Introduction to Phonetics
LING 106, Fall 2014
W 5:00-7:20, BRDA 1640
INSTRUCTOR: Eric Campbell
email: ecampbell@linguistics.ucsb.edu
Office: South Hall 3524
Office hours: Tue 11–12, Wed 1:30–2:30, and by appointment
TEACHING ASSISTANTS:
Heather Simpson
Joseph Brooks
email: hsimpson@umail.ucsb.edu
Office: SH 5431 F
Office hours: W, Th 10–11
Sections: M 1–1:50, 2–2:50 (SH 3605)
email: josephdbrooks@umail.ucsb.edu
Office: SH 5431 E
Office hours: W 8–9am
Section: Th 8–8:50 (Girv 1116)
Course website: https://gauchospace.ucsb.edu/courses/
Department of Linguistics: http://www.linguistics.ucsb.edu/
COURSE DESCRIPTION
In this course we investigate the sounds of speech. We study English and many other languages of the world,
which show a great degree of diversity in the sounds they utilize. We focus on the production of speech
sounds, their physical properties, and how to identify and transcribe them. Whether you’re an actor gaining
skill in different accents, a learner of a foreign language mastering its pronunciation, a therapist helping
people overcome speech disorders, a scientist advancing speech synthesis technology, a field linguist
documenting endangered languages, or many other things, the study of phonetics is a useful and rewarding
endeavor.
COURSE GOALS
By engaging in and completing this course, you will learn to better do all or most of the following:
1. Produce and identify a wide range of speech sounds from diverse languages, even ones that are otherwise
largely unfamiliar to you;
2. Transcribe speech sounds of just about any language using a single, consistent system of representation:
the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA);
3. Understand the physical and anatomical mechanisms for producing speech and be aware of them while
speaking or listening;
4. Identify and analyze some of the acoustic properties of the speech signal;
5. Carry out basic phonetic research using linguistic field methods and software
READINGS AND RESOURCES
All readings must be completed by the day they appear on the course schedule at the end of this syllabus.
Text: Ladefoged, Peter & Keith Johnson, A Course in Phonetics, 7th edition, 2014, Cengage Learning,
ISBN-13: 9781285463407
The textbook is cheaper as an electronic rental from the publisher at:
http://www.coursesmart.com/IR/7258870/9781285463407?__hdv=6.8
Other readings, announcements, assignments, lecture notes, handouts, etc. will be available on
GauchoSpace: https://gauchospace.ucsb.edu/courses/
Other web resources
Website that accompanies the new 7th edition of the book: http://linguistics.berkeley.edu/acip/
Interactive website for 5th edition: http://www.phonetics.ucla.edu/course/contents.html
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REQUIRED WORK
% OF FINAL GRADE
1 Questionnaire
5%
4 Mini-quizzes
@ 5%
20%
2 Assignments
@ 15% 30%
1 Mid-term quiz
15%
1 Project, in 3 parts:
30%
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
5%
5%
20%
See the course schedule below for when and where to turn your work in.
POLICIES ON COURSEWORK
You are encouraged to work with other students on the homework assignments. However, the work that you
submit must be your own. That is, you may discuss the homework with colleagues, but when you are writing
it up you must be alone. If you collaborate, write the names of the people you worked with at the top of your
assignment. Any copying is treated as academic dishonesty and may lead to serious repercussions, such as
referral to the Office of Judicial Affairs, a reduced grade, or failure the class.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Honesty and integrity in all academic work is essential for a valuable educational experience. The Office of
Judicial Affairs has policies, tips, and resources for proper citation use, recognizing actions considered to be
cheating or other forms of academic theft, and students’ responsibilities, available on their website
at: http://judicialaffairs.sa.ucsb.edu. Students are responsible for educating themselves on the policies and to
abide by them.
COMMUNICATION
It is important that you communicate effectively with me. I can work through difficulties with you if I know
what’s going on all along. Don’t wait to address concerns or problems.
 Email: If you want to contact me outside of class, send me an email. Please include the words LING
106 somewhere in the subject line of the message.
 Office Hours: T 11–12, W 1:30–2:30. Office hours are extra time to ask questions and explore in
more depth topics that interest you. If you want to speak with me and cannot make it to office hours,
email me to set up an appointment.
GauchoSpace: Familiarize yourself with GauchoSpace and check it regularly.
SPECIAL NEEDS
Students with disabilities may request academic accommodations for exams online through the UCSB
Disabled Students Program at http://dsp.sa.ucsb.edu/. Please make your requests for exam accommodations
through the online system as early in the quarter as possible to ensure proper arrangement.
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS
Managing stress / Supporting Distressed Students
Personal concerns such as stress, anxiety, relationships, depression, cultural differences, can interfere with
the ability of students to succeed and thrive. For helpful resources, please contact UCSB Counseling &
Psychological Services (CAPS) at 805-893-4411 or visit http://counseling.sa.ucsb.edu/. If you encounter a
student in distress, please contact 805-893-3030 immediately and/or consult the Responding to Distressed
Student Protocol at http://www.sa.ucsb.edu/responding-to-distressed-students/welcome or phone 893-3030.
For general academic support, students are encouraged to visit Campus Learning Assistance Services
(CLAS) early and often. CLAS offers instructional groups, drop-in tutoring, writing and ESL services, skills
workshops and one-on-one consultations. CLAS is located on the third floor of the Student Resource
Building, or visit http://clas.sa.ucsb.edu
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Course Schedule
Introduction to Phonetics – LING 106, Fall 2014
This schedule is an outline and is subject to change
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Day
Topics covered, work due
Reading
W 10/8
Orientation and intro
Chapters 1, 2
T 10/14
Questionnaire due by 11pm (GauchoSpace)
W 10/15
English consonants
Chapter 3
W 10/22
English vowels, Mini-quiz 1 (in class)
Chapter 4
T 10/28
Assignment 1 due by 11pm (GauchoSpace)
W 10/29
English words and sentences, Mini-quiz 2 (in class)
Chapter 5
W 11/5
Airstream mechanisms/phonation, Mid-term quiz (in class)
Chapter 6
T 11/11
Project step 1 due by 11pm (GauchoSpace)
W 11/12
Consonantal gestures
Chapter 7
W 11/19
Acoustic phonetics, Mini-quiz 3 (in class)
Chapter 8
T 11/25
Project step 2 due by 11pm (GauchoSpace)
W 11/26
No class -- Thanksgiving
T 12/2
Assignment 2 due by 11pm (GauchoSpace)
W 12/3
Vowels and vowel-like articulations
Chapter 9
W 12/10
Syllables, suprasegmentals and beyond, Mini-quiz 4 (in class)
Chapter 10
—
Project due by 4pm (GauchoSpace)
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