The Department of Linguistics is pleased to announce that, in addition to the general Linguistics major, we are now offering 4 official 鈥榯racks鈥� as specializations within the major.
These tracks聽are:聽(1)听Computational Linguistics, (2)听Language and Cognition, (3)聽Sociocultural, Anthropological, and Interactional Linguistics (SAIL), and (4)听Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL).听
The four track options are a formalization of the elective credit hour choices that students take alongside the 4 required courses for the Linguistics major. (There is an additional requirement of five credit hours in a language other than English at the 3000 level or above.) Students who complete coursework for one of the tracks will receive an official designation on their transcript.听
You can read more about each of the tracks below, with more specific information (including lists of possible聽elective courses)聽available by clicking on each one individually. Note also that聽Course Descriptions for Summer and Fall 2021 courses are available here.听
(1)听Computational Linguistics Track
More language has been recorded in the last twenty years than in the entirety of human history.听聽Computational linguists use computer science algorithms to automatically process vast amounts of written and spoken communication聽in moments. This is the mechanism that turns the chaos of billions of individual voices into the symphony that is our civilization. Computational linguistics is an attempt to manufacture the keys to a library containing the sum total of human knowledge and experience. If there are answers to our questions that have聽already been discovered, we need artificial intelligence to find them.听
(2)听Language and Cognition Track
The study of linguistic cognition takes you into the heart of the mind.听Cognitive linguists examine the language that we use to tell stories, describe feelings and sensory experiences, collaborate with each other and convey our beliefs for clues about the organization of human conceptual systems, our capacity for inference and the remarkably flexible ways in which we understand and communicate our experiences. For example, we can talk about love as a journey, a bond, a container, a force, a vehicle or a patient in need of medical help. These metaphors are not merely rhetorical flourishes--they鈥檙e reasoning tools that we use to make abstract concepts like love, life, emotion, ideation, communication, time, causation and purpose concrete. Cognitive linguists study the way meanings change over time, how our visual perception of words and our auditory perception of speech sounds is influenced by expectation and context, how children learn the meanings of words and grammatical patterns as rapidly as they do, how conceptual differences among communities of practice affect judgment and decision making, what happens in the brain as we produce and understand language and how we understand the actions and intentions of others through mental simulation. The study of linguistic cognition combines tools from computer science, cognitive psychology, semantic theory, philosophy of action and neuroscience to connect human reasoning and empathy to the human imagination.
(3) Sociocultural, Anthropological, and Interactional Linguistics (SAIL) Track
Humans use language聽as聽part聽of almost聽everything we do聽in聽social life.听Whether聽we鈥檙e聽chatting with a friend over聽coffee,聽participating in a cultural聽ceremony聽or聽performance, seeking help from聽the doctor, or聽arguing a case聽in front聽of the United聽Nations, language聽is聽there鈥攁s聽an聽intrinsic part聽of the聽human聽experience.听Linguists聽who聽work in聽Sociocultural,聽Anthropological,聽and聽Interactional聽Linguistics聽(SAIL) aim聽to explore聽the links聽between聽language use聽and social life.听How is聽it that聽members of communities use language聽to show who聽they are聽to one聽another,聽to聽build聽alliances聽and draw聽boundaries,聽to聽take stances聽and reproduce聽ideologies? If聽speakers聽are聽鈥榞etting things done鈥櫬爐hrough their use of聽language, linguists聽with a SAIL聽emphasis聽aim聽to understand聽what those聽鈥榯hings鈥櫬燼re,聽and聽what聽role language聽plays聽in the聽process.
(4)听Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Track
Teaching English as an additional language is an endeavor that comes with great responsibility as well as opportunities for personal growth.听In our TESOL courses, we take a critical approach to curriculum design to ensure that instruction builds on learners鈥� cultural identities, home languages, and previous educational experiences. As reflective practitioners, we grow in our understanding of ourselves and others against the backdrop of various teaching and learning contexts and in light of feedback from a supportive community of practice. Being a TESOL professional is bound to change your life through the people you meet, the places you go, and the person you become as a result of these experiences.
The Department also offers Minors in Linguistics and in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL).听