ENG6622 - Bilingualism and Multilingualism

Objectives:

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
Demonstrate knowledge of characteristics of bilingual language acquisition in children and theories of how this works.
Describe some of the linguistic phenomena associated with language contact situations.
Present a case study of a society, community or institution in which more than one language is used, and discuss social and political issues related to this situation.
Identify and use appropriate sources and methods for research into bilingualism and multilingualism.

Content:

This module builds on the knowledge and understanding gained from the Level 5 Child Language module and also on the Sociolinguistics and Pragmatics module strand that runs through the programme. It begins by focussing in more detail on the phenomenon of bilingual language acquisition in children, and the first assignment requires students to show knowledge of this area and critical debates around it. The module then goes on to consider multilingualism as a feature of most modern societies, examining different situations around the world and how social and political issues arising from multilingualism are managed. The second assignment requires students to research and present a case study of one such situation.

Learning and Teaching Information:

The main form of teaching session will be the seminar, where concepts and skills will be introduced by the lecturer and learned through practical application -specific tasks, problem-solving, discussion and collaborative close reading of texts, with regular provision of formative feedback on those activities.There will be two two-hour seminars each week over two periods of three weeks with an interval for the first assessment. Additional resources and support for guided independent study will be provided via Moodle and through availability of weekly staff drop-in times for advice, clarification, discussion of assignment plans etc.

Seminars
Hours: 24
Intended Group Size: 15

Guided independent study
Hours: 176

Assessment:

001 Essay 1; 1,500 words; mid-semester 2 40%
002 Essay 2; 2,500 words; end of semester 2 60%

Fact File

Module Coordinator - Linda Walz
Level - 6
Credit Value - 20
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 6S2

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