This is an introductory course in linguistics (which also fulfills an Institute-wide humanities requirement).
Students will be able to....
- Describe key, motivating facts in the main subfields of theoretical linguistics: phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics/pragmatics, sociolinguistics, language typology, acquisition.
- Appreciate linguistic diversity, analyze cross-linguistic data, and reflect meta-linguistically on one’s own language(s).
- Communicate clearly on technical topics: use precise vocabulary to make implicit knowledge of language explicit; state claims clearly with examples and supporting evidence; and contextualize ideas within a bigger picture.
- [valuable for many career paths]
- Combine and appreciate the value of both ‘scientific’ and ‘humanistic’ perspectives (on language and ideally in general).
- Contribute to and benefit from a vibrant socio-intellectual community. Recognize that many questions remain open; feel empowered and welcome as potential junior researchers.
Language Files textbook.
35% Exams (3 exams, pencil-and-paper/multiple choice)
20% Homework (5 total; auto-graded Canvas quizzes with short written portion; Canvas takes off 10% per day late)
15% Portfolios (2 total; one group presentation, one solo video project)
15% Quizzes (10 total)
10% Attendance (calculated from records of quizzes and responses to peers' group presentations)
5% Academic Engagement (2 total; attend a talk or participate in a study and submit a 150-word reflection)
TOTAL: 100%
Attendance (calculated from records of quizzes and responses to peers' group presentations) counts for 10% of your grade.
Institute-approved absences are excused.
Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.
You may not present an LLM’s work as your own. You must disclose how you used any LLM tool.
If you use an LLM to simulate the appearance of thinking or knowledge inside your own brain, you have cheated academically, and you have also cheated yourself out of an opportunity to learn (just as you would be cheating the rules and cheating yourself if you biked a 10k instead of running it).
You must complete all quizzes and homeworks without assistance from anyone else.
This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Humanities area. Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help students master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.
This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:
- How do I interpret the human experience through creative, linguistic, and philosophical works?
Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:
- Students will effectively analyze and interpret the meaning, cultural significance, and ethical implications of literary/philosophical texts or of works in the visual/performing arts.
Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies:
- Ethical reasoning
- Information literacy
- Intercultural competence