Vår 2025

ENG-1016 Introduction to The Sounds of English - 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 recommended.

Course overlap

ENG-1011 Introduction to English Grammar II 10 ects

Course contents

This course introduces students to the pronunciation of English and its cognitive underpinnings, that is, the phonetics and phonology of English. Our focus will be on the two major accents, referred to as BBC English (or Received Pronunciation) and Generalized American English, but we will also look at other 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, as well as historical development.

Admission requirements

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

A good command of oral and written English is recommended.

Admission code: 9199 - Enkeltemner (ikke realfag), lavere grad (Nordic applicants).

Objective of the course

The students have the following learning outcomes:

Knowledge

The student has:

knowledge of the basic concepts of phonetics and phonology.
knowledge of the phonological system of major English variants.
an understanding of the ways in which phonological systems can vary and what the reasons might be for this.

Skills

The student is able to / can

read and write phonetic transcriptions (IPA).
classify sounds and describe how they are produced.
analyze ordered sets of phonological data.
describe and account for different aspects of variation in pronunciation.

This course provides a foundational set of core skills and knowledge in phonology and phonetics that will prepare students for courses specializing in the different subfields of English linguistics, such as those on language change, psycholinguistics, acquisition, and sociolinguistic variation.

Language of instruction

Language of instruction and examination: English.

Teaching methods

13 weeks of teaching (4 hours of teaching per week).

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