Abstract 1A

Saturday, July 8 1:25pm

An introductory linguistics course for non-majors, centering social justice

Ezra Keshet ekeshet@umich.edu
Wyatt Barnes wjbb@umich.edu
Kathryn Hendrickson kathendr@umich.edu
Lisa Levinson lisalev@umich.edu
Grace Brown grcbrown@umich.edu*
Alicja Krasowska alamaria@umich.edu
Dominique Bouavichith dombouav@umich.edu
Elizabeth Levesque manneliz@umich.edu
Heather Rypkema hrypkema@umich.edu

University of Michigan (and *University of Maryland)

Our department recently had the opportunity to redesign our large-format introductory course, which we will call LING 101, through a three-year, university-supported collaboration among faculty, staff, education consultants, and graduate and undergraduate students. We have shaped a course specifically for non-majors, perhaps those simply looking to satisfy a distribution requirement, which nonetheless furthers our department’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion mission.

Our design philosophy Linguistics for Everyone is reflected throughout the design of the course:

• We relate theoretical concepts in Linguistics to the real world. Each canonical introductory topic (phonetics, morphology, semantics, etc.) is viewed through three Lenses into Language, which relate directly to the world outside of academia:
  • The Mind Creates Language
    The study of language can help us better understand ourselves as humans.
  • Language Shapes Society
    Language reflects and establishes the individual and group identities we share.
  • All Language is Good Language
    Linguistics can be a force for counteracting discrimination and promoting justice.
• We practice radical transparency and flexibility to allow all students to get the most out of the course, no matter their background, prior exposure to Linguistics, or current personal circumstances.
• We incorporate data from a wide variety of languages and language varieties across linguistic modalities, particularly those that are marked, minoritized, or not often represented in linguistics courses.
• We actively prepare students to advocate for the new ideas they learn in the course, so they can engage with their own communities on the issues presented in class.

Finally, our hope is that LING 101 supports social justice both directly through the students we serve, and indirectly by countering pervasive myths about language that contribute to linguistic discrimination. Through LING 101, students learn that Linguistics is for everyone to study and contribute to, and Linguistics is also working for everyone to promote social justice in our communities.