24.S95 | Spring 2023 | Graduate

Linguistics in K–12 Education

Course Description

This seminar explored the idea that the study of linguistics can be a means to develop young people’s understanding of scientific inquiry as well as their understanding of the nature of language. The challenge of this seminar was to create pedagogical materials and methods that will motivate learners of all ages …
This seminar explored the idea that the study of linguistics can be a means to develop young people’s understanding of scientific inquiry as well as their understanding of the nature of language. The challenge of this seminar was to create pedagogical materials and methods that will motivate learners of all ages to be inquisitive about their native language and about language in general. Seminar participants worked with one another and in partnership with K–12 teachers to accomplish this goal.
Learning Resource Types
Instructor Insights
Lecture Notes
Written Assignments with Examples
A large number of parked schoolbuses
Despite being spelled with an s, the plural ending on schoolbuses is pronounced with a /z/ sound rather than an /s/ sound. The rule that governs this pronunciation is part of the large database of linguistic information that speakers of English generally learn in early childhood without formal instruction. By later childhood, students can potentially use that database as the object of formal scientific inquiry. (Photo courtesy of Renato Valenzuela on Flickr. License: CC BY-NC-SA.)