English Language & Communication with Italian BA (Hons)

About the course

English Language & Communication

Where language comes from and how people use it is one of the big debates of our time. This subject looks at how the English language works, how we use it to communicate, how we acquire it in the first place, and how it varies according to social factors. The modules make extensive use of web based resources such as interactive exercises.

In the first year you explore language in use, in face-to-face communication and in the media, as well as looking at the role of English in the world. You will develop skills of grammatical analysis and explore questions like: Are humans the only species to use language? What does the language of stroke patients tell us about language and the brain? Does the way we speak influence the way we think?

Italian

The academic study of a foreign language is concerned with the acquisition and development of competence in a language and with the analysis and understanding of another culture through the medium of the target language. The intercultural nature of the subject encourages you to reflect upon aspects of your own culture and promotes an awareness of the differences from and similarities with the United Kingdom. Your language proficiency can be particularly enhanced by a period of study abroad during your Degree programme.

A major feature of language study is your active involvement in taught sessions, the development of interpersonal skills and the ability to work with others. You will also develop critical self-awareness and sensitivity to the points of view of others.

Why choose this course?

English Language & Communication focuses on the English language itself, on how it is used to communicate, and on how we can teach it as a foreign language.

Study routes

• Sandwich, 4 Years
• Sandwich,
• Full Time,

Locations

• University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield

Structure

Year 2

Core Modules

• Graduate and Information Skills 2

  This module has a series of lectures on graduate skills and employability combined with a series of short on-line tutorials that equip students with the key information retrieval skills required at levels 5 and 6, together with knowledge of the core information databases and internet gateways for Humanities. It covers topics such as: effective reading strategies; presentational skills; refining research techniques; researching your career; effective CVs and application forms; information search strategies; critical evaluation of information sources and effective searching of key bibliographic and full text information databases and Internet gateways. It additionally covers requesting items not held in UH collections and making use of other academic libraries.

Optional

• English Grammar

  This module examines what grammar is and is not, and presents a detailed description of the grammar of English. It looks at the different word categories, constituent structure of sentences, grammatical functions and the structure of complex sentences and different sentence types. It aims at providing you with the knowledge necessary to conduct grammatical analyses. This module is a prerequisite for study of English Language & Communication at Level 3.

• Italian Route A - 5a

  This module broadens and consolidates the students’ competence in Italian. Students will learn to talk about student life and travel, carry out reading and listening tasks and write texts within the framework of the vocabulary and grammatical structures studied. The module will be largely course book based, supplemented by on-line materials including, for example, video clips, blogs and magazine websites.

• Italian Route A - 5b

  This module will extend the students’ competence in Italian through the introduction of more advanced language structures. Students will learn to discuss work and future plans, studying and living abroad. They will carry out reading and listening tasks and write texts within the framework of the vocabulary and grammatical structures studied. The module will be largely course book based, supplemented by on-line materials including for example on-line TV news items, blogs and magazine websites.

• Language and Psycholinguistics: Methods for Research

  The aim of this module is to provide a broad overview of the theoretical and empirical issues involved in collecting, transcribing, coding and interpreting data collected on adults and children. You are introduced to the current research strategies used in psycholinguistics and develop the theoretical background and the skills (including IT skills) required in order to collect naturalistic and experimental data. Child language data archives and computer based analysis programs (CHILDES, SALT) as well as psycholinguistic experiments are explored. The module will assist students who are planning to undertake an experimental project during level 3, as well as give an overview to students who are planning to study the taught psycholinguistics modules at level 3.

• Language and Species

  Research into the evolution of human communication has been controversial. Shortly after the publication of Darwin's masterpiece in 1859, the topic was banned by the London Philological Society. Recent advances in genetics, anthropology and cognitive science, however, have together resulted in renewed interest and more rigorous investigation and the birth of a new field. Evolutionary Linguistics is an interdisciplinary field which draws upon linguistics, evolutionary theory, biology, anthrolopology, primatology and psychology in order to answer three key questions: Why do we communicate? When did language evolve? What are the origins of language? In this module, students are first introduced to the basics of evolutionary theory before focusing on the questions raised above. Additional questions addressed include: How do other species communicate? Could Neanderthals speak? Can chimpanzees lie?

• Language in Society

  Sociolinguistics is the study of language in society. This module will introduce you to the major issues in sociolinguistics. We will start by addressing the relation between language and society and the nature of variation. We will address varieties of language use at the level of the group and the individual and explore three kinds of lectal variation: regional, social and functional. We will consider how and why users vary their language according to different social settings as well as the social pressures that cause language change. Further topics to be studied include accents and dialects, language and ethnicity and language and gender. This module should appeal to anyone interested in the way language is used to signal identity and negotiate society.

• Sounds of English

  This module will offer you the chance to study the sounds of English at two levels: the surface level (phonetics) and the underlying mental level (phonology). We will start by looking at the physiological apparatus involved with the production of speech before examining in more detail how individual speech sounds are made (articulatory phonetics). We will also examine the physical properties of sound in speech (acoustic phonetics). We will then turn to the organisation of speech sounds at the underlying mental level. Here we will identify the distinct 'sound concepts' of English and explore the various ways they each may be realised phonetically. We will then move on to analysing syllables before considering stress and intonation in English. The module offers you an important descriptive tool for further language study as well as essential knowledge for careers in areas such as speech and language therapy. This module is a prerequisite for study of English Language and Communication at level 3.

• Sounds of English

  This module will offer you the chance to study the sounds of English at two levels: the surface level (phonetics) and the underlying mental level (phonology). We will start by looking at the physiological apparatus involved with the production of speech before examining in more detail how individual speech sounds are made (articulatory phonetics). We will then turn to the organisation of speech sounds at the underlying mental level. Here we will identify the distinct 'sound concepts' of English and explore the various ways they each may be realised phonetically. We will then move on to analysing syllables and stress. The module offers you an important descriptive tool for further language study as well as essential knowledge for careers in areas such as speech and language therapy. This module is a prerequisite for study of English Language and Communication at level 3.

• Syntax

  This module presents you with a recent generative syntactic theory. It deals in a detailed way with some of the overall goals of linguistic analysis, and examines the principles and mechanisms that are proposed to account for the grammatically well-formed sentences of English.

Fees & funding

Fees 2013

UK/EU Students

Full time: £8,500 for the 2013 academic year

International Students

Full time: £9,500 for the 2013 academic year

Discounts are available for International students if payment is made in full at registration

View detailed information about tuition fees

Other financial support

Find out more about other financial support available to UK and EU students

Living costs / accommodation

The University of Hertfordshire offers a great choice of student accommodation, on campus or nearby in the local area, to suit every student budget.

View detailed information about our accommodation

How to apply