Topics in the Study of Meaning

LELA30032 Topics in the Study of Meaning 20 Semester 2 Undergraduate Level 3 Vera Hohaus Unit coordinator Linguistics & English Language 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Last part of a Bachelors ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 10.0 This course unit will allow students to engage directly with the research literature on some of the core phenomena in the study of meaning and learn about different theoretical and empirical approaches in semantics and pragmatics. Possible topics, to be decided on in consultation with the students, include quantificational determiners like every, tense and aspect, modal expressions such as should and must, focus-sensitive particles like too and only, and comparison constructions such as the highest mountain. This course unit will allow students to engage directly with the research literature on some of the core phenomena in the study of meaning and learn about different theoretical and empirical approaches in semantics and pragmatics. Possible topics, to be decided on in consultation with the students, include quantificational determiners like every, tense and aspect, modal expressions such as should and must, focus-sensitive particles like too and only, and comparison constructions such as the highest mountain. The aim of this course is to familiarise students with some of the central debates and topics in semantics and pragmatics, through the close reading of original research articles. By the end of this course students will: <ul> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Have gained knowledge of the empirical phenomena and issues central to the study of the formal semantics and pragmatics of natural language, in particular English:</li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Have deepened their understanding of the formal apparatus and theoretical concepts used in the study of natural language semantics and pragmatics; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Have developed their ability to understand formal analyses and test their predictions on novel data.</li></ul> By the end of this course students will have developed: <ul> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">The ability to critically read and synthesize published research articles; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Skills in problem-solving and abstract and logical thinking; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">The ability to construct and refine an argument, recognise flaws in arguments, and assessing the merits of contrasting explanations.</li></ul> <div><div>By the end of this course students will: <ul> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Be able to present a rigorous linguistic argument; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Be able to apply formal tools and abstract concepts to empirical data; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Be able to apply the appropriate diagnostics for distinguishing between different types of meaning.</li></ul></div></div>  By the end of this course students will have developed: <ul> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">The ability to formulate abstract generalisations from data and synthesize complex issues; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">The ability to manage their own learning self-critically; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">The skill and confidence of leading a class discussion; </li> <li style="margin-bottom: 11px;">Team working and presentation skills.</li></ul> Oral communication Through the deep engagement with challenging research articles, students taking this class will further develop their reasoning and argumentation skills. By taking responsibility for the presentation and discussion of one article as part of a team, students develop their confidence in speaking in front of an audience and engaging in discussion in response to on-the-spot questions. Other The rigorous formalization of empirical insights from language data prepares students for jobs that involve data analysis and their understanding of formal representations of meaning in language will be useful in the development of software applications for natural language processing as well as for general coding. One two-hour class per week, one one-hour seminar per week.The course will run as a mixture of teaching by the instructor and student-led discussions. The instructor will introduce the concepts and formal tools required for understanding a set of key research articles in this area; student teams will take responsibility for presenting and leading the discussion of readings in their area of interest.E-Learning: All course material, including lecture handouts, practice exercises, links to electronically available readings, and course and assessment info will be made available on Blackboard. Students will be able to discuss all aspects of the course with their peers and the teaching staff on the discussion board.The course convenor offers two consultation hours every week. 0 Other 100% <figure class="table"><table class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse:collapse;"><tbody><tr><td style="border:1px solid black;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Assessment Task</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top:1px solid black;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Formative or Summative</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top:1px solid black;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Weighting</td></tr><tr><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left:1px solid black;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Weekly reading assignment with a short problem set</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Formative</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">0%</td></tr><tr><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left:1px solid black;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Final assignment</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Summative</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">70%</td></tr><tr><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left:1px solid black;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Mid-term assignment</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Summative</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">30%</td></tr><tr><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left:1px solid black;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Leading class discussion of a research article</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">Formative or Summative</td><td style="border-bottom:1px solid black;border-left-style:none;border-right:1px solid black;border-top-style:none;padding:0cm 7px;vertical-align:top;width:200px;">0%</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>   <table class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse:collapse; border:none"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:1px solid black; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:1px solid black" valign="top">Feedback Method</td> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:1px solid black; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:none" valign="top">Formative or Summative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:1px solid black" valign="top">Global feedback on in-class and homework exercises</td> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:none" valign="top">Formative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:1px solid black" valign="top">Comments made during class discussion regarding the relevance and coherence of student responses/participation in discussion</td> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:none" valign="top">Formative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:1px solid black" valign="top">Global feedback on mid-term assignment</td> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:none" valign="top">Formative</td> </tr> <tr> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:1px solid black" valign="top">Individual feedback on mid-term assignment and final essay</td> <td style="border-bottom:1px solid black; width:301px; padding:0cm 7px 0cm 7px; border-top:none; border-right:1px solid black; border-left:none" valign="top">Summative</td> </tr> </tbody></table>  LELA20281 Semantics : The Composition of Meaning Pre-Requisite Compulsory LELA20292 Pragmatics: Meaning, Context, and Interaction Pre-Requisite Recommended Pre-req of LELA20281Compulsory Pre-requisite: LELA20282 - Semantics. Students who do not meet the pre-requisite must have academic approval in order to be enrolled on this unit. BA(Hons) English Language BA (Hons) English Language Third Year Optional BA(Hons) Linguistics BA (Hons) Linguistics Third Year Optional Y <div>Selected readings:</div><ul><li>Angelika Kratzer (2012), Modals and Conditionals (Oxford: Oxford University Press).</li><li>Paul Portner and Barbara Partee (2002, eds.), Formal Semantics: The Essential Readings (London: Blackwell).</li><li>Jon Barwise & Robin Cooper (1981), “Generalised Quantifiers and Natural Language,” Linguistics & Philosophy, 4(2): pp. 159-219.</li></ul><div>(Further readings to be decided on together with the students.)</div>Selected readings:   <ul><li>Paul H. Portner and Barbara Partee (2002, eds.), Formal Semantics: The Essential Readings   (London: Blackwell).</li><li>Claudia Maienborn, Klaus von Heusinger & Paul H. Portner (2011, eds.),   Semantics: An International Handbook of Natural Language Meaning (Berlin: De Gruyter).</li><li>Maria Alona and Paul Dekker (2016), The Cambridge Handbook of Formal Semantics  (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press). </li></ul> Lectures 22 Seminars 11 0 167