autumn 2018
ENG-3050 Second Language Acquisition - 10 ECTS

Application deadline

Applicants from Nordic countries: 1 June for the autumn semester and 1 December for the spring semester. Applicants from outside the Nordic countries: 1 October for the spring semester and 15 April for the autumn semester.

Application code: 9371 (Nordic applicants).


Type of course

This course may be taken as a single course by students who meet the admission requirements for the master's degree programmes in English Language/Linguistics.

Admission requirements

This course may be taken as a single course by students who meet the admission requirements for the master's degree programmes in English Language/Linguistics.

Course overlap

If you pass the examination in this course, you will get an reduction in credits (as stated below), if you previously have passed the following courses:

HIF-3050 Second Language Acquisition 10 stp

Course content

Why do we often hear Anglophones speaking Norwegian say things like "I går vi drakk mye vin", whereas Norwegians who learn English rarely have difficulty with word order? And how are you to realize that "It was drunk a lot of beer at the party" is ungrammatical in English if nobody points it out to you? This course will provide an introduction to the theory of language learning and second language acquisition, with an emphasis on English syntax. In addition, students will work on a project related to a specific topic in second language acquisition.

Objectives of the course

The students have the following learning outcomes:

Knowledge

The student has:

  •  a general knowledge of the most important issues in second language acquisition, e.g., L1 transfer, UG access, complexity vs. frequency, etc.
  •   some more specific knowledge of typical problems related to learning a particular language, e.g., English, Norwegian, etc.
  •  a general knowledge of the most important theoretical approaches to second language acquisition.

Skills

The student is:

  • able to analyse second language learner data from at least one specific language
  • familiar with the most important methods used in second language acquisition studies
  • able to discuss issues related to second language acquisition both orally and in writing.


Language of instruction and examination

Language of instruction and examination is English.

Teaching methods

Lectures, exercises and seminars.

Quality assurance: All courses undergo a halfway evaluation once in a 2-year period at the master´s level. The Programme Board determines which programme options will be evaluated per year, and which courses will be evaluated by the students and the teacher per year.


Assessment

The following coursework requirements must be completed and approved in order to take the final exam:

One short paper and a short presentation in the first half of the semester and a longer presentation at the end of the semester. The final presentation should be connected to the term paper. Please note that this course requirement includes being an active audience for other students' presentations.

Assessment method: One term paper

Performance in the course will be assessed on an A-F grades scale. Grades are A-E for passed and F for failed. A re-sit examination is offered in the event of an F grade. The deadline to register for a re-sit examination is January 15th for the autumn semester and August 15th for the spring semester.

Recommended reading/syllabus

Textbook:
Slabakova, Roumyana. 2016. Second Language Acquisition. Oxford University Press.


Articles:
There will also be a collection of scholarly articles - to be downloaded from the library or Canvas (cf. specific course outline available from instructor at the beginning of the course).


Students will need to do a considerable amount of reading in connection with the presentation and project paper.

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  • About the course
  • Campus: Tromsø |
  • ECTS: 10
  • Course code: ENG-3050
  • Tidligere år og semester for dette emnet