LINGUISTICS 189/289 - STANFORD UNIVERSITY

Linguistics and the Teaching of English
as a Second/Foreign Language

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Linguistics 189/289
Winter 2005

Instructor: Phil Hubbard
Office: 460-030D; 725-1557; phubbard@stanford.edu
Website: www.stanford.edu/class/linguist289  
Mondays & Wednesdays 3:15-5:05,  200-107

Introduction.

This class offers a foundation in approaches and techniques for the teaching of second or foreign languages from the perspective of linguistics and language acquisition research. Though the perspective is theory and research based, this is not a course about research. It is rather about how to use research and generalizations derived from it to inform teaching practice.

While the focus is on the teaching of English, the principles underlying the approaches and techniques discussed are applicable to the teaching of any language. We concentrate on spoken language development, but reading and writing are also touched on briefly. For those interested in technology, there is a 5th unit option for a section on computer assisted language learning.

More specifically, this course provides you with the following:

1) a survey of the history of second language teaching methodology and the factors that have influenced it;

2) an overview of selected areas of current second language acquisition research;

3) a look at some contemporary approaches and their underlying principles;

4) a repertoire of basic teaching techniques in the various skill areas;

5) experience in the task of deciding what to teach and how to teach it in a given situation;

6) the opportunity to sharpen the critical skills necessary to continue in this field independently.

Class time will include a variety of activities: lectures, demonstrations, discussion of readings, and applications of concepts from them. Some background in language teaching, linguistics, and/or cognitive psychology is quite helpful but not absolutely necessary.

Auditors are welcome but are expected to 1) attend regularly, 2) keep up with the readings, and 3) participate actively in class discussions.

Course Requirements.

1. Readings/participation. Because the class is small and heavily discussion-oriented, it is vital that you read the assignments before the class in which they are to be covered and be there to discuss them. Your regular attendance and the quality of your class participation will be important considerations in your final grade.

2. Tutoring. To get some practical experience with the concepts and techniques you will be learning, you will be assigned or will find for yourself two or more students who need tutoring in English or some other language, meeting them for a total of 90 minutes each week (weeks 2-9) You will be submitting weekly reports of your meetings and a brief final report near the end of the quarter. Note that a possible option for this practical experience is to work as an aide in one of the English for Foreign Students classes.

3. Graded assignments. You will have three graded assignments which constitute the majority of the grade for this class. In each case, you will need to review relevant aspects of the readings and relate them to a practical objective. The assignments are as follows:

1. Designing a language course for a specific teaching situation or writing a critical review of a second language acquisition research study
2. Evaluating a potential textbook for a specific language course
3. Preparing materials and a lesson plan for a one-hour class

4. Graduate (L289) Credit. If you are taking the course as Linguistics 289, you will need to give a short  presentation on an article from one of the following journals, all of which are available in Cubberley Library: TESOL Quarterly, Modern Language Journal, Studies in Second Language Acquisition, Language Learning, or System. Look for an article that is relevant to classroom teaching and would be of some interest to the majority of the class. Please do not select something you are already reading for another course. The presentation should be about 10 minutes long and include a 1-page handout summarizing key points of the content. You need to submit a copy of the abstract to me by Wednesday 1/19 so that I can approve and schedule it. This is not directly graded (see (6) below), and students electing the undergraduate number (Ling 189) are not required to do this.

5. Fifth Unit. If you are interested in the use of computers in language teaching, I will be offering a “mini course” for a 5th unit. We will meet an extra 90 minutes or so a week for 8 weeks at a time to be arranged to discuss issues within the field and look at what is happening on the web and with instructional software. To receive credit for the 5th unit you will need to do a short project and present it to the group during the last week, along with a brief written report.

6. Grading. There are no exams: your final grade will be determined as follows.

1) Tutoring reports, class participation, and class presentations – 25%

2) Assignment 1 (due 2/14) – 25%

3) Assignment 2 (due 2/28) – 25%

4) Assignment 3 (due 3/14) – 25%

All work is expected by the due date and is subject to a late penalty.

Schedule of Topics and Readings.

The daily topics appear below, and the assigned readings provide the focus for that day. The required texts for the course are

How Languages are Learned, Revised Edition by Patsy Lightbown and Nina Spada (HLL)  
Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language: 3^rd Edition edited by Marianne Celce-Murcia (TESFL)

Note that there may be a couple of other supplemental readings: this is still to be determined.
 

Introduction to Language Teaching

1/5 Introduction to the Course

1/10 Foundations of the Field: Leading Ideas in 20th Century Language Teaching (TESFL 3-12; 13-28)

1/12 Language teaching methodology (TESFL 55-66)

 

SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING

1/17 HOLIDAY--NO CLASS

1/19 "Learning a First Language" (HLL 1-26)
        "Theoretical Approaches to Explaining Second Language Learning" (HLL 31-40)

1/24 "Theoretical Approaches to Explaining Second Language Learning" (HLL 41-45)
        "Factors Affecting Second Language Learning" (HLL 49-69)

1/26 "Learner Language" (HLL 71-88)

1/31 "Observing Second Language Teaching (HLL 91-115)

2/2 "Second Language Learning in the Classroom (HLL 117-135)

2/7 "Second Language Learning in the Classroom (HLL 135-153) 
        "Popular Ideas about Language Learning: Facts and Opinions" (HLL 161-170)  

 

Second Language Teaching Practice

2/9 Listening (TESFL 87-100)

2/11 Assignment 1 Due (planning a class)

2/14 Speaking (TESFL 103-115); Pronunciation (TESFL 117-137)

2/16 Experiential learning (TESFL 319-332); Learning styles (TESFL 359-366)

2/21 HOLIDAY—NO CLASS

2/23 Grammar (TESFL 251-266; 267-284)

2/25 Assignment 2 Due (textbook review)

2/28 Vocabulary (TESFL 285-300)

3/2  Reading (TESFL 187-203)

3/7  Writing  (TESFL 219-232)

3/9  Peer Teaching--Last Class.

3/11 Tutor Assignment Due

3/14 Assignment 3 Due (lesson plan) 

DISABILITY NOTICE: Any student who needs special help getting to class, hearing in class, seeing written material, or doing some other task associated with the course must discuss the need with the instructor during the first week of class. Further, the student must obtain professional diagnosis of the need area by the University's Disability Resource Center.