This course will introduce the study of French from a linguistic point of view. The area to be covered will be chosen from: phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, dialect and social variation, pragmatics, discourse analysis.

This course is designed to prepare ESL teachers professionally and will cover topics such as job hunting, interviewing, writing a CV, conferences, observations, assembling a portfolio, and conducting and presenting action research. Students will participate in 10 hours observing ESL in at least two community and university contexts. Requirements include a report of an action research project, a poster presentation of the project, and a portfolio which may be used for securing jobs.

Specific Spring 2026 Semester Topic: Global Englishes

English has been referred to as a lingua franca, a global language, a commodity, and a tyrannosaurus rex. Though exact estimates of English users vary, native English speakers are most certainly outnumbered by English as an additional language (EAL) users today. This online course is an introduction to the paradigm of Global Englishes, including the study of World Englishes (WE), English as a lingua franca (ELF), English as an international language (EIL), and the implications of English’s worldwide reach. In our study of Global Englishes, we will also consider related issues, such as language variation, globalization, linguistic bias, the “native speaker” construct, language policy, and language teaching. Although our focus is primarily on English use and instruction, class participants are welcome to explore implications for learning and teaching other languages through their individual projects.

This course is designed to present an overview of the field of second language acquisition, the study of how second and foreign languages are learned after a first language has already been acquired, and the cognitive, psychological and social factors that impact acquisition, learning and language use.

Spring 2026 Semester Topic: Curriculum/Materials Development and Assessment

This advanced-level teaching methods course addresses major components of teaching English an additional language with an emphasis on curriculum development and assessment. Students will explore foundational concepts in ESL/EFL curriculum development, including needs and context analysis, goals and objectives, pedagogical approaches, sequencing and scaffolding, materials development, and student and course assessment. Students will gain practice in applying these concepts in context-sensitive ways through an individual, semester-long course design project. We will also examine curriculum and assessment practices from a sociopolitical perspective throughout the course.

This course is a descriptive overview of English grammar, surveying English grammatical structures and major patterns of language use, and developing skill in grammatical analysis. We will analyze both written and spoken English grammar in the context of discourse and register characteristics, and will also discuss pedagogical implications and applications. Students will complete a final project related to their own interests in applying the knowledge learned in the course (e.g., to ESL instruction).

The course is designed to:
1. develop your understanding of English structures and functions;
2. give you practice with analytical techniques used in grammatical studies and with applying those techniques to authentic language;
3. increase your understanding of concepts and terminology for your own research and reading the research of others;
4. help you develop a better understanding and analysis of the functions of grammatical features of English in various discourse contexts (e.g., across registers);
5. introduce you to corpus-linguistic research on grammar for application to research and teaching;
6. discuss the teaching of grammar in ESL/EFL contexts, both theoretically and practically.

English 598 connects composition theory to praxis. Through a number of activities, we will think carefully about our inclinations, actions and reactions as teachers in the writing classroom. Required of all graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) in their first year of teaching in the Writing Program, preceptorship provides a brief introduction to theory in writing studies and pedagogy as well as embedded support for classroom management. During the course, you will be asked to reflect on the teaching of first-year writing, and we encourage collaboration as we develop our teaching philosophies and approaches to first-year writing. A major objective of 598 is to embed support within your first year of teaching. You will meet twice weekly with your Mentor, who will provide practical support for your teaching of English 101 and 102. These mentor sessions should be a safe space to reflect on and discuss your experiences with teaching.. It is in these sessions that you will respond to any immediate questions or concerns teaching English 101 and 102. One of the major tasks of mentor groups is arranging a mentor class visit.

This course surveys quantitative and qualitative methods in composition and rhetoric in order to introduce students to different communities of inquiry and basic questions about the nature of research.

The development and exchange of scholarly information, usually in a small group setting. The scope of work shall consist of research by course registrants, with the exchange of the results of such research through discussion, reports, and/or papers.

Fall 2026 Semester Topic: Pedagogy in Multilingual Spaces

Across the globe, old and new waves of migration, immigration and refugee settlement are reshaping the linguistic landscape of K-16 educational spaces. These changes challenge educators (and educational researchers) to reimagine what they teach, how they teach, and in what ways they deliver their content to attend to the trauma, social emotional behaviors and technocultural influences that shape modern day teaching and learning. This course will examine the kinds of practices educators can take up to foster more equitable educational attainment and successful learning outcomes in multilingual spaces. Additionally, it will make space for participants to propose and create a course syllabus designed around these pedagogical practices.

This course is designed to explore the nature of research in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and to help situate students theoretically and methodologically in this research domain. We will investigate both qualitative and quantitative approaches, with slightly more emphasis on quantitative research design. The course will cover processes of conducting research, from identifying problems, formulating research questions, collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data, to writing up research for presentation and publication.

Course Objectives include:
1. Build awareness of practical and ethical issues in doing second language research
2. Read, analyze, and synthesize literature related to SLA
3. Understand the key concepts and vocabulary frequently used by SLA researchers and applied linguists
4. Examine issues of data collection, data analysis, research design, and writing for publication in relation to SLA and applied linguistics research
5. Compare and contrast research designs and methods and identify examples of each
6. Explore various research strategies used in qualitative and quantitative research
7. Write a research proposal or research paper