• Inactive for Year: 2024/25

• Module Leader(s): Dr Rebecca Woods
• Co-Module Leader: Dr Emma Nguyen

• Owning School: English Lit, Language & Linguistics
• Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus

Semesters

Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.

Aims

The job of a linguist is to scientifically study language in order to capture and explain patterns of linguistic structures and language usage. In order to do this, a linguist makes use of certain tools in their toolbox. The aim of the Practicum module is to provide students with practical research experience and skills while working under the supervision of an established researcher. Additionally, students would be introduced to the methodologies and approaches to data analysis used in formal linguistic investigations of language acquisition.

Students will gain hands-on research experience by being able to contribute to at least one of the following elements of the research process:

- Information gathering, including systematic literature searches and evidence synthesis
- Aspects of data collection, including building studies to be run in the Linguistics Lab and in data collection platforms
- Data manipulation, including data screening and cleaning, data entry/ transcription/coding, and data analysis

Whereas a course on language acquisition and development (e.g. SEL2235 and SEL3438) may focus on the process of development and what it means to become a speaker of a language, this course focuses specifically on how we experimentally investigate acquisition and the competence of language learners through carefully designed linguistic experiments and the practical application of this knowledge.

This will provide students with the opportunity to embed and build on existing research skills from Stage 1 and 2 courses such as SEL1032 and SEL2235, and to learn new skills that may not be covered in typical coursework. Furthermore, having a co-requisite of SEL2229 will help prepare students for their Stage 3 empirical project. For students contemplating postgraduate studies (such as Speech and Language Therapy with children) or a research career, this module will allow them to experience aspects of the research process within academia, diversify their research experience while fostering strong relationships with participating staff members who can provide strong letters of recommendation for future work/study, and gain the valuable experience requires for masters study. It also provides the students with an opportunity to be part of the wider research community within the School such as the Language Evolution, Acquisition, and Development Research Group (LEAD).

Outline Of Syllabus

The module is comprised of a combination of taught courses and the collaborative relationship between the student and the module leaders. Taught content will include sessions relevant to different aspects of the research process, reflective skills, as well as presentation skills.

Alongside the taught components of the module, the main teaching and learning method will occur through structured tutorials and independent study in the Linguistic Lab which will include small group meetings with the module leaders. Students will be encouraged to attend the LEAD research group meetings to experience the research environment more fully.

Throughout this module, students will be expected to complete a research diary documenting their activities and reflecting on their learning in relation to their learning outcomes. At the end of the module, students will present a slide presentation of a project proposal for a child behavioural experiment to the class.

Teaching Methods

Teaching Activities

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

The overall rationale of this module is to teach child language acquisition research skills through practical experience working in a professional research setting with established researchers in the field of study. The various scheduled and guided learning activities provide an opportunity for students to develop and practice the necessary knowledge and skills outcomes. This module relies on the students and their module leaders to work together in a mutually beneficial manner.

The module consists of taught content and a research apprenticeship model to guide the student’s development as a junior research assistant and to foster practical skills in aspects of the scientific method and open science practices. In the first three teaching weeks, students will attend taught components to ensure they have fundamental knowledge and the basic skills to perform the duties that might be required of them as well as an understanding of the Ethical issues surrounding experimental research particularly with a vulnerable population like minors and children.

Commencing teaching week 4, most of the student’s learning will occur within a small-group supervisory context where students are expected to immerse themselves in the research environment by attending and engaging in group meetings (either for the module or for LEAD), and conducting research in the Linguistics Lab.

A combination of taught and supervisory components allows students to achieve the intended knowledge and skills outcomes. Interactions with the module leaders and the presentation skills workshop will enhance skills outcome 3. Skills outcome 4 will be developed through use of the research diary and the taught reflective skills workshop. The requirement to work in a small group on a project, meet regular deadlines with the module leaders, and submit the summative assignment will contribute to development of skills outcome 5.

Assessment Methods

The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners

Other Assessment

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The final assessment is comprised of two components: a structured research diary and a 10-minute presentation and five minutes for questions (15 minutes total).

The research diary will take the form of a structured weekly journal to be recorded in NUReflect. Each week, the student will make notes about meetings that they participate in as part of the module, list the tasks they completed for their independent study in the Linguistics Lab, record the time spent on tasks, and identify any learning opportunities, or challenges encountered. Students will also be encouraged to note anything new they learned while working on the project and reflect on their accomplishments over the week. Module leaders will have access to these reflections on NUReflect and can provide individualized feedback periodically throughout the semester. A final survey will be administered asking students to reflect on their own progress throughout the semester and will be submitted at the end of the module for assessment. The research diary will be evaluated on its completeness and level of insight and reflection; the marks will be based on the SELLL marking criteria.

The research diary aims to establish good research habits of tracking tasks, prioritizing items, taking notes, and keeping organized. It also aims to facilitate and encourage reflective practice to help the student foster a sense of personal insight and to identify development opportunities and strengths.

Throughout the semester, students will get hands-on experience with designing experiments and collecting data for research projects in the Linguistics Lab. Additionally, they will use their guided independent study time to work on their own behavioural experimental proposal that could potentially be implemented as a Stage 3 capstone project. The work that they do on this experimental proposal will culminate in a 10-minute small group presentation assessment to the class that will occur at the end of the module.

The aim of this assessment is to evaluate the students’ oral communication skills and presentation skills. It intends to provide the student with a platform to discuss a research project that they are interested in and get feedback on it in case they decide to continue on to doing their own behavioural experiment. The assessment also provides the students with an opportunity to demonstrate their acquisition of the module’s knowledge outcomes.

Reading Lists

• SEL2239's Reading List

Timetable

• Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
• SEL2239's Timetable