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Multilingualism: Theory and Practice

Home/ Multilingualism: Theory and Practice
Course Type Course Code No. Of Credits
Discipline Core SOL2EN325 4

Semester and Year Offered: IInd & IVth Semester

Course Coordinator: Krishna K Dixit

Email of course coordinator: krishnakdixit@aud.ac.in

Pre-requisites: None

Course Objectives/Description: This elective course – Multilingualism: Theory and Practice – is designed for dual purposes: facilitate the appreciation of linguistic diversity in India and around the world and prepare students for undertaking research with multilingual focus. The Languages have their own impact on individuals and communities. They create the worlds and world views. The course progresses in exploratory fashion focusing on the notion of ‘multilingualism’, its interpretations at various levels, its representations in varied ways, and its significance in the contemporary world. The course includes academic exploration of how multilingual individuals and communities acquire languages, interact and use various languages to construct and project cultural identities, language policies, language- scape, multilingualism and cultural texts to mention a few.

Course Outcomes:

By the end of the course the students would be able to:

  • Explore the construct of ‘multilingualism’ from linguistic, sociolinguistic, and psycholinguistic perspectives and engage with key theoretical concepts.
  • Critically assess key issues and approaches to the investigate multilingualism.
  • Demonstrate professional competencies for working in the field of multilingualism.

Brief description of modules/ Main modules:

Module 1 (3 weeks): What is multilingualism?

The primary focus of this module is introduction of the notion of ‘multilingualism’ from the linguistic, sociolinguistic, and psycholinguistic perspectives. The key topics include conceptual exploration of multilingualism, multilingual ethos, lexis and grammar in multilingualism, and motivations for multilingualism.

Module 2 Key concepts in multilingualism (3 weeks)

This module is aimed at facilitating the acquisition of key theoretical concepts in investigating multilingualism. The focus area includes code-mixing, code switching, hetroglossia, emic and etic perspectives, linguistic diversity, language dialects/registers and multilingualism, centring and decentring, language contact, contact languages, etc.

Module 3: Material aspects of multilingualism (3 weeks)

This module is centred around exploring practical aspects associated with multilingualism such as affordances and constraints it creates, its roles and place in enhancing capabilities, linguanomics, linguistic governance.

Module 4: Researching multilingualism (3 weeks)

This module is targeted at making the students aware of keys issues and concerns in studying / researching multilingualism taking into consideration language in education, language(s) at work, myth and controversies, global south discourses/epistemologies, and researching multilingualism.

Assessment Details with weights:

 

S. No.

Assessment

Weightage

1.

Home Assignment

20%

2.

Empirical investigation (9th week)

30%

3.

End Semester Assessment

50%

Indicative Reading List:

Articles

  • Berthele, R. (2020). The Extraordinary Ordinary: Re-engineering Multilingualism as a Natural Category. DOI. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12407
  • Berthele, R. (2020). Introduction: What’s so special about multilingualism? DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12436
  • Fransceschini, R. (2011). Multilingualism and Multicompetence: A Conceputal View, Modern Language Journal, 95(3), 344-355.
  • Higby, E., Kim, J. and Obler, L. K. (2013). Multilingualism and the Brain. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 33, 68-101
  • Kelly-Holmes, H. (2006). Multilingualism and commercial language practices on the internet. DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9841.2006.00290.x
  • Maffi, L. (2005). Linguistic, cultural and biological diversity. Annual Review of Anthropology, 29, pp. 599-617.

Books

  • Bayer, J. M., Pattanayak, S. and Pattanayak, C. (2016). Multilingualism and Multiculturalism. Hyderabad: Orient Blacswan.
  • Maher, J. C. (2017). Multilingualism: A short introduction. Oxford: OUP.
  • Martin-Jones, M., Blackledge, A., and Creese, A. (2012). Routledge Handbook on Multilingualism. London: Routledge. (Chapters 1, 3, 7).
  • Schwieter, J. W. and Paradis, M. (2019). The Handbook of the Neuroscience of Multilingualism. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell. (Chapters 2, 7, 9)

 

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