EDU-311 Language in Use †

The roots of this course are in sociolinguistics and the application of linguistics. Students learn about language as social experience - as a situated, fluid communicative phenomenon. Following an introduction to the defining nature and structural components of language, the course briefly investigates language development before focusing on how language is used in different contexts, ranging from more formal settings such as classrooms and places of work to less formal, more personal social settings. Students examine the demands and expectations of successful language use in these various contexts based on such concepts as academic language and language registers. Language variety and identity are explored as well related to regional dialect, ethnicity, race, and gender. This course also touches on trends in language use associated with globalization, such as the spread of English, multilingualism, code switching, and translanguaging and the impact of these on education. The overarching goal of this course is for students to learn how individuals effectively make meaning with one another across a variety of situations and contexts.