Our department offers the following list of modules. Which modules are available in any given year depends on staff availability and other factors. Please confirm with the lecturer concerned or the postgraduate coordinator that a module is available before assuming that you can do it.

• Module 2: Phonetics and Phonology: Descriptive and Field Approaches
• Module 3: Introduction to Minimalist Syntax
• Module 4: Debates in Language Change
• Module 6: Optimality Theory
• Module 9: The Psycholinguistics and Linguistics of Literacy
• Module 10: Appraisal
• Module 11: Research Report
• Module 12: Corpus Linguistics
• Module 13: Sign Language Linguistics
• Module 15: External Language Credit
• Module 16: Language and Knowledge
• Module 17: Critical Discourse Analysis
• Module 18: Multimodality: Combination of Semiotic Resources to Make Meaning

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Module 2: Phonetics and Phonology: Descriptive and Field Approaches

Lecturer: Will Bennett

South(ern) African languages are tremendously under-documented and under-described. As scientists studying language, there's surely a lot that these languages can teach us, but in order to know what questions to ask, someone needs to do the work of establishing the basic facts first. We will contribute to this in our own small but definitive way. The overall goal of this module is to undertake a detailed description of the phonetic system of an under-studied language of Southern Africa. We will collect data from L1 speaker(s), analyse it, and assemble recordings and quantitative measurements as hard evidence for our observations. The intended aim is to, as a group, co-author a short but comprehensive description of the phonetic and phonological structures for scholars unfamiliar with the target language. Since this approach is very much data-driven, we can't be sure precisely what we'll find. But some background knowledge of phonetics and phonology will surely serve us well, and more formalish lectures on various topics will be incorporated as we encounter a need for them.

 

Module 3: Introduction to Minimalist Syntax

Lecturer: Mark de Vos

If you are interested in the mechanics of how languages actually work at the level of the sentence and if you are interested in syntactic analysis of different languages, then this module is for you.  At first glance, the languages of the world seem chaotic and random, filled with exceptions. So an important question to ask is whether there is anything in common between them all. After all, the entire human species has the same brain, so surely languages should have something in common?  Minimalist syntax approaches this question by postulating that all syntactic diversity in the world’s 6 000 languages reduces to just three basic, elegant operations: Merge, Move and Agree applied to syntactic features.  In short, it focuses on what all languages have in common and deriving the immense diversity from simple, elegant principles that all human languages share. 

The module includes an overall introduction to Minimalist Syntax and its principles, followed by exploration of syntactic structures and problems in various languages.  There is considerable flexibility about what topics we can choose to focus on, and we can adapt our focus depending on what the class wants to look at.  By studying syntax, you are joining an established international community of scholars who have been building a research programme since at least 1957.   Minimalist Syntax is just the most recent adaptation of Chomskyan generative syntax and has been the dominant framework since 1995. The minimalist framework gives you tools to study the syntax of particular languages as well as contribute to language theory in general.   The module focuses on analytical skills, puzzle solving, theory formation, testing of hypotheses and argumentation skills.

 

Module 4: Debates in Language Change

Not offered in 2024

This module explores some of the implications of Minimalism for the study of language, mind and biolinguistics. The specific topics covered are tailored to the needs of students, but topics covered may include the following:  (a) The evolution of language: when did early hominids start to speak?; what did they sound like?; what were the biological prerequisites for this communicative leap?; what aspects of language are innate, and what aspects are socially learned?; what aspects of language are shared by other species? (b) The Minimalism wars: Is Minimalism a better theory? Why do so many people disagree with it?; Is linguistics `scientific'?; what is `science'? (c) Diachronic change: Is English really just "French with a bad accent?" How similar or different is English from the languages that were important in its development, Old French and Old Norse?  How do languages change and why?  Are there constraints on the ways languages change or is change simply random? 

 

Module 6: Optimality Theory

Not offered in 2024

This course will introduce students to Optimality Theory (commonly called ‘OT’), a constraint-based theory of grammar that is widely used in phonology. We will cover the basic history and structure of the framework, how to define constraints and understand their interactions, and how to determine constraint rankings, and how to construct and support an analysis. Special emphasis will be placed on typologies (including multiple, diverse, languages) as the basic unit of analysis and understanding. Students will also practice using OT software to help with building and testing analyses. In particular, we will likely focus on OT approaches to phenomena common in African languages, such as vowel harmony, tone spreading, hiatus resolution, and reduplication.

  

Module 9: The Psycholinguistics and Linguistics of Literacy

Lecturers: Tracy Bowles and Mark de Vos 

This module explores reading literacy from a psycholinguistic perspective. Reading and literacies are essential in negotiating the complexities of modern life and integrating oneself in the economy. Regrettably, the continuing crisis in South African education has impacted negatively on reading proficiency levels. In recent studies on literacy, South Africa came last out of all countries polled – and not only last but very badly last. In response to this situation, the Rhodes University Department of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies pioneered the rigorous, linguistically-informed quantitative psycholinguistics of reading in African languages at a time (c. 2011) when almost all reading studies focused exclusively on English, and our graduates have consistently been at the forefront of research in this area for the past decade.  

Even almost 20 years since the first PIRLS (2006) studies, despite much research, huge inequalities in literacy still exist and we are still in the early stages of understanding how reading in African languages works at a mental and linguistic level.  Students who take this module, in addition to looking at literacy from a variety of perspectives, focus largely on psycholinguistic methods to looking at South African literacy, with a particular emphasis on using general linguistic theory to inform theorising and model building.  You will develop skills in developing practical literacy tasks/tests and analysing data with basic statistics.  These are important and useful skills in the modern workplace. No previous knowledge of statistics or mathematics is necessary.

 

Module 10: Appraisal

Lecturer: Ian Siebörger

This module explores in detail the Appraisal framework, which has been developed within Systemic Functional Linguistics to describe how language is used to express emotion, evaluate things and people, tone meanings up and down and take a stance in relation to others’ ideas.  We will examine closely all three systems of Appraisal described in Martin and White (2005): Attitude, Graduation and Engagement.  Apart from core reading there is a focus on recent Appraisal research studies and on publications that prompt critical reflection on the Appraisal framework itself.  Students work consistently with data and so develop skills in coding and interpreting data of different kinds.  The module culminates in the writing of a proposal for possible research that you could conduct using Appraisal.  This module is useful for any students planning research in discourse analysis.

 

Module 11: Research Report

Lecturer: All staff members

This module applies to all Honours students, all Master’s students and all PhD students. The main output of Module 11 is the research report or thesis which fulfils different criteria at the various levels, and at each an appropriate length, depth and scope is specified. Students' progress in this module is also supported through, for example, sessions in the PG O-Week on the writing of literature reviews, the design of research questions and so on, the feedback received during the Postgrad Conference in August, and close collaboration with their supervisor(s) throughout the course of their studies.

 For MA and PhD students, a pilot project in the proposed area of study is required in the first year. The purpose of this task, which takes the form of a research report, is to test the feasibility of the project, to provide a degree of formative assessment and to allow students to engage with research in a low-stakes pilot project.  In addition, this pilot project serves as an excellent basis on which to prepare a research proposal for the larger project. Students conduct small scale research, typically on some aspect of the envisaged thesis topic, and write a research paper on it. It should be no more than 10 000 words (i.e. around 30-35 pages) and is equivalent to an Honours level research report. You need to consult with your supervisor prior to embarking on your research project. 

 

Module 12: Corpus Linguistics

Not offered in 2024

Corpus linguistics is a field of study which is rapidly increasing in scope and importance. As computing power becomes more and more readily available and digital storage cheaper, so more applications are found which benefit from the computer-assisted analysis of language. This module traces the development of corpus linguistics, offers tasters of various applications of the method (e.g. lexicography, diachronic analysis, CDA), covers the various decisions facing corpus builders and affords students the opportunity to develop their own corpus, and analyse it, using a variety of software for a purpose of their choice. Please note that computer literacy is essential if you are considering this module.

 

Module 13: Sign Language Linguistics

Not offered in 2024

This module is for students who would like a deeper understanding of the structure of sign languages, as well as those who are interested in further research or work in Deaf communities. Sign languages have expanded our knowledge of the structure of language by showing how language can work in a modality other than the vocal-auditory modality of spoken language. We explore sign language phonology, morphology, and syntax as well as other similarities and differences between signed and spoken languages. While research on a variety of sign languages will be studied, students will investigate to what extent the findings of these studies apply to South African Sign Language (SASL) in their main assignment for the module. 

 

Module 15: External Language Credit

Lecturers: Outside the department

It is acknowledged that linguistics students at postgraduate level may be enriched by appropriate modules in language offered by other departments. Ideally the language in question must be one which the student has not studied before and in which she or he is not already fluent. The content language course in question should also be amenable to linguistic analysis appropriate to the level of proficiency of the student.  For these reasons, students may do a language credit at the discretion of their supervisor. This decision must be ratified by the HOD at a subsequent staff meeting. A student will not be allowed to do a language credit if by so doing, their Honours degree is “taken out" of the department (i.e. if it results in a joint Honours as opposed to a Linguistics Honours).  It is incumbent on the supervisor to ensure this in advance. The language credit will count as a postgraduate module in Linguistics and cannot count toward credit in another degree. The language credit must be focused on the learning/mastery of a language. The language-oriented part of the credit must not be less than 34 contact hours (i.e. equivalent to the teaching contact hours for a postgraduate module). Topics in literature, culture, translation etc. do not count toward this total. The language credit could indeed be a first-year credit but doesn't have to be. At Rhodes, this means a student may do French 1P, German 1, Greek and Latin 1, Xhosa 1 (Non-Mother Tongue) or Mandarin. Students may not study English 1 because this is a literary subject at Rhodes. If a student wants to study a language at second or third-year levels, then they must provide a course outline (or communication from the relevant HOD) which indicates that the student will have at least 34 contact hours of language/grammar lessons (i.e. equivalent to the teaching contact hours for a postgraduate module); there is no upper limit specified. The language credit should be supplemented in the department by having the student write additional, linguistically oriented assignments. The student should do one additional assignment per term or alternatively, one, slightly larger, assignment per semester, subject to negotiation with the supervisor. The length of the assignments may not be cumulatively greater than for any other postgraduate module. The staff members responsible for these should be nominated in consultation with the supervisor before the student commences study. The assignments will necessarily cover areas covered in the language course focusing on linguistic analysis. Staff members should be allocated accordingly. Care should be taken to ensure critical alignment of the objectives of the language course in question and the linguistic assignments.

 

Module 16: Language and Knowledge

Lecturer: Ian Siebörger

In recent years, knowledge has become a buzzword. We speak about “the knowledge economy” and “knowledge workers”, but surprisingly little research focuses on knowledge itself: how it is structured and transmitted, and how it relates to knowers. Language is the primary means by which knowledge is built and shared, but few people have studied the relationship between language and knowledge. This module is a basic introduction to Legitimation Code Theory (LCT), a rapidly developing theoretical framework based on Bernstein’s sociology of education which is increasingly being used in linguistic study (particularly with Systemic Functional Linguistics) to investigate how language is used to build and share knowledge. This module will be particularly helpful for those interested in educational linguistics and analysing classroom discourse. It will also be valuable for those interested in analysing discourses in any context to understand how texts are used to build and package knowledge in ideologically-biased ways. The emphasis will be on how LCT can be combined with linguistic study to offer a new perspective on students’ research areas, and students will be introduced to many examples of LCT in action in linguistic research.

 

Module 17: Critical Discourse Analysis

Not offered in 2024

This course is designed to equip you with the theoretical and practical knowledge and skills to use Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) effectively in your postgraduate work. Through weekly facilitated group discussions, this interdisciplinary module encourages theoretical debate on the underpinnings of CDA and general approaches to ideology, language and power and provides a structured programme of practical CDA (the nitty gritty of how language choices reflect and perpetuate ideological meaning). Throughout the course, students are required to make constant links back to their home department and their own research and will engage with exciting Southern African research (especially research from Rhodes University) in the field. While this course is extensive and requires a significant commitment, it will ensure a deep and well-theorised understanding of the use of CDA and its application to your own research.

 

Module 18: Multimodality: Combination of Semiotic Resources to Make Meaning

Lecturer: Idowu Adetomokun

Our semiotic landscape is becoming more and more populated with social and cultural discourse practices and “we are faced with sound and image taking over tasks associated with the role of language since the invention of the printing press, and thus to some extent displacing language” (Kress and Van Leeuwen 1996: 37).   A new recognition of the alternative semiotics making use of a combination of modes (multimodality) to disseminate information has emerged; this requires that we expand our conception of mode to embrace multimodal discourse analysis (MDA) operating on the same principles as Hallidayan social semiotics.  Thus the combination of many modes for discourse has taken over our means of disseminating information.  Multimodality entails “going beyond linguistics into social semiotics and taking into account as many modalities of communication as we can systematically describe” (Martin and Rose, 2003:255).  Literally, “multi-” means “more than one” and “modal” may contain the idea of “modality” and “mode”.  Hence, “modality” is the means or channel we employ to disseminate or extract information and also the manner of by which we understand or express an idea, or do a particular action.  Mode refers to the manner in which we interpret information by using language or a thing to convey or make meaning.   Meanings emerge from the fusion of numerous semiotic resources we utilise to communicate. In SFL, we have a tri-functional conceptualisation of meaning: ideational, interpersonal and textual (Halliday, 1994).    Similarly, Kress and Van Leeuwen (1996) have shown how SFL can be applied in analysing visual semiotics using slightly new terminology: “representational” instead of “ideational”; “interactive” instead of “interpersonal”; and “compositional” instead of “textual” (Jewitt and Oyama, 2001).  Like linguistic signs, images not only represent the world, but also play a part in some interaction, with or without accompanying linguistic texts. 

 

 

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Last Modified: Thu, 01 Feb 2024 10:02:05 SAST