UNIT TITLE: LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT AND LANGUAGE PLANNING

This course is designed to draw together the different strands of the 3 years of the i-DELTA training course to help the participants integrate their knowledge into the larger scope of language development work as undertaken by SIL and its partners. The intended outcome is to better equip the learners to engage with various stakeholders, whether governmental, church, NGOs, individuals or language community, to advocate for language development in its many forms and to engage more effectively in planning initiatives.

-develop a working definition of: language development, language policy and language planning

-apply those definitions to their language contexts

-design advocacy presentations or materials for 3 different stakeholders which explain the work of SIL/partner organizations in terms of language development and advocacy.

Participants will be provided with a variety of articles and reading materials on various aspects of language development, language policy and language planning. UNESCO documents, language policy from different countries, information on sociolinguistic theory and Multilingual Education data will be presented as represented in current publications.

	Percentage of grade
2 exams (35% each)	70%
reading journals	5%
in-class presentations and homework assignments	5%
Project: advocacy tool	10%
Project: advocacy tool	10%
Total	100 %

Week	Subject	lecture	reading & homework
1	terminology and context	5	10
2	language planning : status	5	10
3	language planning : corpus	5	10
4	language planning : acquisition + exam	5	10
5	language vitality	5	10
6	EGIDS	5	10
7	FAMED, SUM	5	10
8	SFT, exam, presentations	5	10
total : 120 hours		40	80

African languages have many features in addition to consonants and vowels, such as vowel harmony, tone and stress. This course will develop an understanding of non-linear phonology and lexical phonology. Since the majority of African languages are tonal, the overall goal of this course is to provide the learner with tools for the collection and organisation of tone data, preparing the ground for the analysis of the tone system of a language, and providing the theoretical background to basic tone analysis.

By the end of the course students will be able to:

1. 
   Write phonological rules using non-linear phonology, and lexical phonology
   
2. 
   Explain the differences between Autosegmental Phonology and Metrical Phonology,
   
3. 
   Explain vowel harmony, stress patterns and tonal processes using a non-linear approach,
   
4. 
   Hear and accurately transcribe the tonal melodies of spoken words and short phrases,
   
5. 
   Follow a methodology for the organisation of tone data, facilitating future analysis,
   
6. 
   Recognize a number of common tonal phenomena.
   

Review Generative Phonology in relation to morphophonological changes, syllable structure. Present an overview and explain the theories and the need for them. Practice using both non-linear and lexical phonologies.

Physiology of tone, phonetics of tone (hearing and transcribing review), eliciting and organising data, introduction to methodology, applying the methodology to a specific language, the most common tonal phonemena (spreading, floating tone, downstep).

Modes of delivery

There will be class sessions and assignments. Data from several languages will be discussed, enabling the student to work on an analysis of a language, covering all the steps taught. This course will be taught through lectures, class-work, exercises and assignments.

Power point, video presentations, ICT

	Percentage of grade
Participation and quiz	10
Project	20
Final exam	70
Total	100 %

Course handouts (required reading) will be provided along the way. The following are some good basic reference works:

• 
  Burquest, Donald A. (2001) Phonological Analysis, A Functional Approach, second edition, Dallas: SIL
  
• 
  Katamba, Francis. 1989. An Introduction to Phonology. London: Longman.
  

• 
  Fromkin, Victoria A. (ed.) 1978. Tone: A Linguistic Survey. New York: Academic Press.
  
• 
  Goldsmith, John. 1990. Autosegmental and Metrical Phonology. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
  
• 
  Goldsmith, John A. (ed). (1995) The Handbook of Phonological Theory, Oxford: Blackwell.
  
• 
  Gussenhoven, Carlos. 2004. The Phonology of Tone and Intonation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  
• 
  Odden, David. 1994. Tone: African languages. In John Goldsmith (ed.) The Handbook of Phonological Theory. Oxford: Blackwell, 444-475.
  
• 
  Snider, Keith (1999) The Geometry and Features of Tone. Dallas: SIL
  
• 
  Snider, K. Tone Considerations.  (to appear).
  
• 
  Yip, Moira. 2002. Tone. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  

This module consolidates and extends the treatment of grammatical analysis introduced in Morphosyntax 1. This course deals with an in-depth analysis of morphology, also expanding on grammatical categories such as case, gender, class, number, tense, aspect, voice and mood. Its major focus is on increasing analytical skills, through contact with data from African languages, including the students' own.

By the end of the course students will be able to understand

1. 
   the basic concepts of morphology
   
2. 
   the difference between case, gender, class and number marking
   
3. 
   the difference between tense, aspect, mood and voice
   

1. 
   identify the concept of morphology in their own language
   
2. 
   identify and describe case, gender, class and number marking depending on the language of analysis
   
3. 
   identify tense, aspect, mood and voice and describe these, if applicable, with data from their mother tongue
   

The module will start with revision and then will cover the following aspects more deeply than they were covered in Grammar 1:

• 
  Morphology - including roots and stems, inflection and derivation, allomorphy and conditioning.
  
• 
  TAM.
  
• 
  Case.
  
• 
  Clause structure - including clause types and serial verb constructions
  
• 
  Embedding - at different levels in the hierarchy.
  
• 
  Sentence structure - including coordinate and subordinate clauses, complex sentences, referential constraints and complementation.
  

Power point, video presentations, ICT

Tests 10%

Assignments 20%

Final Exam 70%

Bickford, J. Albert (1998). Tools for Analyzing the World’s Languages: Morphology and Syntax. Dallas: SIL.

Brown, Keith and Jim Miller (1991). Syntax: A Linguistic Introduction to Sentence Structure. London: Harper Collins Academic.

Creissels, Denis (2006). Syntaxe générale, une introduction typologique. 2 vols. Paris: Hermes.

Dixon, R. M. W. (2009) Basic Linguistic Theory. Volume 2: Grammatical Topics. Oxford: OUP.

Feuillet, Jack (2006). Introduction à la typologie linguistique. Paris: Honoré Champion Editeur.

Givón, T. (1990). Syntax: A Functional Typological Introduction, vol. 2. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Heine, Bernd (ed.) (2000). African Languages: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Heine, Bernd et Derek Nurse (éds.) (2004). Les langues africaines. Paris: Karthala.

Jackson, Howard (1985). Discovering Grammar. Oxford: Pergamon Institute of English.

Langacker, Ronald W. (1973). Language and its Structure, 2nd edition. New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich.

Mathews, P. H. (1991). Morphology, 2nd edition. Cambridge: CUP.

Payne, Thomas E. (1997). Describing Morphosyntax: A Guide for Field Linguists. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Welmers, William (1973). African Language Structures. Berkeley: University of California Press.

This module builds on a foundation of sociolinguistics (the study of languages in their social context) to introduce students to the practicalities of designing, implementing and reporting on language surveys. The purpose of this module is to provide the formal training in survey principles that a person needs to begin work as a language surveyor. It will equip students to plan a research project that will provide an accurate description of the sociolinguistic and other factors that affect language development. The module is structured on the assumption that the students who go on to conduct language surveys will receive further training in survey procedures under an experienced mentor as part of their on-field assignment.

By the end of this module students will be able to:

1. 
   Describe the linguistic and sociolinguistic criteria that can be used to identify languages and dialects and to determine the suitability of existing literature in multilingual situations.
   
2. 
   Explain the methods used in language surveys to discover ethnolinguistic identity, assess language vitality, determine linguistic similarity, measure inherent intelligibility, evaluate bilingual proficiency, and describe language attitudes and patterns of language use.
   
3. 
   Relate the requirements of a survey to the methods and sampling techniques that are appropriate for it.
   
4. 
   Read and evaluate language survey reports and develop the proposal and initial plan for a language survey.
   

Examination 70%

Practicum (projects and simulations) 10%

Term project (portfolio:

LinguaLinks Library. (Electronic "bookshelves" on CD-ROM using Libronix software)

Photocopies and class handouts

UNIT TITLE: LANGUAGE SURVEY 2

UNIT CODE:

UNIT HOURS: 3 HOURS

PRE-REQUISITE: PRINCIPLES OF LANGUAGE SURVEY

Description of the Module

This module and its prerequisite (offered in AC1) provide the formal training in survey principles and procedures that a person needs to work as a language surveyor. "Language Survey II" builds on "Introduction to Language Survey", and on students' experience in language assessment, to orient them to the practice of planning and reporting on language surveys. This module will equip students to plan and evaluate a research project that will provide an accurate description of the factors, sociolinguistic and otherwise, that affect decisions about language development programmes, a description that reflects the perspectives both of the language community and of development agents. The module is structured on the assumption that the students who go on to conduct language surveys will receive further training in survey procedures under an experienced mentor as part of their on-field assignment.

By the end of this module students will be able to:

1. 
   Relate the requirements of a survey to the methods and sampling techniques that are appropriate for it.
   
2. 
   Evaluate the quality and completeness of a survey proposal or a survey report.
   
3. 
   Write an initial plan and a survey proposal for a given scenario (?) that are realistic and that address the research questions appropriate to the language development decision(s) to be made.
   
4. 
   Explain how to analyse the results of the following research tools: structured observation; interviews or questionnaires with closed and/or open questions; vocabulary comparison; and tests.
   
5. 
   Present the research conclusions of a language assessment project, along with the reasons for drawing them, in a manner appropriate to the audience of the report.
   

Grading: 30% project, 70% final exam

Decker, Ken and John Grummitt. 2011. Understanding Language Choices: A Guide to Sociolinguistic Assessment. (new book in process)

LinguaLinks Library. (Electronic "bookshelves" on CD-ROM using Libronix software)

Nahhas, Ramzi W. 2006. The Steps of Language Survey. Course notes, Payap Univ.

Nahhas, Ramzi W. and others. 2007. The Steps of Recorded Text Testing. SIL.

Nahhas, Ramzi W. and Noel W. Mann. 2006. The Steps of Eliciting and Analysing Word Lists. Research Paper, Payap University.

Photocopies and class handouts

UNIT TITLE: Introduction to Anthropology

UNIT CODE:

UNIT HOURS: 3 HOURS

PRE-REQUISITE: NONE
Course purpose

This module is a general introduction to the discipline of anthropology, the study of man, especially as it relates to living human populations, wherever they are found. The course will look at both human universals and cultural diversity as they affect all aspects of social life in any context, but especially as they make an impact on language development and Bible translation.

By the end of the course students will be able to

• 
  Explain how the discipline of anthropology contributes to a better understanding of and a better communication with other cultures whether around the world or right next door
  
• 
  Define the concept of culture and use its various components to analyze and appreciate cultural scenes outside their own experience.
  
• 
  Research and analyze how different cultural populations define and order their values based on how they observe, experience and understand both the physical and social worlds around them.
  
• 
  Reflect on how the individual sees himself apart from his culture, as part of his culture and how he relates to the world outside his culture.
  
• 
  Examine the social system of a given community to better understand how people adapt themselves through family structure, marriage alliances and political organization to meet the requirements of everyday life.
  
• 
  Distinguish the basic assumptions people make to explain how their world came into being and how they should relate to it through ritual, magic and religion.
  
• 
  Explain the elements of culture change as they apply to a world of increasing globalization.
  

1. Introduction

Concepts: the nature of culture and importance of values.

2. Culture and Economics

Concepts: patterns of subsistence; exchange of both material and non-material items; money and markets.

3. Culture and Social Structure

Concepts: marriage and family; kinship and descent; status and role; social groups

4. Culture and the Political Process

Concepts: political organization and the structure of authority, social control and the resolution of conflict.

5. Culture and the Individual

Concepts: the socialization of children and the acquisition of cultural values; the life cycle, age-sets and grades.

6. Culture and Religion

Concepts: worldview, cosmology and the supernatural; magic and witchcraft, myth and ritual, symbolism.

7. Culture and Change

Concepts: acculturation, diffusion, syncretism, revitalization, urbanization, globalization

Modes of delivery

Problem solving, Class interaction, Lecture, Case study, Presentations, Guest Speakers (Reflective practitioners on the field), e-learning option
Instructional materials/Equipment

Power point, video presentations, ICT