Programme
Programme
Contact hours
You will attend two hours of classes each week, and you are expected to do four additional hours of work on preparation and formative assessment each week.
Teaching programme
Term one
An introduction to the most important characteristics of the English of different periods, and some major changes in English, set within the background of the linguistic and sociolinguistic development of the English language. Practical work in vocabulary and morphology will develop your analytic skills and give you an understanding of the nature of our evidence for the history of English.
Terms two and three
The Old English language within a comparative Germanic framework, learned to a level that will permit you to read simple prose with a glossary. This part of the module will be taught in lectures and seminars and using the University VLE (Virtual Learning Environment).
Teaching materials
For the autumn term you will need ONE of:
- Crystal, David. (2005). The Stories of English. Penguin.
- Barber, Joan C. Beal, Philip A. Shaw (2009) The English Language: A Historical Introduction 2nd edition (Cambridge Approaches to Linguistics) Cambridge: CUP.
The first is written for the general reader. It is easier to read, but less structured. The second is a textbook. It is less appealing as a read, but easier to see what you should be getting from it.
Assessment and feedback
Assessment and feedback
Formative assessment
You are expected to complete regular written assignments, to prepare for class discussion and for oral presentations in class, and to participate in group work. In terms 2 and 3, some of the formative assessment will use the VLE.
To help you assess your progress there is an obligatory in-class test which takes place in Week 1 of Term 2.
Summative assessment
- Two-hour closed exam
- Date: week 6 of the summer term
- Weight: 90%
- Assignments using the VLE
