L315 Description and Goals (Fall 2008)

►In this course, we study some of the principal areas of
sociolinguistics, including:
•	languages in relation to the communities that speak them,
(social networks, dialects and other language varieties,
•	“new” languages [e.g. pidgins and creoles, vernaculars]),
•	language in relation to gender, age, social class, ethnic
group, language within culture (politeness, solidarity, speech
acts), as well as
•	language variation, language change, and language death.

►The main goals of the course are that students:
•	Become knowledgeable of the basic areas of sociolinguistics,
the basic questions asked and discussed in the field, and the
general methodologies employed in carrying out research in
sociolinguistics
•	Learn the kinds of thinking necessary to frame a question
sociolinguistically and to learn the skills to be able to come up
with and assess possible responses to the question
•	Become aware of their own intellectual development as they
learn more about different aspects of sociolinguistics and develop
the skills to examine critically and research different
sociolinguistic questions
•	Develop an understanding of what sociolinguistics
contributes to the broader areas of language change and linguistic
theory

►The textbook to be used is Introducing Sociolinguistics by Miriam
Meyerhoff.

►The course grade is based on a number of quizzes, readings, and
assignments, two midterms, participation, a final project, and a
final exam.