structure of words into syllables and morphemes, 4. be able to demonstrate their understanding of how analyse the structure of sentences into their grammatical constituents. 5. be able to demonstrate their awareness of how the skills learned in the course can be applied in real life contexts
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attributes specified below:
Critically competent in a core academic discipline of their award
Students know and can critically evaluate and, where applicable, apply this knowledge to topics/issues within their majoring subject.
ENGL123, ENLA101
Kevin Watson
Lynn Clark and Jonathan Dunn
There is no set textbook for this course. Reading materials will be recommended by course tutors. Electronic versions of these items will be placed on Learn, when available.
Library portalThe course outline is available on LEARN (only for students enrolled in this course). LEARN
Domestic fee $777.00
International fee $3,375.00
* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.
This course will not be offered if less than 1 person applies to enrol.
For further information see Language, Social and Political Sciences .