If you cannot access MyHeritage, you may complete the Forum reflections by answering these questions and emailing the answers to Dr. Schmidt. The questions for BLE 535 will be posted later.

BLE 523A

Unit I (Phonetics and Phonology)

Teaching Reading:

How might one use theoretical knowledge of phonetics and phonology in teaching reading? What are some exercises, methods, etc., that draw on this theoretical background?

Unit II (Morphology)

Teaching Morphology:

Suggest a classroom exercise which can help build students' morphological skills: how to construct and/or interpret new words. You may use one that you already employ, one you have read about, or make up a new one of your own.

Unit III (Syntax and Semantics)

Teaching Writing:

Oddly enough, most linguists and composition theorists agree that teaching formal grammar does little to improve student writing skills. Why might that be, and what does that suggest about how best to teach writing? (Browse the summary articles from the York Reports posted in the portlets above for ideas.)

Language Acquisition:

All linguists agree that younger children acquire new languages more readily and thoroughly than older children or adults. Our text (Chap. 8) discusses a number of competing theories about language acquisition. Which theory or theories do you find helpful in understanding the reasons for this difference, and how might they help you in the classroom, as a parent, etc.?

BLE 535

Chap. 3: Speech Communities

Considering the various dimensions of speech communities delineated by Dell Hymes, discuss YOUR OWN speech community/ies. Whom does it include? What are some of the characteristics and features of your community/ies?

Chap. 4: Ethnography of "Outsiders" (All Students)

Members of a speech community have the ability to recognize an "outsider": one whose speech events and acts demonstrate that the person is not an "authentic" member of their speech community. From your own experience or observation, give an example that illustrates this recognition.

Chap. 14: Vernacular Norms vs. Standard English (All Students)

In what way(s) might knowing about the existence and nature of vernacular norms help us as teachers, especially in dealing with students coming to our classroom from different parts of the country or community?

Chap. 17: Attitudes Towards Specific Speech Communities (All Students)

For those of us who work in a school or school like environment, it's inevitable to group students because of their abilities and levels of comprehension. But what about the biases that we have and assumptions that we have acquired? How do we prevent our biases from influencing our attitudes towards others in our schools or other workplaces. For example, if a non-English-speaking person walks into your class or place of employment on his first day of school or work, how might you avoid your tendency to place that person on the lowest tiers of intelligence or ability?

Chapter 18: BICS & CALP or Gen 1.5 (All Students)

As a teacher or possible teacher who has learned the difference between BICS and CALP and the concept of Gen 1.5 (see Handouts for the BICS/CALP and Generation 1.5 presentations), what implications do you see for the classroom? That is, how does knowing this alter your approach to teaching?

Chapter 23: Two Common (Incorrect) Assumptions (All Students)

Fishman convincingly refutes two commonly-held beliefs about multi-lingual societies (that they have more civil strife and are poorer). What implications might his findings hold for bilingual education?