HONR218L: Language and Mind
Logistics:
Time:
Place:
Tuesday-Thursday 9:30-10:45am
ANA 0120
Instructor:
Office:
Office hours:
E-mail:
Phone :
Valentine Hacquard
1401 Marie Mount Hall
Tuesday 2-4pm or by appointment.
[email protected]
(301) 405-4935
TA:
Office:
Office hours:
E-mail:
Phone :
Brian Dillon
1413 H Marie Mount Hall
Monday 10am-12pm
[email protected]
(301) 405-7551
Class website: http://ling.umd.edu/~bdillon/hnr218/
Course Overview:
What is human language, and what distinguishes it from the way other animals communicate?
How do children learn language? How do languages change over time? What can the study of
language tell us about how the human mind works? These are some of the fundamental
questions in the discipline of linguistics, which we will tour in this course. Throughout the
course, we will be learning (in many different ways) that human language is a surprisingly
intricate, yet law-governed and fascinating mental system.
Except in case of severe brain damage, speaking a language is something that seems both
effortless and intuitive for all adults. Similarly, any child can learn to speak any human language
if the child is exposed to that language from an early age, with almost no direct teaching.
[Reading and writing are a different matter!] And yet, a close look at any human language
shows that it is an extremely sophisticated system (compared to simple systems like calculus,
for example). This suggests that there is something special about the human mind that makes it
able to learn and use language. Linguistics is a science which aims to discover how human
languages work (any language, not just English), and what it is about human minds that makes
them able to learn and use language.
This is a relatively small HONORS course, and we aim to take full advantage of this. There will
be ample opportunity for discussion, and we will be reading some challenging cutting-edge
science.
This course is a CORE Distributive Studies course. CORE-General Education has both broad
learning outcomes for the program as a whole and outcomes for each of the different CORE
Distributive Studies categories. To see the Student Learning Outcomes for CORE, please visit:
http://www.ugst.umd.edu/core/LearningOutcome.htm. No one CORE course will address all of
the Learning Outcome Goals listed for its category. Some courses may contribute to general
education in important ways not directly covered by the learning outcomes listed.
Course Requirements:
1. Readings
There is no required textbook for the class. Instead, reading material will consist of various
articles and chapters, as well as lecture notes, which will be made available on-line.
Selected Readings
Baker, M. (2001). The Atoms of Language. New York: Basic Books.
Bloom. P. (2000). How Children Learn the Meanings of Words. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Crain, S. (1991). ‘Language acquisition in the absence of experience’. The Behavioral and Brain
Sciences 4.
De Villiers, J. and P. De Villiers (2003). ‘Language for Thought: Coming to understanding false
beliefs’. In D Gentner & S. Goldin-Meadow, (eds) Language in Mind: Advances in the
Study of Language and Cognition. Cambridge, MA: MIT press.
Dupoux, E. et al. (1999) Epenthetic Vowels in Japanese: A Perceptual Illusion? Journal of
Experimental Psychology.
Hauser, M., Chomsky, N. and W. Fitch (2002). ‘The Faculty of Language: What is it? Who has
it? And How did it Evolve?’ Science 298.
Jackendoff, R. (1994). Patterns in the Mind. New York: Basic Books. (excerpts)
Kaminski, J, J. Call & J. Fischer (2004). ‘Word Learning in a Domestic Dog: Evidence for “Fast
Mapping”’. Science 304.
Phillips, C. (2003). Syntax. A slightly extended version of an article in the Encyclopedia of
Cognitive Science, Macmillan Reference, Ltd. Read pp.1-15.
Rastle, K., M. Davis & B. New (2004). ‘The Broth in my Brother’s Brothel: Morphoorthographic Segmantation in visual word recognition’. Psychonomic Bulletin and
Review 11.
Schik, B. et al. (2007). ‘Language and Theory of Mind: a study of Deaf Children. Child
Development 78.
Stager, C. & J. Werker (1997). Infants listen for more phonetic detail in speech perception than
word-learning tasks. Nature, 388, 381-382.
Werker, J. (1995). Exploring Developmental Changes in Cross-language Speech Perception.
Chapter 4 (pp.87-106) of Language, edited by Gleitman & Liberman.
2. Participation
You will get far more out of this course, both in terms of learning and in terms of grades, if you
participate actively in the course. By actively thinking and talking about the topics covered in
the course your likelihood of remembering and understanding is greatly increased. The
participation component of the course grade is an opportunity to receive credit for taking this
initiative in your learning. It is not a stick to beat you with for not showing up at class, nor is it
automatic credit. Active participation involves:
- participating in class - no credit for just showing up
- reading and thinking about assigned readings before the class in which they are discussed
- being prepared to ask questions, contribute ideas, and listen to other students’ ideas
- giving a well-prepared presentation of a research article
3. Homework Assignments
There will be 6 homework assignments. These will often be problems from real languages
(sometimes slightly simplified) that use the concepts and analytic techniques discussed in class
and in the readings; parts of them will also involve fieldwork (see # 4 below), and a lab report.
Assignments will be handed out one week before they are due (see schedule below). They must
be submitted in hard copy at the beginning of class. Late assignments will not be accepted
except for compelling reasons and with explicit e-mail permission of the instructor.
Honesty policy for homework assignments: General discussion of the assignments with other
students is acceptable and encouraged, but you must arrive at the actual solutions to problems
on your own and write them up on your own. Always indicate the people you discussed the
homework with at the top of your homework.
4. Fieldwork
Sometimes we will ask you on a homework assignment to find something out about a language
that you don't speak, by interviewing a native speaker of that language (an ‘informant’). There
will be 3 such assignments in the course of the semester. The first session will be done in class.
For the remaining sessions, you are welcome to find your own informant, or we can put you in
touch with one. Your work sessions with your informant should not last more than an hour or so
each time. You can work in groups of 4, but you should each write up your own field report. For
homework 3, you will be asked to make an in-class group presentation of your findings.
5. Exams
There will be one midterm and one final exam. The final exam will cover material from the
entire course, and will be a mixture of factual questions and problems. If you did well on the
problem sets and midterm, you should do well on the final exam.
6. Grading
Homework
Midterm
Final Exam
Participation/Presentation
50%
10%
20%
20%
The scores below will guarantee you at least the letter grades indicated. We are not grading on a
curve, so you are not in competition with your classmates.
A+
A
AB+
90-100%
80-89%
75-79%
70-74%
B
BC+
C
65-69%
60-64%
55-59%
50-54%
7. Schedule
The following schedule is a tentative outline of the course. The schedule of topics is subject to
change. Readings and lecture notes will be made available on the class website.
Dates
Topics
Key dates
Readings
Tu 9/2
Introduction
Jackendoff 1994,
chapter 1-3
Th 9/4
Tu 9/9
Morphology:
Bloom 2000, Kaminski et
what’s in our mental lexicon
al. (2004)
Th 9/11
and
how
does
it
get
there?
Tu 9/16
HW 1 due
Th 9/18
Fieldwork session
Tu 9/23
Morphology
*Rastle et al (2004)
Th 9/25
Tu 9/30
HW2 due
Phonetics and Phonology:
Th 10/2
Sounds and Categories
Tu 10/7
Th 10/9
HM3 due
Tu 10/14
Th 10/16
Group presentations of fieldwork reports (homework #4)
Tu 10/21 Speech perception
Werker 1995, *Dupoux et
al, *Stager &Werker 1997
Th 10/23
Tu 10/28
Midterm Exam
Th 10/30 Syntax:
Philips 2003, Baker 2002
Sentence
Structure
Tu 11/4
Th 11/6
Tu 11/11
Th 11/13 Acquisition of Syntax
Pres 4
*Crain 1991
Tu 11/18 Sentence Processing
HW5 due
Th 11/20 Semantics/Pragmatics:
Tu 11/25 Meaning of sentences
Th 11/27
No class – Thanksgiving
Tu 12/2
Theory of Mind
HW6 due
*De Villiers 1995;
*Schick et al. 2007
Th 12/4
Tu 12/9
Animal Communication
*Hauser et al. 2004
Th 12/11 Summary: Language and Mind
Tu 12/16
Final Exam: 08:00am – 10:00 am
*Readings with an asterisk will be those presented by students.
Academic Accommodations: If you have a documented disability, you should contact
Disability Support Services 0126 Shoemaker Hall. Each semester students with documented
disabilities should apply to DSS for accommodation request forms which you can provide to
your professors as proof of your eligibility for accommodations. The rules for eligibility and the
types of accommodations a student may request can be reviewed on the DSS web site at
http://www.counseling.umd.edu/DSS/receiving_serv.html.
Religious Observances: The University System of Maryland policy provides that students
should not be penalized because of observances of their religious beliefs, students shall be given
an opportunity, whenever feasible, to make up within a reasonable time any academic
assignment that is missed due to individual participation in religious observances. It is the
responsibility of the student to inform the instructor of any intended absences for religious
observances in advance. Notice should be provided as soon as possible but no later than the end
of the schedule adjustment period.
Academic integrity: The University of Maryland has a nationally recognized Code of Academic
Integrity, administered by the Student Honor Council. This Code sets standards for academic
integrity at Maryland for all undergraduate and graduate students. As a student you are
responsible for upholding these standards for this course. It is very important for you to be aware
of the consequences of cheating, fabrication, facilitation, and plagiarism. For more information
on the Code of Academic Integrity or the Student Honor Council, please visit
http://www.studenthonorcouncil.umd.edu/whatis.html.
Please write the following signed statement on each exam and assignment:
"I pledge on my honor that I have not given or received any unauthorized
assistance on this examination (or assignment).”
Inclement weather/emergency: Students will be notified by email regarding closing for
inclement weather, and how courses will be continued / completed in case of an emergency that
closes the University for an extended period.
Course Evaluations: CourseEvalUM will be open for students to complete their evaluations for
Fall 2008 courses between Dec 2-14, directly on the website (www.courseevalum.umd.edu)
Students will be alerted via their official University e-mail account.