Høst 2017

ENG-1016 Introduction to English Sound Patterns - 10 stp

The course is administrated by

Institutt for språk og kultur

Type of course

This course may be taken as a single course. A good command of oral and written English is required.

Course overlap

ENG-1011 Introduction to English Grammar II 10 stp

Course contents

This course gives an introduction to phonology and to the pronunciation of English. Our focus will be on the accent referred to as BBC English (or Received Pronunciation), but we will also look at certain regional pronunciation variants. In addition we will study variation which is determined by social factors such as membership of a particular social group/class or by the formality of the situation, including differences related to pragmatic aspects.

Application deadline

Applicants from Nordic countries: 1 June for the autumn semester and 1 December for the spring semester.

Exchange students and Fulbright students: 1 October for the spring semester and 15 April for the autumn semester.

Admission requirements

Higher Education Entrance Qualification (generell studiekompetanse) or prior learning and work experience (realkompetanse).

A good command of oral and written English is required.

Admission code: 9199 (Nordic applicants).

Objective of the course

Students who have successfully completed the course will have the following learning outcome:

Knowledge:

know the basic concepts of phonetics and phonology
have a good knowledge of the phonological system of BBC English
understand that language use is variable and that there may be different reasons for this
know how social factors such as social class, ethnicity, gender and age influence language use
know about some of the main regional or social markers in English, i.e. pronunciations or grammatical forms which help us to identify speakers as belonging to a particular area or social group.

Skills:

be able to read and write phonological script (IPA)
be able to classify sounds and describe how sounds are produced
be able to describe important concepts in phonology
be able to describe different aspects of language use
be able to account for differences in language use
have improved their language skills in English.

Language of instruction

Language of instruction and examination is English.

Teaching methods

Lectures and seminar groups.

Quality assurance:

The course undergoes a midterm evaluation or an end-of-term evaluation every third year.

Assessment

Coursework requirements: At the teacher's decision, either one essay of approx. 2000 words or a written in-class test. Details will be given at the beginning of the semester. Coursework requirements are evaluated with approved/not approved. The obligatory coursework requirements must be approved in order to take the final exam. Assessment method: A 4-hour written school exam. 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.

Date for examination

Written test 08.12.2017

The date for the exam can be changed. The final date will be announced at your faculty early in May and early in November.