ENGL 712 Spring 2015
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ENGL 712 Communicating in Multilingual Environments
Instructor: Dr. Joleen Hanson
Skype: joleen.hanson
E-mail: hansonjo@uwstout.edu
Office phone: 715-232-1479
Cell phone: 715-214-6655
Office: Harvey Hall 224
I welcome your questions and comments! Please do not
hesitate to contact me.
Office Hours: Mon 12:30 – 4:00 pm; Tues 11am-12 pm,
and Fri 9:30-10:30 via Skype, email, phone, or in person
You may also make an appointment with me for a Skype
conversation, phone call, or a face-to-face office visit.
Course Overview
This course will provide you with information, strategies, and experiences that will help you to
communicate effectively with clients and colleagues in a multilingual world. A wide range of
readings will introduce you to relevant concepts and research, and you will explore language
variation and opportunities for multilingual communication through a series of learning
activities. The culminating project will be to participate in a multilingual blog or website for
several weeks and write a report about the experience.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
1. Determine patterns of change over time in typical written English discourse by
comparing similar kinds of texts produced at different times during the last century.
2. Assess the influence of colonization on contemporary attitudes toward non-English
languages and toward the role of English worldwide.
3. Criticize various theoretical perspectives on non-native Englishes.
4. Estimate the impact of current innovations in spoken English on future changes in
written English.
5. Compare rhetorical strategies used by multilingual writers
6. Apply strategies for preparing technical documents for global audiences
7. Develop effective approaches for participating in a multilingual, interactive blog or
social networking site.
8. Assess the impact of the existence of multiple writing systems on global electronic
communication.
9. Evaluate “translingualism” as a response to language difference.
Course Materials
The following two texts are the primary materials for this course. You will also read additional
materials available on D2L>Content. These materials and the weeks they are assigned for are
listed in the Schedule section of this syllabus.
• Jenkins, J. (2009) World Englishes: A resource book for students (2nd ed.). New York:
Routledge.. ISBN: 0-415-46612-1
• Kohl, J.R. (2008). The global English style guide: Writing clear, translatable documentation
for a global market. Cary, NC: SAS Institute, Inc. A
You will need to have the two textbooks mailed to you via FedEx or UPS by Instructional
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Resources. To make a rental request, please fill out the following Distance Education
Textbook Request form: http://www2.uwstout.edu/lib/irs/textbookrequest/default.aspx A
If you are able to visit our campus, you may rent the textbooks at Instructional Resources
located in the UW‐Stout library.
Course Projects
Required projects for the course are listed below. The weighting of each for the purpose of
determining grades is indicated in percentages. Detailed guidelines will be provided for each
project or assignment and posted to D2L>Content.
30% Multilingual Interaction Project (MIP)
9% Three reviews of three kinds of blogs or websites
21% Interaction with one blog or website
Description of the blog or website and Interaction Plan 5%
Progress report (Week 11) 3%
Record of Experiences 4%
Report about your experience participating in the blog or website 9%
20% Language Explorations
5% Observing Language Change
5% Describing a Non-Alphabetic Language
5% Preparing Texts for Translation
5% Summary and Discussion of a Research Report
20% Annotated Bibliography of selected course readings
30% Discussion Board Participation and Short Learning Activities
100% TOTAL
Weekly Reading Response Plan
Begin your week. A guide for each week and all related materials will be posted to
D2L>Content by Sunday evening. The guide will outline the learning activities for the week,
highlight key concepts to focus on, and provide questions for you to think about.
Reading, thinking, writing, and Thursday discussion board post. Complete all assigned
readings and add one or more entries to your annotated bibliography by Thursday of each
week. Then move on to share your thoughts with your classmates by posting to the week’s
discussion board by 11:59 p.m. on Thursday. In your Thursday discussion board posts, you
can discuss, analyze, and reflect on the readings. In your post, announce to your readers
which article you are referring to by putting the authors’ last name(s) in the subject line. Type
or paste your thoughts into the text box – do not attach a separate document that requires
others to download and open in order to read it.
You do not have to respond to every article, just the ones you would like to share your
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thoughts about. In addition to sharing your views, you can pose questions for your peers to
answer. I will expect each of us to foster a supportive intellectual environment so that all
might dare to bring up ideas they are struggling with or concepts they haven’t quite grasped.
Some of the most valuable learning happens on the edges of what we understand!
Discussing, interacting, and Sunday posting. After Thursday’s initial postings, you should
begin reading your peers’ contributions to the discussion board. You must read every peer’s
contributions and post your responses by 11:59 pm on Sunday. This is an online course at the
graduate level. Active online interaction is the main means to help you understand the
concepts.
General comments and questions. When you have comments, resources, or questions to
share with me or your peers that are not directly related to the week’s readings, please post
them to the “General Comments and Questions” discussion board. I will keep this board at
the top of our list of discussion boards throughout the semester.
Evaluation and Grading
A grading guideline will be provided with each assignment. Your final course letter grade and
the letter grade for some assignments will be determined according to the percentage of
total points earned. The numerical scale used for this course is:
Percent
94-100
90-93
87-89
84-86
80-83
77-79
Letter
A
AB+
B
BC+
Points
4.0
3.7
3.3
3.0
2.7
2.3
Percent
74-76
70-73
67-69
64-66
60-63
0-59
Letter
C
CD+
D
DF
Points
2.0
1.7
1.3
1.0
0.7
0
Course Policies
Participation
All writing—and all discussions— in this course should show respect for others and stay on
topic. I encourage a wide range of viewpoints, stated with respect for us as individuals and a
class. As a graduate seminar, we value rigorous academic research, constructive criticism,
and genuine intellectual inquiries about controversial issues related to multilingual
communication.
Learning in a graduate course relies on rigorous exchanges of ideas. Since this is a 100%
online course, active participation is critically important. You must complete your Thursday
and Sunday discussion board posts on time. If your Thursday post is late, your peers may not
have enough time to read and respond to your contribution. Please carefully read your peers’
contributions and make a meaningful and insightful response to those you are interested in.
After Sunday, you should read all peers’ responses to your posts, and you are encouraged to
respond back.
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Submission of Projects
Thursday and Sunday discussion board posts should be submitted to the appropriate week’s
discussion board on D2L. Please do not attach Word or PDF files to the discussion board
because it is inconvenient to have everyone download files. Simply copy your text and paste
it into the text box. Work that displays multiple grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors will
receive a reduced grade.
Other projects must be submitted as DOC, DOCX, or PDF files to the corresponding
dropbox folder on D2L. You will find your grade and my feedback about your work in the
same dropbox folder. The expected format will be specified in the guideline for each project..
However, In general your work should be double-spaced in 12-point Times New Roman with
your name and continuous page numbering in the upper-right-hand corner of each page. on
the first page. Work that displays multiple grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors will
receive a reduced grade.
Please use APA style documentation. APA tutorials are available at
http://libguides.uwstout.edu/content.php?pid=24955&sid=296012
Late Work
The course is designed to emphasize interactive participation of students. Failure to complete
assignments on time will adversely affect your grade. Please contact me in advance if you
anticipate any difficulty in submitting your work on time.
Importance of Staying in Touch
As we progress in the semester, I may incorporate supplemental materials and adjust
activities based on student learning. Please check your email and our D2L course site
regularly. All announcements will be made through email. Never hesitate to contact me if you
have a question. Using the ‘Course Comments and Questions” discussion board can be an
efficient way to answer questions. Most often if you want a question answered, someone
else has the same or similar question.
When you email me, please include “ENGL 712” in the subject line of your email, and your
name at the end of your email.
Accommodations
UW-Stout strives for an inclusive learning environment. If you anticipate or experience any
barriers related to the format or requirements of this course please meet with me so that we
can discuss ways to ensure full access. If you determine that additional disability-related
accommodations are necessary please contact the Disability Services office (206 Bowman
Hall, 232-2995, http://www.uwstout.edu/disability ).
Academic Integrity
Plagiarism is using others’ words and ideas and texts (verbal, visual) without proper quotation,
rendering, and acknowledgment. It is unprofessional and unscholarly. It may also involve
copyright infringement. If you plagiarize you risk failing the course. Please make sure that the
writing turned in is your own work and that you give proper credit to others’ graphics,
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words, and ideas. I do encourage you to collaborate and seek advice from other students,
faculty, and community members, but you must credit them properly in your assignments
and projects.
Students who are discovered to have turned in the work of others as their own will fail the
assignment and possibly the course. Plagiarism prosecution can become part of a student’s
permanent academic record.
Information on how to avoid plagiarism is available on the library’s website at
http://libguides.uwstout.edu/plagiarism
You can find the Dean of Student’s policy on academic dishonesty at:
http://www.uwstout.edu/services/dean/facultystaff/dishonesty.cfm
Tentative Course Schedule
This schedule is an overview and it may change. Go to D2L for all reading and writing
assignments and firm due dates.
Readings will be drawn from our textbooks or posted on D2L>Content
Resource – Review of Basic Linguistics
The following documents are available on D2L>Content as reference materials for you
Phonology Key Points (Word document posted to D2L)
Allan, K. et al. (2010) (2010) Morphemes pp 49-56 (p. 49 is missing until I can re-scan it)
Allan, K. et al. (2010) (2010) Syntax pp 57-66
Allan, K. et al. (2010) (2010) Semantics pp 67-74
Baker, M.C. (2006) Do all languages have same grammar? (universal grammar) pp. 5457.
The following UW-Stout Library Resource Guide is also relevant for this course:
http://libguides.uwstout.edu/language
Week 1: Jan 26-31
Language Change
Allan, K. et al. (2010) Historical linguistics. pp 127-133
Bybee, J. (2006) Where does grammar come from? pp 50-53
Bauer, L. & Trudgill, P. (1998). Myth 1: The meanings of words should not be allowed to
change. pp 1-8
Activity – Exploring change in word meaning
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Week 2: Feb 2-7
English as a Case Study of Language Change
Algeo, J. (2006). Where did English come from? pp 210-213
Curzan, A. & Adams, M. (2009, 2nd ed.) Ch 13 History of English. pp 443-451; 457-464; and
466-477
View an online timeline of English, created by Dan Short
http://www.danshort.com/ie/timeline.htm
Listen to recordings of Old English and Middle English. You will find the links in a Word
document I have posted to D2L>Week 2 titled “Listen to OE and ME.”
View the video “The History of English in 10 Minutes.” You can view ten short videos, or a
combined video that is actually a little more than ten minutes. Voiced by Clive
Anderson, this entertaining romp through 'The History of English' squeezes 1600 years
of history into 10 one-minute bites, uncovering the sources of English words and
phrases from Shakespeare and the King James Bible to America and the Internet.
http://www.youtube.com/course?list=ECA03075BAD88B909E
Language Exploration #1 – Observing Language Change
Week 3: Feb 9–14
Language Exploration #1 Due
Writing Systems and Electronic Communication
Daniels, P.T. (2006) Where did writing come from? 46-49 (3 pgs)
Rogers, H. (2005) Introduction pp 1-7 (7 pgs)
Jenkins, J. (2009) C5 Writing and speaking pp 134-142 (8 pgs)
Barton, (2007) Ch 6 Configurations of language pp 87-100 (13 pgs)
Barton (2007) Ch 7 Classification of Writing Systems pp 103-106 only (3 pages)
Ars Technica ICANN begins testing urls with non-Roman characters
http://arstechnica.com/uncategorized/2007/10/icann-begins-testing-urls-with-non-romancharacters/
An introduction to multilingual web addresses http://www.w3.org/International/articles/idnand-iri/
Explore Omniglot.com “The guide to languages, alphabets, and other writing systems”
Activity in Section C5 on p 142. Choose one of the first two options – Due Feb 10
Begin Language Exploration #2 Describe a non-alphabetic language
Week 4: Feb 16-21
World Englishes Introduction
Jenkins, J (2009) A1, A2
Jenkins, J. (2009) B1, B2
Submit Annotated Bibliography to the dropbox
Language Exploration #2 Due by Feb 22 (Sunday)
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Week 5: Feb 23-28
World Englishes – Ownership of English
Jenkins A3, B3, D3
Assign Multilingual Interaction Project (MIP)
(MIP Review #1 ) Review Blogs about language and translation
Begin “Record of Experiences” with at least one entry for Week 5
Week 6: Mar 2-7
World Englishes – Language Standards
Jenkins, J. (2009) A5, B5
Video Clip – Do You Speak American?
(MIP Review #2) Review multilingual newspapers or websites that exist in multiple languages
Add at least one entry to the “Record of Experiences”
Week 7: Mar 9-14
World Englishes – English as a Lingua Franca
Jenkins, J (2009) A6, B6, C6
Selfe & Hawisher (2010) Globalization, guanxi, and agency
Jenkins C7 – Indian English pp151-155
Goddess English Discussion
Baron blog http://illinois.edu/blog/view/25/37315?displayType=month&displayMonth=201011
YouTube multilingual news http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYm279CTdqU
BBC news article http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-12355740
Times of India http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-1027/india/28255259_1_temple-dalits-chandra-bhan-prasad with interesting comments afterwards
about the role of English in India
(MIP Review #3) Review language learning blogs
Add at least one entry to the “Record of Experiences”
Submit Annotated Bibliography to the dropbox
SPRING BREAK Mar 14-22
Week 8: Mar 23-28
World Englishes – the Future
Jenkins, J. (2009) A8, C8 pp 163-165
Ehrenreich, S. (2010) English as a business lingua franca in a German multinational
corporation
Poncini, G. (2003) Multicultural business meetings and the role of languages other than
English
(MIP) Confirm Choice and draft Interaction Plan
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Week 9: Mar 30-Apr 4
Writing in the Global Workplace
Kohl, J. R. (2008) The global English style guide: Writing clear, translatable documentation
for a global market
Leininger, C., & Yuan, R. (1998). Aligning international editing efforts with global business
strategies.
Rychtyckyj, N. (2007) Machine translation for manufacturing: A case study at Ford Motor
Company.
Plesco C. & Rychtyckyj, N. (2012) Machine Translation as a Global Enterprise Service at
Ford (mainly read the introduction.)
Language Exploration #3 – preparing texts for translation
(MIP) Participate in a non-English language website and add at least one entry to the “Record
of Experiences”
Week 10: Apr 6-11
Language Exploration #3 Due
Contrastive Rhetoric - Introduction
Kaplan, R. (1966) Cultural thought patterns in inter-cultural education
Connor, U. (2002) New directions in contrastive rhetoric.
Atkinson, D. (2004) Contrasting rhetorics/Contrasting cultures: why contrastive rhetoric
needs a better conceptualization of culture
Connor, U. et al. (2008) Introduction - Contrastive Rhetoric (e-book)
Submit Annotated Bibliography to the dropbox
(MIP) Participate in a non-English language website and add at least one entry to the “Record
of Experiences”
Week 11: Apr 13-18
Contrastive Rhetoric – Strategies of Multilingual Writers
Kachru, B. (1992) Meaning in derivation: Toward understanding non-native texts
Canagarajah (2010) A rhetoric of shuttling between languages
Canagarajah (2007) Multilingual strategies of negotiating English: From conversation to
writing.
Thatcher, B. (2004) Rhetorics and communication media across cultures
(MIP) Participate in a non-English language website and add at least one entry to the “Record
of Experiences”
Submit a MIP Progress Report
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Week 12: Apr 20-25
Contrastive Rhetoric – Comparative Studies
Vergaro (2002) Money-chasing letters: Becoming aware of one’s own rhetorical patterns
Language Exploration 4 – summary and discussion of a research report from Connor,
Nagelhout, & Rozycki (2008) Contrastive rhetoric: Reaching to intercultural rhetoric
(MIP) Participate in a non-English language website and add at least one entry to the “Record
of Experiences”
Week 13: Apr 27-May 2
Translingual Approaches to Language Difference
Horner & Trimbur (2002) English Only and U.S. College Composition
NCTE Position Statement (1974) Students’ right to their own language
Horner et al. (2011) Language difference in writing: Toward a translingual approach.
(MIP) Participate in a non-English language website and add at least one entry to the “Record
of Experiences”
Begin drafting the MIP report
Week 14: May 4-9
Submit the Record of Experiences
Post the draft the MIP report by May 4
Peer Review of the MIP report (post feedback by May 8)
Week 15: May 11-15 (Exam Week)
Due: Annotated Bibliography
Due: MIP report