Document 11902947

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Upper-division Writing Requirement Review Form (12/1/08)
I. General Education Review – Upper-division Writing Requirement
Dept/Program
Course # (i.e. ANTH LING 473
Anthropology/
Subject
455) or sequence
Linguistics
Course(s) Title
Language and Culture
Description of the requirement if it is not a single course
II. Endorsement/Approvals
Complete the form and obtain signatures before submitting to Faculty Senate Office.!
Please type / print name Signature
Date
Instructor
Leora Bar-el
Phone / Email
x2387
leora.bar-el@mso.umt.edu
Program Chair Tully Thibeau!
!
!
III Overview of the Course Purpose/ Description
This course focuses on the relationship between language and culture and the influence they may
have on one another. The course is divided into three sections: Part I examines the universalist and
relativist approaches to language and culture in the domains of kinship systems, color terms and
categorization, time and space conceptualizations, and classifier systems. In Part II, we will
examine some domains in the ethnography of speaking, and in particular, the ways in which
language varies with respect to gender, social position, personhood, and the speech event itself
(genre). Finally, in Part III, we will briefly touch on the issues of linguistic diversity and language
endangerment and their importance to our understanding of language and culture. Throughout the
course, we will explore issues of methodology and the ways in which language and culture are
studied. A variety of languages from across the world will be examined.
IV Learning Outcomes: Explain how each of the following learning outcomes will be achieved.
Required readings in this course include not
Student learning outcomes :
only chapters from the main textbook, but
Identify and pursue more sophisticated
readings from the current linguistic and
questions for academic inquiry
anthropological literature. Article summaries
and presentations help students learn to identify
research questions and arguments proposed in
the literature. Class discussions expand on
these issues. Student essays are required to
identify a central research question and to make
an original contribution (i.e., not just a
summary of the literature, but a proposal based
on a synthesis of the literature).
Find, evaluate, analyze, and synthesize
information effectively from diverse sources
(see http://www.lib.umt.edu/informationliteracy/)
Manage multiple perspectives as appropriate
Recognize the purposes and needs of
discipline-specific audiences and adopt the
academic voice necessary for the chosen
discipline
Each week students are assigned regular
readings from both a main textbook as well as
recent journal articles/book chapters that focus
on the same topic from a different perspective.
Various other materials relating to the topics
covered in the course (not required readings)
are listed in the syllabus. For their final essays
students are expected to consult materials other
than those discussed in the course. The main
textbook also includes a list of useful sources at
the end of each chapter.
Throughout the course students are exposed to
research that approaches the topic in different
ways. In particular, the contrast between the
universalist and relativist approaches to the
analysis of the intersection of language and
culture is a thread throughout the course.
Students are given the opportunity to explore
both perspectives and arrive at their own
conclusions.
Students are exposed to a variety of material
from the linguistic and anthropological
literature. Class discussions focus on extracting
the central proposals and arguments put forth
by researchers in these disciplines. Students are
directed to further reading of the literature both
for expanded views on the topics covered in the
course and for their research papers. Students
are informed that assessment, especially for the
final paper, is based on those features (e.g.,
identification of a central research question,
argumentation, etc.) of the readings that are
discussed in class.
Use multiple drafts, revision, and editing in
conducting inquiry and preparing written work
Follow the conventions of citation,
documentation, and formal presentation
appropriate to that discipline
Develop competence in information
technology and digital literacy
Students write three article summaries during
the course. They are encouraged to space out
their summaries so that they can get feedback
on one before going on to the next. Essays are
completed in steps: students submit an essay
outline with a list of references they have or
plan to consult. They meet with the instructor
individually about their outline to get feedback
and ask questions. Students are encouraged to
write a short draft of their paper that they will
submit to a classmate for peer review. Students
give essay presentations in class before their
essays are due so that they can get feedback on
their work before submission. In addition to in
class discussion for each presentation, students
complete peer feedback forms which they
submit directly to the presenter, and students
get feedback from the instructor before
submission.
Students are required to choose a linguistic
journal as a model for formatting of their final
essay. They are pointed to a number of
suggestions in the course. Students are
encouraged to visit the Linguistic Society of
America (LSA) website for information about
publications in linguistics.
Student article summaries and essays are
required to be typed. In addition, for article and
essay presentations, students are required to
prepare a handout for the class or a powerpoint
presentation. The course uses a Blackboard
supplement where various materials are posted
(including readings), as well as a Course
Ereserve page which all students must access
during the course. Furthermore, students are
expected to do their own research for their
essays, which includes library searches as well
as other online searches.
V. Writing Course Requirements Check list
Is enrollment capped at 25 students?
If not, list maximum course enrollment.
Explain how outcomes will be adequately met
for this number of students. Justify the request
for variance.
Are outcomes listed in the course syllabus? If
not, how will students be informed of course
expectations?
! Yes " No
!Yes " No
!Yes " No
Additional information about essays and essay
presentations are also circulated in the term
(see attached handout).
The purpose of the assigned article summaries
and presentations are to help students explore
different writing styles in linguistics. Students
are given instructor and classmate feedback on
their work throughout the course (summaries,
presentations, essay outlines, etc.). Students are
encouraged to use the UM Writing Center
resources and to visit the Linguistic Society of
America website for further advice on writing
and presenting in the field of linguistics.
Students are encouraged to write a draft of their
final essay for peer review by a classmate.
Will written assignments include an opportunity for ! Yes " No
revision? If not, then explain how students will
Students received feedback on article
receive and use feedback to improve their writing
summaries that they incorporate into their
ability.
following summaries. Students submit essay
outlines and meet with the instructor
individually to discuss their plans for their
essay. In addition, students will be encouraged
to seek out peer feedback from classmates on
an essay draft.
Are expectations for Information Literacy listed in
! Yes " No
the course syllabus? If not, how will students be
Additional information is also circulated in the
informed of course expectations?
term. In addition, students are directed to the
anthropology and linguistic resource pages in
the Mansfield Library. An instructional session
will also be arranged with Julie Edwards at the
Mansfield Library.
VI. Writing Assignments: Please describe course assignments. Students should be required to
individually compose at least 20 pages of writing for assessment. At least 50% of the course grade
should be based on students’ performance on writing assignments. Clear expression, quality, and
accuracy of content are considered an integral part of the grade on any writing assignment.
Formal Graded Assignments
- Article summaries (3 x 1 pg = 3 pgs)
- Article presentation (handout/ppt = 1-2 pgs)
- Essay outline (1-2 pgs)
- Essay presentation (handout/ppt = 1-2 pgs)
- Essay (10-12 pages)
(see attached syllabus and handout for further
details on each assignment)
Informal Ungraded Assignments
- Essay draft for peer review (~5 pgs)
Are detailed requirements for all written
assignments including criteria for evaluation in the
course syllabus? If not how and when will students
be informed of written assignments?
Briefly explain how students are provided with
tools and strategies for effective writing and editing
in the major.
VII. Syllabus: Paste syllabus below or attach and send digital copy with form. ! The syllabus
should clearly describe how the above criteria are satisfied. For assistance on syllabus preparation
see: http://teaching.berkeley.edu/bgd/syllabus.html
Language and Culture
LING 473
The University of Montana
COURSE OUTLINE
Instructor information
! <leora.bar-el@mso.umt.edu>
" 243-2387
Office: Social Science 210
Office hours: Wednesdays 10:00am-12:00pm, or by appointment
Course meeting times and venue
Tuesdays and Thursdays
9:40am-11:00am
Liberal Arts 106
Course objectives
This course focuses on the relationship between language and culture and the influence they may have on
one another. The course is divided into three sections: Part I examines the universalist and relativist
approaches to language and culture in the domains of kinship systems, colour terms and categorization,
time and space conceptualizations, and classifier systems. In Part II, we will examine some domains in the
ethnography of speaking, and in particular, the ways in which language varies with respect to gender, social
position, personhood, and the speech event itself (genre). Finally, in Part III, we will briefly touch on the
issues of linguistic diversity and language endangerment and their importance to our understanding of
language and culture. Throughout the course, we will explore issues of methodology and the ways in which
language and culture are studied. A variety of languages from across the world will be examined.
Prerequisite
LING 470 is a prerequisite for this course.
Blackboard
This course has an online supplement Blackboard site (http://courseware.umt.edu/). Articles, class
handouts, and other useful information will be posted there for downloading. Instructions on using
Blackboard are available at the login page. Please let me know if you have any problems accessing the site.
E-mail
Occasionally, course information will be circulated by e-mail. I will use the e-mail addresses registered on
Blackboard or CyberBear. Please ensure that you have a University of Montana e-mail address registered
there and that you check that e-mail address often, or have your University of Montana e-mail forwarded to
another account.
1/6
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Assessment
Participation
Article summaries (3 x 10%)
Article presentation
Essay outline and consultation
Essay
Essay presentation
10%
30%
10%
10%
30%
10%
•
Participation includes regular attendance, readings, prepared questions, in-class worksheets/discussions,
answering/asking questions in-class, etc.
•
Summaries are due at the beginning of class on the day that the article is scheduled to be discussed,
unless otherwise noted. Always keep a copy of your submitted work.
•
Essays are due in my office on Wednesday December 10 10:00am-11:00am. Undergraduate essays are
expected to be 10-12 pages, double-spaced, 12 point font, 1 inch margins; graduate essays are expected
to be 15-18 pages and of a more advanced nature. Further information will be distributed in the term.
•
Plagiarism is an offence and is not tolerated. You are welcome (and encouraged) to discuss articles
together with classmates, but you must write up your article summaries, etc. on your own.
Grading criteria
A 90-100%
B 80-89%
C 70-79%
D 60-69%
F
Below 60%
Textbook and other required readings
• Main Text:
Foley, William A. 1997. Anthropological Linguistics: An Introduction. Blackwell Publishing.
•
Other required readings (see list on p. 4-5) are posted on Blackboard, on reserve in the library or are
available for downloading from the library EReserve pages (password: linguistics).
•
Typically, we will cover a chapter from Foley’s text on Tuesday and then assigned articles on
Thursday. For some topics, there is no reading from Foley and so we will cover assigned articles on
both Tuesday and Thursday. Additional readings may be assigned throughout the term.
•
Make sure you have the assigned readings done BEFORE the relevant classes. Even if you do not
understand all the material you read, it is to your advantage to be familiar with the topic before we
discuss it in class.
•
You are expected to bring two questions about each reading to every class.
Attendance and Participation
• You are expected to attend every class and be an active participant. If you miss a class, inform me by email as early as possible. I also urge you to contact a classmate to catch up on what you missed.
•
Students are expected to be familiar with the University of Montana Student Conduct Code. “Being a
student at UM presupposes a commitment to the principles and policies embodied in this Code.” The
Conduct code is downloadable from the following website:
http://ordway.umt.edu/SA/VPSA/index.cfm/name/StudentConductCode
•
See also the University of Montana Academic Policies and Procedures:
http://www.umt.edu/catalog/academic/policy.htm
2/6
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Article summaries
• You are required to submit three article summaries over the course of the term. You may choose any
starred (*) article from the list of assigned required readings (i.e., not chapters in Foley’s textbook);
however, the three articles must be different from the article that you are presenting in class (see
below). Summaries must be submitted at the beginning of class on the day that the article is being
discussed.
•
In your article summary you should identify the central research question/issue being addressed in the
paper, the author’s proposal(s), the arguments that the author presents in support of the proposal, and
where appropriate, the implications of the proposal.
•
Regardless of the length of the article, each summary should be no more than one page single spaced,
12-inch font, 1 inch margins.
Article presentation
• You are required to give one in-class presentation of an article from the list of readings. A sign-up sheet
will be posted on my office door. Your presentation involves leading the discussion of the article in
class (i.e., think of yourself as the instructor). You should plan on a 30-40 minute presentation, which
may end up being longer, depending on the discussion that arises. You are free to divide up the time in
any way you see fit. You must prepare a short handout and bring copies for the class or a powerpoint
presentation.
Essay outline
• You are required to submit a one-page outline of your proposed essay topic at the beginning of class on
Thursday November 6. A list of references (other than those articles we have discussed in class)
which you have consulted or plan to consult for your essay should be included.
•
The following week I will meet with each of you individually to discuss your proposals and give you
some feedback. Scheduled meeting times will be arranged later in the term.
Essay
• Your essay is expected to identify a central research question and to make an original contribution. I
want you to go beyond simply a report of the literature and to make a proposal/claim with appropriate
argumentation. You should consult materials other than just those we cover in class. Foley gives a lot of
suggested readings at the end of each chapter. You can also look at the references from other articles
covered in class, do you own search through the literature, ask me, etc.
• Be consistent with your formatting; consult a linguistics journal (e.g., Language) and follow their
requirements for citing sources, reference lists, etc. See also the LSA website www.lsadc.org.
• Essays will be evaluated based on your research question and argumentation, the structure of the essay,
your original contribution, sources, and style and formatting.
Essay presentation
• The last four classes of this course are set aside for essay presentations. You will be required to give a
short presentation of your essay (approx. 15 minutes). Your essay need not be in its final state for the
presentation. The purpose of the presentation is not only to gain experience giving a presentation, but
also to get feedback from me and your peers that you may incorporate into your final essay.
• Respect your fellow students: you are expected to attend each presentation and to arrive to class on
time; you will be asked to complete a peer evaluation/feedback form for each of your classmates.
• A presentation schedule will be circulated later in the term.
3/6
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Proposed Syllabus (subject to change)
Week
1
Day
Tues
Thurs
Date
Aug. 26
Aug. 28
2
Tues
Thurs
Sept. 2
Sept. 4
3
Tues
Thurs
Sept. 9
Sept. 11
4
Tues
Sept. 16
Thurs
Sept. 18
5
Tues
Thurs
Sept. 23
Sept. 25
6
Tues
Thurs
Sept. 30
Oct. 2
7
Tues
Oct. 7
8
Thurs
Tues
Oct. 9
Oct. 14
9
Thurs
Tues
Oct. 16
Oct. 21
10
Thurs
Tues
Oct. 23
Oct. 28
Thurs
Oct. 30
Tues
Nov. 4
Thurs
Nov. 6
12
Tues
Thurs
Nov. 11
Nov. 13
13
Tues
Nov. 18
14
Thurs
Tues
Nov. 20
Nov. 25
15
Thurs
Tues
Nov. 27
Dec. 2
Thurs
Dec. 4
11
TOPIC
Readings
Introduction and overview
Introduction (cont’d)
Foley Ch. 1; Pullum 1991 (see also Martin 1986)
PART I: UNIVERSALISM AND RELATIVISM
Overview; Kinship
Foley Ch. 6 (see also Ch. 5, 10)
Kinship (cont’d)
Hill & Hill 1998 (see also Kasakoff 1984)
Colour
Foley Ch. 7 (see also Berlin & Kay 1969)
Colour (cont’d)
Davies et al. 1998; Stanlaw 1997 (see also
Levinson 2001, Hardin & Maffi (eds.))
Relativism; Space
Foley Ch. 11
[Video: Thinking allowed]
Space (cont’d)
Levinson 1997; Bowerman 1996 (see also
Pederson et al. 1998; Brown & Levinson 1993)
Time
Bohnemeyer 2000
Time (cont’d)
Boroditsky 2001
Classifiers
Foley Ch. 12
Classifiers (cont’d)
Craig 1986; Gomez-Imbert 1996 (see also Allan
1977)
PART II: ETHNOGRAPHY OF SPEAKING
Intro; Politeness, face
Foley Ch. 13, 14 (see also Bauman&Sherzer 1975)
Politeness, face (cont’d)
Matsumoto 1988
Language and gender
Foley Ch. 15
Lang. and gender (cont’d)
Keenan 1989; Hass 1944 and Kimball 1987
Language and social position
Foley Ch. 16
Lang. and social position (cont’d)
Eckert 1988
Genre
Foley Ch. 18
Genre (cont’d)
Sherzer 1989
PART III: LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY AND LANGUAGE ENDANGERMENT
NO CLASS - Election day
Linguistic diversity and language
Nettle & Romaine 2000 Ch.1-2; Krauss 1992 (see
endangerment
also Hale et al. 1992, UNESCO 2003)
NO CLASS - Veterans day
Diversity and endangerment (cont’d) Hale 1992; Nettle & Romaine 2000 Ch. 3
Language endangerment and
Ash et al. 2001
language revitalization.
[Video: In Languages We Live]
Essay presentations
Essay presentations
NO CLASS - Thanksgiving
Essay presentations
Essay presentations/Wrap-up
4/6
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Required Readings
NOTES: Only articles that appear with an asterisk can be chosen for article summaries and presentations.
Hass 1944 and Kimball 1987 cannot be considered separately – for article presentations, both must be
presented. For article summaries, both must be summarized in a single summary and will only count
towards one of the two required summaries.
Ash, Anna, Jessie Little Doe Fermino, and Ken Hale. 2001. Diversity in Local Language Maintenance and
Restoration: A Reason for Optimism. In The Green Book of Language Revitalization in Practice.
Hinton and Hale (eds.). San Diego: Academic Press. p. 19-35
*Bohnemeyer, Jürgen. 2000. Event Order in Language and Cognition. Linguistics in the Netherlands 2000,
AVT Publications Volume 17: 1-16.
*Boroditsky, Lera. 2001. Does Language Shape Thought?: Mandarin and English Speakers’ Conceptions
of Time. Cognitive Psychology 43:1-22.
*Bowerman, Melissa. 1996. The origins of children’s spatial semantic categories: Cognitive versus
linguistic determinants. In Rethinking Linguistic Relativity. John Gumperz and Stephen Levinson (eds.).
Cambridge: CUP p. 145-176.
*Craig, Colette Grinevald. 1986. Jacaltec Noun Classifiers: A Study in Language and Culture. In Colette
Grinevald Craig (ed.), Noun Classes and Categorization. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 363-395.
*Davies, Ian R.L., Penny Roling, Greville G. Corbett, Fritz Xoagub and Jomo Xoagub. 1998. Color Terms
and Color Term Acquisition in Damara. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 7(2): 181-207.
*Eckert, Penelope. 1988. Adolescent social structure and the spread of linguistic change. Language in
Society 17:183-207.
*Gomez-Imbert, Elsa. 1996. In Rethinking Linguistic Relativity. John Gumperz and Stephen Levinson
(eds.). Cambridge: CUP p. 438-469.
*Haas, Mary. 1944. Men’s and Women’s Speech in Koasati. Language 20:142-149.
Hale, Ken. 1992a. On endangered languages and the safeguarding of diversity. Language 68:1-3
*Hale, Ken. 1992b. Language endangerment and the human value of linguistic diversity. Language 68: 3542.
*Hill, Jane and Kenneth Hill. 1998. Culture Influencing Language: Plurals of Hopi Kin Terms in
Comparative Uto-Aztecan Perspective. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 7:166-180.
*Keenan, Elinor. 1989. Norm-makers, norm-breakers: uses of speech by men and women in a Malagasy
community. In Explorations in the Ethnography of Speaking. R. Bauman and J. Sherzer (eds.).
Cambridge: CUP. P. 125-143.
*Kimball, Geoffrey. 1987. Men’s and Women’s Speech in Koasati: A Reappraisal. International Journal of
American Linguistics 53:30-38.
Krauss, Michael. 1992. The world’s languages in crisis. Language 68:4-10.
*Levinson, Stephen. 1997. Language and cognition: The cognitive consequences of spatial description in
Guugu Yimithirr. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, 7(1): 98-131.
*Matsumoto, Yoshiko. 1988. Reexamination of the Universality of Face: Politeness Phenomena in
Japanese. Journal of Pragmatics 12:403-426.
Nettle, Daniel, and Suzanne Romaine. 2000. Vanishing Voices: the extinction of the world’s languages.
Oxford: OUP. Ch. 1-3.
Pullum, Geoffrey. 1991. The great Eskimo vocabulary hoax. In The Great Eskimo Vocabulary Hoax and
Other Irreverent Essays on the Study of Language. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 159-171.
*Sherzer, Joel. 1989. Namakke, sunmakke, kormakke: Three types of Cuna speech event. In Explorations
in the Ethnography of Speaking. R. Bauman and J. Sherzer (eds.). Cambridge: CUP. P. 263-282.
*Stanlaw, James. 1997. Two observations on culture contact and the Japanese color nomenclature system.
In Color Categories in Thought and Language. CL Hardin and Louisa Maffi (eds.). Cambrige: CUP.
5/6
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Some further articles available for downloading and books on reserve at the library
Allan, Keith. 1977. Classifiers. Language 53(2): 285-311.
Bauman, Richard and Joel Sherzer. 1975. The Ethnography of Speaking. Annual Review of
Anthropology 4: 95-119.
Bauman, Richard and Joel Sherzer (eds.). 1989. Explorations in the Ethnography of Speaking.
Cambridge: CUP.
Berlin, Brent and Paul Kay. 1969. Basic Color Terms: Their Universality and Evolution. Berkeley:
University of California Press.
Brown, Penelope and Stephen C. Levinson. 1993. “Uphill” and “Downhill” in Tzeltal. Journal of
Linguistic Anthropology 3: 46–74.
Carroll, John B. (ed.). 1956. Language, Thought and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee
Whorf. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Conklin, Harold C. 1986. Hanunóo Color Categories. Journal of Anthropological Research Vol. 42
(3), Approaches to Culture and Society, p. 441-446.
Gumperz, John and Stephen Levinson (eds.). 1996. Rethinking Linguistic Relativity. Cambridge: CUP.
Hale, Ken, Michael Krauss, Lucill J. Watahomigie, Akira Y. Yamamoto, Colette Craig, LaVerne
Msayesva Jeanne and Nora C. England. 1992. Endangered Languages. Language 68(1): 1-42.
Hardin, C.L. and Louisa Maffi (eds.). 1997. Color Categories in Thought and Language. Cambridge:
CUP.
Hymes, Dell. 1964. Language in Culture and Society. New York: Harper.
Kay, Paul and Chard K. McDaniel. 1978. The Linguistic Significance of the Meanings of Basic Color
Terms. Language 54(3): 610-646.
Kay, Paul, Brent Berlin and William Merrifield. 1991. Biocultural Implications of Systems of Color
Naming. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 1(1): 12-25.
Kasakoff, Alice Bee. 1984. Gitksan Kin Term Usage. In The Tsimshian and their Neighbours of the
North Pacific Coast. J. Miller and CM Eastman (eds.). Seattle: University of Washington Press. p.
69-108.
Levinson, Stephen. 2001. Yéli Dnye and the Theory of Basic Color Terms. Journal of Linguistic
Anthropology 10:3-55.
Levinson, Stephen. 1996. Relativity and spatial conception and description. In J.J. Gumperz & S.C.
Levinson (eds.), Rethinking Linguistic Relativity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 177202.
Levinson, Stephen. Sotaro Kita, Daniel B.M. Haun and Björn H. Rasch. 2002. Returning the tables:
language affects spatial reasoning. Cognition 84: 155-188.
MacLauray, Robert E. 1991. Exotic Color Categories: Linguistic Relativity to What Extent? Linguistic
Anthropology 1: 26-51.
Martin, Laura. 1986. “Eskimo Words for Snow”: A Case Study in the Genesis and Decay of an
Anthropological Example. American Anthropologist 88:418-423.
Milroy, Lesley and James Milroy. 1992. Social Network and Social Class: Toward an integrated
sociolinguistic model. Language in Society 21:1-26.
Mithun, Marianne. 1998. The Significance of Diversity in Language Endangerment and Preservation.
In Lenore Grenoble and Lindsay Whaley (eds.). Endangered Languages. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Pederson, E., E. Danziger, D. Wilkins, S. Levinson, S. Kita, and G. Senft. 1998. Semantic Typology
and Spatial Conceptualization. Language 74: 557–589.
UNESCO. 2003. Language Vitality and Endangerment.
6/6
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Language and Culture
LING 473
ESSAY AND PRESENTATION INFORMATION
Presentations
•
Your essay need not be in its final state for the presentation. The goal of the presentation is to give
you some experience presenting your own work in front of your peers, to help you focus your ideas,
and to get feedback from me and your classmates that you may incorporate into your essay.
•
What you present will depend on the topic of your essay and also what stage you are at in your
research. Ideally, your presentation should identify your central research question and how you plan
on going about answering that question (e.g., the type of data you are looking at, the
languages/cultures you are focusing on, what the literature says about this topic, etc.). You need not
discuss your entire paper, you are welcome to focus on one area in particular.
•
If you are still working on focusing your ideas, DON’T PANIC. You can present where you are at
with your work and your plans on how you will proceed. You will not be evaluated based on how far
you have gotten, but how well you present where you are at.
•
If you have your own questions that you are struggling with, you can use the presentation as an
opportunity to ask the class for feedback - we might be able to help!
•
You are allotted 15 minutes for your presentation. Ideally, you should present for 10 minutes and
allow 5 minutes for questions/comments. I will hold up time sheets for you during your presentation
so you know what time you have remaining of the initial 10 minutes. In the interest of fairness and
also to ensure that we can fit in 5 presentations in per class, I will be strict with time and will stop
you at the 15 minute mark.
•
Visuals are good! Handouts, powerpoint slides, using the whiteboard, etc. are all useful tools for
giving a presentation, and can also help you to focus your basic points that you want to present. If
you would like to distribute a handout for your presentation, make sure you bring 18 copies; if you
want to use a computer/data projector, you need to arrive 10 minutes early so that we can get your
presentation copied onto the computer hard drive.
•
Contrary to what you might think, 10 minutes goes by VERY quickly, so you might not be able to
cover in detail everything that you plan to cover in your paper. You might choose to focus on one
part of your essay rather than an overview of the entire research.
•
Respect your fellow students: you are expected to attend each presentation and to arrive on time.
•
I will ask each of you to fill out a short feedback sheet for each of the presentations. Your comments
for and from your fellow students are extremely beneficial. Try to be honest, relevant, constructive.
•
An essay presentation is a required component of this course and is worth 10% of your final grade.
Presentations will take place in the last four classes: Nov. 20, 25, Dec. 2, 4 – see attached schedule
1/2
LING 473
Instructor: Dr. Leora Bar-el
Essays (see also my comments on your individual outlines)
•
Essays will be evaluated based on the following: (i) research question and argumentation (ii)
structure of the essay, (iii) your original contribution, (iv) sources, and (v) style and formatting.
•
Central research question/problem: your paper must identify a central question/problem that you are
trying to answer/solve in the paper. It should be clearly stated in the introduction of your paper and
then the remainder of the paper should then revolve around that question/problem.
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You are expected to make an original contribution; i.e., a summary of the literature is not enough –
you must reflect on what you have read, synthesize the material, and make a claim/proposal.
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Significance/implications: it would be useful, at least in your conclusion, to briefly discuss the
significance of your paper. Things to think about: what can we learn from your analysis? Does your
paper contribute to a debate in the field? What will it tell us about the intersection between language
and culture?...
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Length requirements: Undergraduate essays are expected to be 10-12 pages, double-spaced, 12 point
font, 1 inch margins; graduate essays are expected to be 15-18 pages. Please use standard fonts;
exceptions of course are special fonts for presenting language data. Where possible, please submit a
double-sided printout/copy.
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Formatting requirements: be consistent – look at a linguistics journal (e.g., Language) and follow
their formatting requirements (e.g., citing sources, reference list…). Whatever format you choose,
just be consistent throughout the paper. Further information is also available from the Linguistic
Society of America (LSA) website www.lsadc.org.
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Reference list: make sure that you list in your references every work that you cite in your paper.
Provide complete bibliographical information in your references and be consistent.
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Citing sources: There is no need to list paper or book titles in the text of the paper –the author and
year are sufficient for citing, and again, provide complete references. Ideas that are not your own
should be cited throughout your paper.
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Keep a copy of your essay!
Essays are due in my office on WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 10 between 10:00am-11:00am.
Resources: The UM Writing Centre
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The Writing Centre offers tutoring services that can help you with your writing skills:
http://www.umt.edu/writingcenter/tutoring.htm
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They also post a number of useful documents and links on their website
http://www.umt.edu/writingcenter/handoutsandlinks.htm
If you have any further questions, come by my office hours or make an appointment to see me
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