The Structure of Modern English II

Welcome to ENGL 2203AED The Structure of Modern English II. This three-credit-unit course is part of the Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Language and Translation (BAHLT) degree, which has three main strands: English language study, Chinese language study, and
translation. This course, together with ENGL 2202AED The Structure of Modern English I, will equip you with linguistic knowledge and tools to explore and analyse English as it is currently used. It will prepare you for more advanced studies in linguistics.

Specifically, ENGL 2203AED is designed to help you understand two subfields of linguistics not covered in ENGL 2202AED (i.e. semantics and pragmatics) and explore discourse analysis, language variation and World Englishes. The five study units will include short activities and self-tests to help you with your analytical skills.

This Course Guide has been prepared to guide you through the course. It contains important information on the course materials and
procedures. Please take a few minutes to read it and familiarize yourself with what you will have to do to complete the course successfully.

We hope that you enjoy working on ENGL 2203AED The Structure of Modern English II and we encourage you to contact your tutor if you have any questions about the course.

Course aims

This course aims to:

• introduce you to semantics, pragmatics and discourse analysis;
• help you understand and appreciate local, regional and global variations in the English language; and
• provide examples and exercises to help you develop your analytical skills.

Course learning outcomes

Upon the completion of ENGL 2203AED The Structure of Modern English II, you should be able to:

• Describe the semantic and pragmatic features of English.
• Analyse basic English texts and interactions.
• Describe the processes of language change in English.
• Identify features of global varieties of English.

Study units

This course consists of five study units. Each unit concentrates on different aspects of the English language. The course materials also direct you to additional resources and readings and include a number of activities and exercises to help you develop your analytical skills.

Below you will find a brief description of each of the five units.

Unit 1 Semantics

This unit provides a broad introduction to semantics by discussing some basic notions in semantics as well as looking at some key lexical relationships. It also examines how semantic change occurs. The unit ends with a discussion of semantic relationships involving sentences.

Unit 2 Pragmatics

This unit relates meaning to context and looks at the pragmatics of English. In particular, it introduces the role of context in creating and reflecting meaning. The unit introduces speech act theory, the notion of conversational implicature and politeness.

Unit 3 Discourse analysis

Building on Unit 2, which focuses on pragmatics of spoken discourse, Unit 3 looks more closely at written texts, and considers tools and frameworks that can be used to analyse written texts. The unit introduces the notions of genre and register, and starts investigating how texts are organized and how text structures relate to their social purpose.

Unit 4 Language variation

Unit 4 looks at how processes of language change and how English has changed and is changing. The unit first introduces historical linguistics as a way of studying language change over time. The unit then introduces dialectology and approaches to studying language variation before examining various factors that may influence language change.

Unit 5 Modern Englishes

The final unit of the course examines how new dialects and varieties of English have developed. Modern Englishes challenge our traditional descriptions of English and how English works. This unit focuses on the shifting roles that English plays in a 'glocalized' world and challenges us to think beyond this course to relate how English is used in diverse contexts.

Assignment File

There are three assignments in this course, which will be included in the Assignment File. You are advised to complete all of them; however, only the best two of your assignment grades will count towards your final grade.

The Assignment File includes detailed descriptions of what you are required to do to complete each assignment. It will outline the various stages and phases of your assignment. They may also include guidelines on the use of appropriate academic language in writing assignments.

Please see the section on assessment below for further information on the assignments for this course.

Presentation Schedule

The Presentation Schedule is available on the OLE, and it gives the dates for completing assignments, and attending tutorials, supplementary lectures, etc.

Assessment

The course carries two formal activities in student assessment:

• three assignments; and
• a final examination.

Assignments serve as the continuous assessment component within the study period and contribute 50% of the total course marks. The other 50% are evaluated through a final examination.

You are required to have at least 40% or above on the average of assignment scores as well as 40% or above on the final examination in order to obtain a pass in this course.

Assignments

During the 16-week period of distance learning, your performance will be continuously assessed through the submission of the assignments. Assignments serve three purposes:

1. Assignments provide a mechanism for you to keep up your progress.
2. Assignments test your understanding of the topics and require you to demonstrate your achievement on the learning outcomes of each unit.
3. Assignments provide an opportunity to apply what you have learned to wider contexts.

After being marked by your assigned tutor, assignments are returned to you so that you can see your strengths and identify areas that need further development. In addition, your tutor's feedback should help to widen and challenge your ideas.

Final examination and grading

There will be a two-hour final exam at the end of this course, which will contribute 50% towards your final grade. Please note that you must achieve a passing score in this examination in order to pass this course.

The exam will cover all of the material discussed in this course. Exam questions will require you to apply the knowledge that you have gained in this course. There may also be some items that test your understanding of the key terms used in the study of English. You should use the time between Unit 5 and the final examination to review your course material and prepare for the exam. Information about the date, time, and venue of your exam will be provided later.

Course marking scheme

The assessment items are outlined in the following table.

* The scores of the best two of the three assignments will count for 50% of the total marks.

The table below gives all of the course's study units, the time taken to complete them, and the assignments that follow them.

This course is intended to introduce you to English linguistics. As such, we will cover a large number of topics and issues. It is therefore important that you pace yourself and work continuously throughout the term, gradually building your knowledge of English and linguistics.

In this section, we will outline some steps to help you work through the course:

• We recommend that you first carefully read the learning outcomes and introduction of the unit.
• We recommend that you then start working through the rest of the study unit.
• There are a number of short activities and self-tests included in the study units. We suggest that you complete all of these and then compare your answers to the ones given at the end of the unit.
• You should plan to attend all the tutorials.
• The Assignment File provides detailed descriptions of the various assignments. It also suggests ways in which to complete the assignments successfully. Please read through this material carefully and follow the directions.
• Send all your assignments to your tutors on time. Review the marked assignments carefully and read all of your tutor's comments. Please contact your tutor if you have any questions or difficulties.
• Remember to review all the course material to prepare for the final exam. You will be informed of the exam arrangements separately.

Tutorials

Four two-hour tutorial sessions will be provided. Tutorial topics will be on a selection of issues taken from the unit contents and objectives. Your attendance at tutorials is optional, although it is strongly encouraged.

Tutors

ENGL 2203AED tutors will hold regular tutorials of two-hour duration. Tutors review the key concepts introduced in each unit and conduct group and individual discussion. Tutors are expected to be available to answer student queries and offer assistance in completing student assignments when necessary. Aside from marking assignments in accordance with the marking criteria, tutors are also expected to provide comprehensive and timely feedback to students. You may contact your tutor by telephone, by e-mail with the tutor's permission, or during tutorials.

ENGL 2203AED The Structure of Modern English II is a three-credit- unit course which introduces you to how English works. The course will equip you with the foundation knowledge and linguistic tools necessary to explore and analyse English as it is currently used.

As an introductory course, ENGL 2203AED will cover a lot of different topics. There will be some topics that you find more interesting than others. This is expected. We all have our preferences in what we like to study. However, we do urge you to work through all the units carefully as it is important that we have a good understanding of the basics in linguistics.

We hope that this course will help you in discovering your own interests in language. The study units in this course will provide you with a very accessible introduction to the fantastic field of language studies. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact your tutor.

Finally, we hope that you find this journey into English an enjoyable one and that you will continue your exploration of languages by taking more advanced courses in linguistics.

Dr Ahmar Mahboob teaches Linguistics at the University of Sydney. Ahmar has published on a range of topics, including: language teaching and teacher education, language policy and practice, educational linguistics, and World Englishes. Ahmar is the co-editor of Questioning Linguistics (2008) (with Naomi Knight), Studies in Applied Linguistics and Language Learning (2009) (with Caroline Lipovsky), Directions in Appliable Linguistics (2010) (with Naomi Knight), and the editor of The NNEST Lens: Non-native English Speakers in TESOL (2010). Ahmar is the Associate Editor of the journal Linguistics and the Human Sciences and serves on the editorial board of several other journals in the field. He is also the co-founder and co-convenor of the Free Linguistics Conference, held annually at the University of Sydney, Australia.