Graduate Catalog

2008-09 Academic Year

Linguistics and Technical Communication Courses

Linguistics, LING

5020. Studies in Historical Linguistics. 3 hours. Introduction to the study of language as it changes over time. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 or 5040 or consent of instructor.

5040. Principles of Linguistics. 3 hours. General introduction to the core systems of the languages of the world, focusing on phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics. Prerequisite(s): LING 3060 or consent of department.

5060. Second Language Acquisition. 3 hours. Covers a broad range of issues concerning the acquisition of second languages. Topics include L1-L2 differences, child-adult L2 differences, the teachability of grammar and models of L2 acquisition. Prerequisite(s): LING 5040 or consent of instructor.

5070. Bibliography and Methods of Research in Linguistics/ESL. 3 hours. Introduces new graduate students to the academic tools required for research in linguistics or ESL Areas of focus include bibliographic reference and indexing sources, the structure of experimental writing, research design, corpus-based linguistic analysis and statistical analysis. Should be taken during first term/semester of study if possible.

5080. Teaching English as a Second Language. 3 hours. Current pedagogical theory affecting the teaching of English as a second language. Both theoretical and applied approaches are considered.

5090. Pedagogical English Grammar. 3 hours. Thorough study of the basics of English grammar (morphology and syntax) analyzed from traditional, descriptive and theoretical points of view. Emphasis on pedagogical problems.

5300. Phonology. 3 hours. Detailed study of phonology in terms of contemporary theories of linguistic analysis. Relates sound systems to phonetic universals and to other components of a complete grammar. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 and 5040, or consent of instructor.

5310. Syntax. 3 hours. Detailed study of the morpho-syntax and semantics of English and selected non-Indo-European languages in terms of contemporary linguistic theory. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 or 5040, or consent of instructor.

5320. Studies in Applied Linguistics. 3 hours. Application of the principles and findings of linguistic science to the solution of selected practical problems, particularly those related to pedagogy, such as linguistics and language teaching, ESL testing and research methodology. Prerequisite(s): consent of instructor. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.

5330. Sociolinguistics. 3 hours. Study of the relationship of language and society as shown in the following areas: the ethnography of speaking (analysis of discourse), language variation and social class, pidgin and Creole languages, diglossia and multilingualism, ethnic varieties, language and sex, language policy and planning. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 or 5040 or consent of instructor.

5340. Practicum in Teaching English as a Second Language. 3 hours. Practical experience in the design and implementation of ESL instruction, including actual practice in the teaching of English to speakers of other languages. Prerequisite(s): LING 4080 or 5080 or consent of instructor.

5350. Language Typology and Universals. 3 hours. Data-oriented comparison and classification of the languages of the world according to their morphological and syntactic characteristics (role relations, word order, causatives, relative clauses, comparison, etc.) Emphasis is on working through real data from many languages. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 or 5040 or consent of instructor.

5360. Studies in Descriptive Linguistics. 3 hours. Intensive study of a selected topic on linguistic structure, such as psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics or typology. Prerequisite(s): consent of instructor. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.

5370. Linguistics and Composition. 3 hours. A linguistic and psycholinguistic analysis of the process and product of writing, including discourse analysis, the process of reading, the cognitive processes of writing and sociolinguistic variables.

5380. Linguistic Field Methods. 3 hours. Experience in the discovery of the phonology, morphology and syntax of a language through techniques of elicitation and analysis of data. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 or 5040 or consent of instructor. May be repeated for credit.

5390. Psycholinguistics. 3 hours. Deals with a variety of formal cognitive mechanisms that are relevant to the knowledge and use of natural languages. Primary emphasis is on the modular view of the mind and its consequences for both L1 and L2 language acquisition. Prerequisite(s): LING 4040 or 5040 or consent of instructor.

5590. Linguistics and Literature. 3 hours. A study of theories and methods of interpretation in terms of contemporary linguistics. The course provides practical training in the application of linguistic methods to literary analysis.

5900-5910. Special Problems. 1–3 hours each. Conference course open to advanced students capable of doing independent research under the direction of the instructor. Registration permitted only when other graduate courses are not available and only upon the recommendation of the instructor and the consent of the department chair. A maximum of 3 semester hours of credit is allowed for each course.

5920-5930. Research Problems in Lieu of Thesis (Original Scholarly Papers). 3–6 hours each. (0;0;3–6) Courses each require the composition of an original scholarly paper in the field of linguistics and/or English as a second language. Prerequisite(s): consent of department.

5950. Master’s Thesis. 3 or 6 hours. To be scheduled only with consent of department. 6 hours credit required. No credit assigned until thesis has been completed and filed with the graduate dean. Continuous enrollment required once work on thesis has begun. May be repeated for credit.

Technical Communication, TECM

5180. Professional Writing. 3 hours. The application of the principles of technical style to writing in specialized fields. Topics of special emphasis include writing in the fields of scientific, report and legal writing. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.

5185. Principles of Technical Communication. 3 hours. Practical application of technical and professional communication in industry, business and the sciences, using the workshop approach.

5190. Style and Technical Writing. 3 hours. A study of the principles of technical style with intensive practice in writing and analyzing technical prose.

5191. Communication and Information Technologies. 3 hours. An examination of the strategies for presenting technical information in different media. Intensive practice in developing hyper-media e-learning materials using dynamic technologies.

5195. Editing Technical Documents. 3 hours. Practical application of technical and professional communication in industry, business and the sciences, using the workshop approach.

5280. Designing Technical Documents. 3 hours. Study of the theory of designing effective technical documents. Intensive practice in applying the theory of designing technical documents in industry, business and the sciences.

5285. Technical Presentations. 3 hours. Practice in preparing and delivering technical information to technical and lay audiences and readers. Study of the theories that form the basis for preparing and delivering technical presentations.

5550. Studies in the Teaching of Technical Communication. 3 hours. Survey of current scholarly opinion concerning objectives and methods of instruction in technical communication; supervised planning of the curriculum, with special attention to problems related to teaching technical communication and to developing criteria for evaluating student writing. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. TECM 5550 is required for all new teaching fellows (offered every fall).

5580. Theories in Composition. 3 hours. A study of composition theories, leading to the development of research techniques and compositional skills.

5640. Practicum in Technical Communication. 6 hours. An extensive independent writing project addressing a problem in business or industry. Students must develop the project while working on an internship. Prerequisite(s): completion of the required and elective courses and the minor.

5740. Research in Technical Communication. 3 hours. An examination of the basic materials available for research in technical communication; analysis and application of qualitative and quantitative methods of research in technical communication; evaluation of the application of research results within professional workplace settings; and practice in the conventions of reporting research results for publication.

5900-5910. Special Problems. 1–3 hours each. Conference course open to advanced students capable of doing independent research under the direction of the instructor. Registration permitted only when other graduate courses are not available and only upon the recommendation of the instructor and the consent of the department chair. A maximum of 3 semester hours of credit is allowed for each course.

5950. Master’s Thesis. 3 or 6 hours. To be scheduled only with consent of department. 6 hours credit required. No credit assigned until thesis has been completed and filed with the graduate dean. Continuous enrollment required once work on thesis has begun. May be repeated for credit.

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