Ling 201: Introduction to Linguistic Theory

Section B

Fall 2008

Instructor: Chris Davis

Email: cmdavis@linguist.umass.edu

Office: South College 303

Office Hours: Wednesday 12:30 - 2:30 (tentative)

Course Description

Linguistics 201 is the first course in the linguistics curriculum, required for linguistics majors and a prerequisite for all of the more advanced linguistics courses offered at UMass. This course has two main goals:

1. To introduce you to some of the main methods and results of modern linguistic theory,

2. To give you an opportunity to practice and enhance your analytical reasoning skills.

It is due to goal (2) that this course satisfies the R2 General Education (aka Analytic Reasoning) requirement. It is due to goal (1) that this course is called Introduction to Linguistic Theory.

What is this course about?

This course will introduce you to the methods and results of linguistic science. Linguistics is, simply put, the scientific study of language. Throughout the course we will look at phenomena from a variety of languages (including some you've probably never heard of). This will serve as the data that we use to build a general theory of human language. A key component of this course is the construction and revision of hypotheses. You will be required to form hypotheses about the structure of a language based on data you are given. You will then need to test those hypotheses against new data. This is the scientific method in a nutshell, and one goal of this course is to give you hands-on experience with this method.

Course Materials

Textbook

There is an optional textbook for the course, O'Grady, William; John Archibald; Mark Aronoff; and Janie Rees-Miller. 2004. Contemporary Linguistics: An Introduction. Bedford/St. Martin's. 5th Edition. It should be available at the textbook annex. I have also provided a link to its location at Amazon. You should note that reading the textbook is no substitute for attending and participating in class. I can and will introduce material in class that is not found in the textbook.. You should think of the textbook as a supplementary resource.

Course Website

The course website can be found at http://people.umass.edu/cmdavis/201/Fall2008/. I will make notes, handouts, and other materials available at the course website, which you should check regularly. I will provide all electronic copies of homework, notes, etc. in pdf format only. You will therefore need suitable pdf viewing software, such as Adobe Reader. You should check the website regularly, as this is where I will post class materials, summaries of discussions, and anything else that may come up over the semester.

Other Materials

I will make other materials (readings, handouts, etc.) available throughout the semester, either in class or through the class website. In case these materials are copyright sensitive, I will make them available through SPARK.

Doing well in this course

Attendance

While you will not be graded on the basis of attendance, I would like to stress that you must attend class regularly in order to do well in this course. This is not a class in which you can engage in passive learning. Reading the textbook is no substitute for coming to lecture, because I will often teach material not found in the textbook. More importantly, we will spend time in class flexing our analytical reasoning muscles on actual linguistic data. This is the best way to develop the skills that you will need for problem sets and exams in this class. Plus, it's really fun.

Daily Questions

I will begin many classes with a "daily question" about material from the previous lecture. These questions will not be complicated or difficult, and I will even tell you in advance what the possible questions are. The daily question is a simple way to make sure that you are learning as you go, and will save you from having to cram later in the semester.

Problem Sets

The process of solving linguistic problems is a lot like mathematics; you can read about it and think you understand, but you won't truly grasp it until you've actually solved a large number of problems yourself. To this end, I will distribute regular problem sets that give you an opportunity to practice what you have learned in lecture. You are allowed to work together on problem sets, but must do your own work when writing up the answers. It is very easy to tell when someone has just copied the answers from someone else. Trust me. In addition to being considered academic dishonesty (see the section below on cheating), not doing your own work on problem sets is a surefire way of failing the tests. If you can't do the problem sets, you won't be able to pass the tests. Period. Trying to understand the problem sets yourself is a chance to develop the skills necessary to succeed in this class, as well as a way to find out if there is something that you don't yet understand. Problem sets will always go out on a Monday and be due the next Monday.

Exams

There will be two exams during the semester as well as a final exam. These exams will be largely "hands on" in that I will provide you with data and some question(s) about the data. The skills for doing well on the tests are provided by participating in class and doing the problem sets. I will try to set time aside in class before each exam to review and answer questions.

Office hours

You are encouraged to come to office hours for any questions you have, course content that puzzles you, or simply to find out more about some point we covered in class. Office hours are not a place for getting private lectures after missing a class.

Cheating

Don't. The first time I catch you cheating on an assignment or daily question, I will give you and any collaborators an F for that assignment or daily question. The second time I catch you cheating, you will fail the course and I will report you to the Academic Honesty Office. If I catch you cheating on an exam, I will fail you for the course and report you to the Academic Honesty Office. You can find the university's academic honesty policy at http://www.umass.edu/dean_students/codeofconduct/acadhonesty/. If you are unsure about what constitutes cheating or academic dishonesty for the purposes of this course, just ask me. I am happy to let you know.

Grading

Your final grade for the class will be determined as follows:

Exams (including final): 20% each (60% total)

Problem Sets 30% total

Daily Questions 10% total

You can receive extra credit in this course by participating in an experiment in the linguistics department. Details will be provided later in the semester.