Welcome to the course English for Upper Secondary Teachers / Engelska för ämneslärare (61-90) 30hp (campus)

Course syllabus, reading list and timetable

• Course syllabus
  
• Reading list
• Course timetable

Course organisation

This course is our 61 to 90 cr. course in the English Studies Section. The first ten weeks of the semester you will study “Sociolinguistics and Second Language Acquisition” taught by Kavita Thomas (Kavita.Thomas@hig.se) and “Literature and Literary Theory” taught by Iulian Cananau (Iulian.Cananau@hig.se). You will write the C-essay for the remainder of the term. Literature module meetings will be held on Thursdays from 11-13 while linguistics module meetings will be held on Wednesdays from 10:30-12:30.
The linguistics module presents central concepts in two central areas of applied linguistics: second language acquisition and sociolinguistics. You will learn about and discuss the implications of the central concepts in these fields, exploring how they apply to your own observations. Furthermore, you will explore research involving these concepts and see how linguists study language phenomena in these two fields. In the second language acquisition part, you will learn about different theories of second language acquisition and about factors that can affect learning a foreign language. In the sociolinguistics part of the module you will learn about how social factors like gender and class can affect language and about how language can be used to define and express identity. The required textbooks are:
Wardhaugh, Ronald, An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 7th edition, Blackwell, 2015. (Older editions are also fine). Available as an ebook from the University of Gävle library.
Coates, Jennifer, Women, Men and Language, 3rd ed, Routledge, 2016. (Older editions are also fine).
Mitchell, Rosamond, Myles, Florence and Marsden, Emma, Second Language Learning Theories, 3rd edition, Routledge, 2013. Available as an ebook from the University of Gävle library.
Gass, Susan M. and Selinker, Larry, Second Language Acquisition, an Introductory Course, 3rd edition, Routledge, 2008. Available as an ebook from the University of Gävle library.
The module will be taught through 10 seminars which students are expected to attend and participate actively in. In terms of written assignments, for the sociolinguistics half of the course you will have one longer assignment (around 5 pages) and a project report (5 pages). For the second language acquisition half you will have four smaller assignments of around 2.5 pages each.
The Literature module serves as an introduction to some of the most influential developments in critical thinking. Peter Barry’s Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory, Fourth Edition (2017) (older editions are also fine) provides helpful starting points regarding the current breadth and complexity of literary and cultural studies. We will read five novels from a cultural and theoretical perspective. These texts are:
Crome Yellow by Aldous Huxley
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
Crossing the River by Caryl Phillips
Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich
Beloved by Toni Morrison
These works differ in narrative strategies, thematic emphases, and political orientation. Different critical “schools” will be presented and discussed in the seminars and, as a means of illustration, particular interpretive perspectives will be employed when examining fictional texts during the seminars. There will be five written assignments for the Literature course, one for each book we discuss in class. The timetable will follow the following pattern: first, there will be an introduction lecture on the literary work as well as on theory. At the following meeting, students will have their written assignment with them in class. These papers will be discussed and turned in at that meeting. The essays should be between 1000 and 1200 words, and deal directly with some aspect of the assignment topic posted by the instructors. The purpose of these written tasks is to cultivate skills in critical reflection and academic writing, and to allow instructors to offer feedback on your writing, in order for you to prepare in the best possible way for writing your C-essay.
Students attending courses in English at the University of Gävle are required to attend class in order to receive a passing grade. Studying English at our college does not only involve obtaining subject knowledge, but also improving one’s ability to speak and write in English, and this can only take place if students meet their teachers and actively participate in the instruction. Furthermore, the first two modules feature live, face-to-face, student-teacher and student-student interaction, and these live sessions are examination seminars according to the syllabus (kursplan). For these reasons, we require attendance, with only minor exceptions. To pass the course, students must attend and actively participate in at least eight meetings in each of the two modules, “Sociolinguistics and Second Language Acquisition” and “Literature and Literary Theory”.

Communication

On Canvas, you will find specific information, such as detailed course descriptions, class timetable, teaching materials, course requirements, discussion forum, and assignments. A great part of your work will be carried out via Canvas, too. It is therefore essential that you enroll in the course on Canvas the week before the semester starts (keep in mind that course registration and enrollment in the course on Canvas are separate things). Once the module has started, you should check the course site on Canvas on a daily basis. Important information will be posted by your instructors on the first page of the course site (as “Announcements”).

While studying the first two modules, you should think about the kind of research paper you want to write in the last 15-credit module. By the end of the first two modules, your course coordinator (Kavita Thomas) should know if you are going to write your paper in literature or in language studies. You will then be assigned an essay advisor who will work with you for the remainder of the course. Bear in mind that this is a full time course of study and you should expect to put in about 40 hours a week on the course. Please contact the individual teachers (emails above) with questions on the individual modules and the course coordinator with questions on the course itself.

From the autumn semester 2020, Canvas will replace the University's current learning management system Blackboard. You will automatically be enrolled on the course in Canvas once you have registered for your course in Ladok. Please note that it can take up to 60 minutes for the systems to synchronise but after that you will be able to see your course in Canvas.

Log in to Canvas

Cheating and plagiarizing are serious academic offences, which result in failing the module in question and being reported to the college’s disciplinary commission. To learn about plagiarism and get basic information on how to avoid it, please read the attached disclaimer carefully before the beginning of the course; print it, sign it, make a copy/take a picture, and upload it to Canvas.

Plagiarism