Syllabus
Course organization. Linguistic anthropology as a field of inquiry
Language and morality
Communication functions
Language, culture, and ethnicity
Fashion of speaking? How language shapes our world-view
Language as system, use, and ideology
Speech communities. Boundaries between languages and language contact
Gender and markedness
Children and language socialization
Communication in classroom
Standard and variation. Language and social stratification
Discourse
How to use language in school settings: final discussion
Annotation
This course is open to students of all kinds of educational background and does not presuppose any previous knowledge of linguistics, anthropology or any other social sciences. Education is largely based on communication.
Therefore, educators need to understand all fundamental elements and functions of communication. Teachers should know the ways in which those elements and functions can be used in classroom settings and other education situations.
Linguistic anthropology focuses on all facets of communication behavior both within and across speech communities. The course introduces to all substantial aspects of communication including those that often escape our conscious awareness.
Based on concrete examples, we will study and practice the ways in which communication contributes to the sense of belonging to a community, which is crucial for making education successful. The course clarifies the complex relationships between language, culture and society by emphasizing those theories and practices that are relevant for future educators.