Course: Linguistics I: Phonetics and Morphology

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Course title Linguistics I: Phonetics and Morphology
Course code KAJ/LI1RS
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminary
Level of course unspecified
Year of study not specified
Semester Winter
Number of ECTS credits 5
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements Course does not contain work placement
Recommended optional programme components None
Course availability The course is available to visiting students
Lecturer(s)
  • Haupt Jaromír, Mgr. Ph.D.
Course content
Lecture 1 Introduction to the course. Phonetics Definition of terms. 30.9.22 What is phonetics? odd week The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) Trannscription What is phonology? Dictionaries Websites How to improve your pronunciation Lecture 1 Introduction to the course Morphology Definition of terms 7.10.22 What is morphology? even week Books Using dictionaries and resources Websites Types of morphemes and parts of speech Signifiant versus signifié Lecture 2 The phonemic symbols of English Phonetics What is a vowel? 14.10.22 odd week Monophthongs: short vowels, long vowels Diphthongs and triphthongs. The schwa sound and unstressed syllables Lecture 2 Parts of speech in detail Morphology Inflectable versus non-inflectable words 21.10.22 Derivation versus inflection even week Non-inflectable parts of speech (articles, prepositions, conjunctions, etc.) Lecture 3 What is a consonant? Phonetics The articulators. Describing consonant sounds 11.11.22 odd week Voiced and voiceless consonants The English consonants: plosives, fricatives and affricates, nasals and lateral, approximants Lecture 3 Nouns Morphology Number & case 4.11.22 Allomorphs, regular & irregular plurals, vowel change even week No explicit plural versus uncountability Compounding, conversion Derivation of nouns Lecture 4 Revision of all the phonemes of English Phonetics Problematic Phonemes for Czech Speakers 25.11.22 odd week Aspiration. Assimilation of voice. Vocalic quantity: Vowel length before voiced/voiceless consonants, pre-fortis clipping Lecture 4 Reference Morphology Generic vs specific reference 18.11.22 Use of articles even week Lecture 5 Pronunciation and spelling (phonology and orthography) Phonetics Czech phonological and orthographic system versus the English 9.12.22 odd week The alphabet Letters and sounds (graphemes and phonemes) Phonemes and graphemes Patterns of letters and sounds (rules) Silent letters. Pronunciation of the letter 'r' (Rhotic accents). Homophones Lecture 5 Adjectives and adverbs Morphology Grading (morphological versus syntactic) 2.12.22 Derivation of adjectives and adverbs even week Suppletion PHONETICS CREDIT TEST TAKES PLACE IN THE CLASSES IN P301 13th and 14th Dec. (sudý); 20th Dec.(lichý) Lecture 6 Online feedback from Credit Test Phonetics LINK: https://meet.google.com/ytw-ngqz-wzb 23.12.22 odd week Lecture 6 Pronouns Morphology Verbs (short introduction; verbs will be dealt with in the 2nd semester) 16.12.22 even week Exam Period PHONETICS CREDIT TEST (Second Attempt for those who did not get 70% in the first Credit Test) MORPHOLOGY CREDIT TEST (For those who did not get 70.00% in the continuous evaluation tasks.) In the seminars, the topics covered in the respective lectures will be dealt with in greater depth.

Learning activities and teaching methods
unspecified
Learning outcomes
The course serves as an introduction to the linguistic description of English and is part of a complex block which will take students through a description of English. The first part focuses on the description of the level of the linguistic units: phonemes and morphemes. The aim of the Phonology part is to provide students with the theoretical basis for the description of the standard English pronunciation and its transcription using the international phonetics alphabet. Students will learn to identify and describe English phonemes (vowels and consonants), English syllables and word stress. The emphasis is put on individual pronunciation problems of Czech speakers of English and on their improvement. The morphological part in this semester introduces the concepts morphemes, parts of speech, inflection and derivation. Special attention is given to the word class articles as it is a non-existent word class in Czech. In general, frequent comparisons are made between Czech and English, and practical issues with the use of English words are discussed.
In the Phonetics component, students are given a theoretical background to standard English pronunciation. The theory will be covered in the lectures. These take place every two weeks. The phonetics lectures take place in odd weeks (lichý). There are also fortnightly (= every 14 days) classes in the language laboratory P301, which are practical. Here, students will be given online practice in the subject. Course participants will become familiar with the 44 individual sounds of English, called phonemes. Phonemic transcription of these individual sounds as well as short words will be practised. This will be tested regularly during the course as well as in the credit test. The variety of English taught will be Received Pronunciation, the standard pronunciation of educated speakers of British English. (Students with an American accent will not be required to learn to speak with a British accent but they should become aware of the differences between these varieties of spoken English). The overall aim of this part of the course is to help students with their English pronunciation. Objectives: These are what learners will be able to do or achieve by the end of the course. 1. To become familiar with the phonemic inventory of English, that is, to know all the individual sounds carrying meaning which comprise the English language. 2. To be able to represent these sounds using the standard phonemic notation in most English course books and dictionaries. (These are based on the IPA, the International Phonetic Alphabet). 3. To be able to produce all these sounds competently. 4 To learn to discriminate between similar sounds and be able to reproduce these differences orally. 5. To recognise the basic differences between Czech and English segmental phonology. The aim of the morphology component is the exploration of the words of English, how they can be analyzed, changed and used. Students are guided to understand the rules of morphology and to be able to practically apply them as well as to find a particular grammar rule behind a practical application. Theory and practice are balanced. Where relevant, individual items are treated with special regard to the needs of the students whose mother tongue is Czech. The theory will be covered in the lectures. These take place every two weeks. There are also fortnightly (= every 14 days) classes (seminars) in the language laboratory P301, which are practical. Here, students will be given online practice in the subject. The course book is Morphology: Introduction to English morphology for university students by Richard Madsen. Objectives: These are what learners will be able to do or achieve by the end of the course. 1. To recognize the various parts of speech. 2. To create and understand new words. 3. To conjugate and decline English words correctly. 4. To analyze and describe the words of English.
Prerequisites
English on B2 level.

Assessment methods and criteria
unspecified
Assessment: Each component (Phonetics and Morphology) is assessed independently by the course teacher. Students have to achieve 70.00% in both parts to pass Linguistics 1. (LI1BE). Phonetics is assessed by means of a final Credit Test, which can be taken twice. The pass mark is 70.00%. Morphology is also assessed by means of a final Credit Test, which can be taken twice. The pass mark is 70.00%. If a student passes only Phonetics or only Morphology with 70.00%, they do not need to take that component again the following year.
Recommended literature


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester