Language and Mind: Linguistics and Cognitive Studies (LM-­‐39) The Master program in Language and Mind. Linguistics and Cognitive Studies is activated within the class LM/39 (Linguistics). The program proposes a highly interdisciplinary training, directly connected with the advanced research activities undertaken at the Center for Cognitive Studies on Language -­‐ CISCL (www.ciscl.unisi.it). The program is articulated in two curricula: Linguistics and Cognition; Philosophy and Cognition. The teaching offered in English is meant to stress the highly international profile of this course, which should enhance access by international students, interaction between Italian and foreigner students, opportunity to enrol in international PhD programs, ability to actively participate in international conferences and seminars, possibility to access job opportunities abroad. The course aims to offer a formation at the same time coherent and diversified, with a first year in which the majority of courses is in common between the two curricula and the second year specifically dedicated to one of the two curricula. General description The Master program proposes a highly interdisciplinary training, directly connected with the advanced research activities undertaken at the Center for Cognitive Studies on Language-­‐CISCL (www.ciscl.unisi.it). The Master program is articulated in two curricula: – Linguistics and cognition; – Philosophy and cognition. Two modifications are introduced on the preceding MA activated in the same class: i. The teaching is offered in English ii. The program is articulated in two curricula. The first modification aims to stress the already highly international character of the master program so as to favor the access of international students and the interaction between Italian and foreign students; the opportunity to access international doctoral programs; the capacity of the students to actively participate in international conferences and seminars; the possibility to access job opportunities abroad. The second modification (also in view of the migration of some courses of the previous master program of which the present one is a modification into a different MA ) aims to build a formation that is at the same time coherent and diversified, in which a predominant number of common courses are present in the first year of the program and the second year is devoted to an in depth study in one of the two directions. The MA program in Language and Mind. Linguistics and Cognitive Studies focuses, in both curricula, on the study of language in the perspective of cognitive studies and of the philosophy of language and mind. It is primarily addressed to students interested in: the in depth description of human languages in their different varieties, including different dialects; the study of language as a cognitive capacity and its relevance in the domain of first and second language acquisition and language pathology; the study of the philosophical, psychological, biological and social bases of language and cognition; the study of the relevance of the in-­‐depth analysis of human language for philosophical studies. The main achievements to be attained by the students of the Master program are: – an in depth knowledge of the theoretical models and of the analytical methods of contemporary linguistics, including experimental methods and field research; – the ability to apply theories and methods of linguistic research for the description and analysis of different languages, in a comparative perspective; – familiarity with different aspects of the interdisciplinary study of language as a cognitive capacity, of first and second language acquisition, of the relation between mind, language and the brain; – familiarity with the philosophical issues underlying the study of language as a cognitive capacity and of the relation between mind and language, as well as of the relation between logic, inference and meaning in natural language; – the ability to utilize theories and methods of linguistics in different applied domains, such as language teaching, the study of language pathology, computational applications and psycholinguistic experimentations. The following credits (CFU) are assigned to the scientific areas (SSD) of the class LM/39 – Linguistics (see: 1 https://www.cun.it/uploads/storico/settori_scientifico_disciplinari_english.pdf): C1: Linguistic, philological, semiotic methodologies: -­‐ L-­‐LIN/01 -­‐ L-­‐FIL-­‐LET/12 30-­‐48 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/05 C2: Languages and Literatures -­‐ L-­‐LIN/03-­‐14; 21; -­‐ L-­‐OR/08 6-­‐12 C3: Computational, logico-­‐philosophical, psychological and socio-­‐economical disciplines: -­‐ M-­‐FIL/01 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/02 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/03 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/04 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/05 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/06 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/07 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/08 -­‐ M-­‐PSI/01 -­‐ M-­‐STO/05 12-­‐18 -­‐ SPS/08 18 CFU are attributed to the following SSD, identified as "related domains" ("SSD affini"): A: -­‐ BIO/09 18-­‐18 -­‐ INF/01 -­‐ ING-­‐INF/05 -­‐ L-­‐FIL-­‐LET/12 -­‐ L-­‐FIL-­‐LET/15 -­‐ L-­‐LIN/01 -­‐ L-­‐LIN/04 -­‐ L-­‐LIN/07 -­‐ L-­‐LIN/12 -­‐ L-­‐LIN/14 -­‐ L-­‐LIN/21 -­‐ L-­‐OR/08 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/01 M-­‐FIL/02 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/03 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/04 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/05 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/06 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/07 -­‐ M-­‐FIL/08 -­‐ M-­‐PSI/01 -­‐ MAT/01 -­‐ SECS-­‐S/01 -­‐ SPS Didactic methods and objectives The Master program in Language and Mind Linguistics and Cognitive Studies is centred on advanced theoretical and experimental research on language and cognition. Students will become able to address a specialized scientific bibliography and to be in contact with qualified publications and scientific journals, both on paper and online. Students will show the level attained in their overall formation in the elaboration and subsequent discussion of their Master thesis, to which the course reserves a significant number of credits. Students will present the state of their work for their thesis at a medium-­‐advanced level of elaboration within the frame of a research seminar, integrated within the schedule of the Master program. Two research seminars are arranged, 2 one for each curriculum; the course program reserves a dedicated numbers of credits to the seminar, attendance to which is mandatory. The research seminar of the linguistic curriculum is articulated into sessions throughout the academic year, consisting in reports about the field work and/or gathering material and/or methodological discussion for the thesis project, where one or more sessions can be integrated by talks given by one of the instructors or by an invited speaker. The research seminar of the philosophical curriculum is articulated into a Summer School and/or a Workshop, whose attendants are required to write a paper about one of issues discussed, and/or in sessions in which a student presents her/his thesis work at a medium-­‐advanced level of elaboration and discusses it. Professors, classmates of the same curriculum and first year students who have chosen the same curriculum will participate in the seminar. This favours the exchange as well as a direct feedback of the attained knowledge, as the analogous previous experience of the research seminar held within the previous Master program of which the present one is a transformation has successfully shown over the years. Once students have decided on the topic of their master thesis, with the cultural-­‐scientific awareness derived from the study course in the ways described above, they will be able to carry out a personal research – which will eventually attain a certain level of originality – that will be evaluated by the thesis supervisor and by the teachers present at the research seminars given by the students. Students will be able to formulate explicative hypotheses, both on the formal-­‐linguistic side and on the philosophical side, of different linguistic and cognitive phenomena, to elaborate experimental designs in the domain of first and second language acquisition and pathology, to evaluate the validity and relevance of scientific and philosophical arguments, to choose their intellectual partners, also in the perspective of decisions about their own future, either in the job market or in a doctoral program, at the national or international level. Deveopment of communication skills Within the frame of the courses taken during their first year in the Master, students will have the opportunity to make brief presentations on topics indicated in the different course programs, specific to the various courses. Students will also be often required to prepare a written version of their oral presentation or of a different topic, following the specific requests of the different courses. This will give students the opportunity to systematically exercise their communication skills, both orally and in written form, to acquire the ability to autonomously master a well-­‐defined research theme and to put together an adequate bibliography, of both printed works, owned by the library, and of online material downloaded from qualified national and international websites, scientific journals and pre-­‐prints. The very presence to their presentations of both the teacher responsible for the course and of classmates requires that students be able to adapt their oral presentation so that they can be understood by a specialist as well as by non-­‐specialists. As already successfully experimented in the previous MA program, this simple requirement guarantees a systematic exercise of capacities that could otherwise remain unexpressed. The grade for each course will then be based on both a final exam and, to an extent that may vary in the different courses, on the result of the oral presentation and/or written (small) paper. This constitutes a stimulus and a challenge for each student to try to reach the best result. Master thesis and final grade The master thesis will be the written presentation of a personal theoretical and/or experimental research. The preparation of the thesis will be conducted under the direction of a supervisor, whom the student will choose among the professors of the master program. The thesis will have to be of a certain length, and should not be less than 100 pages. A second professor will play the role of co-­‐supervisor. The thesis will be defended in front of a committee. The state of advancement in the elaboration of the master thesis will be verified in the course of its preparation in a dedicated research seminar, specifically planned in the timetable of the program. If the presentation at the research seminar will be approved by the professors of the master program, the candidate will be attributed the planned cfu. The thesis will be attributed 18 cfu. The final grade will be attributed on the basis of the average obtained by the student in the exams, calculated over 110. It will be possible to raise the average following the criteria established by the Department for an original piece of work of high scientific quality, to which it will also be possible to attribute the mention cum laude (with distinction). 3 Opportunities to study abroad The students will have the opportunity to apply for an Erasmus scholarship to spend a period abroad at a Department that offers relevant courses. The following exchange programs are cspecifically oordinated by professors of the Master program: -­‐ Prof. A. Belletti: University of Barcelona, Stuttgart, Edinburg, Oldenburg, Tours. -­‐ Prof. C. Lumer: University of Bayreuth, Saarbruecken, University College Dublin. -­‐ Prof. S. Nannini: University of Leuven, Bremen, Hamburg, Oldenburg,Osnabrueck, Madrid (Complutense), Besançon, Nijmegen. -­‐ Prof. G. Usberti: Freie Univ. Berlin, University of Hannover, Heidelberg, Madrid (Complutense), Lille 3, Warsaw. Professional profile of the graduate student The MA-­‐graduate will be a professional figure able to adapt his/her knowledge derived from the fundamental research on language as a cognitive capacity in different applied domains in which language is central. In particular, the MA-­‐graduate will be able to offer his/her knowledge on the functioning mechanisms of language in domains such as: – the didactics of languages; – computational linguistics; – the analysis of language pathologies and the design of rehabilitation techniques. He/she will also be able to carry out independent research (of theoretical and/or experimental character) in one of the following domains: linguistics, logic, philosophy of mind. The capacity to apply theories and methods of linguistic research to the description and analysis of particular languages in a comparative perspective prepares students to operate in the domain of advanced fundamental and applied research. The student will acquire the following specific competences: – in depth knowledge of the theoretical models and of the analytical methods of contemporary linguistics, including experimental methods and field research; – ability to apply theories and methods of linguistic research for the description and analysis of different languages, in a comparative perspective; – familiarity with different aspects of the interdisciplinary study of language as a cognitive capacity, of first and second language acquisition; – ability to handle theories and methods of linguistics in different applied domains, such as language teaching, the study of language pathology, computational applications and psycholinguistic experimentations; – familiarity with the philosophical issues related to the relationship between language, mind and brain; – advanced knowledge in the fields of logic and philosophy of language. The main professional outcomes are: – University teacher in the fields of linguistics, philosohy and cognitive sciences; – Researcher in the same fields; – Specialist in logic or computational linguistics; – Linguist working in the field of information technology; – Specialized translator for specific domains of advanced research; – Teacher of foreign languages, of Italian as a first or second language. Moreover, the two curricula provide competences that can be applied in one of the following domains: a) In the framework of the services for education, the holder of the degree will be able to collaborate with teachers specialized in the education of children and adults with learning disabilities, or with language instructors (teaching within the school system will conform to the current general legislation). b) In the framework of health services, in centers specialized in rehabilitation from language impairment. c) in the framework of social activities, in public administrations or private institutions which deal with issues related to multilingualism in the scolastic environment. 4