Høst 2024

ENG-3050 Second Language Acquisition - 10 stp

The course is administrated by

Institutt for språk og kultur

Type of course

This course is mandatory for students in the MA programme in English Acquisition and Multilingualism, and elective for students in the MA programme in teacher education year 8-13 (lektorutdanning trinn 8-13, studieretning engelsk, jf. progresjonskrav for år 4) and students in the MA programme in Theoretical Linguistics. This course may be taken as a single course by students who qualify for admission to the MA programme in English Acquisition and Multilingualism.

Course overlap

ENG-3051 Second Language Acquisition and Language Teaching 10 ects

Course contents

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.

Admission requirements

A bachelor's degree (180 ECTS), or equivalent qualification, in English language, or a degree combining English language and literature (minimum 80 ECTS in English). Applicants who hold a bachelor's degree or equivalent issued in Europe, Canada, USA, Australia and New Zealand: An average grade equivalent to C or better is required. Applicants who hold a bachelor's degree or equivalent issued in countries other than the above mentioned region/countries: An average grade equivalent to B or better is required.

Application code: 9371 - Enkeltemner på masternivå (Nordic applicants).

Objective 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

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.