Ken Aboute Language: Edinburgh students' plans for school outreach to develop KAL and awareness of linguistics
- David M. T. Arnold, University of Edinburgh
- Glendinning Lecture Theatre 2D67, UWE Bristol
When did you first hear about linguistics? For most undergraduates it is a term that was not encountered until investigating courses for university or even whilst studying.
Knowledge About Language (KAL) is considered to be a fundamental part of the curriculum. However, much of the delivery of KAL seems to come from prescriptive ideologies of how to speak and write ‘properly’ and often centred around ‘standard’ English as the norm, even in areas where local varieties are predominant.
Why is this the case given the academic progression of linguistics over the last 50 years? Why is there such a disjunct between the rich, descriptive and scientific body of knowledge about language and the provision of this area in pre 16 education? English Language is a course option for A-levels, Highers and the IB but this is not taken by everybody and obviously focused on just one language.
Recent initiatives by academics such as Richard Hudson (UCL) and Graeme Trousdale (Edinburgh) are introducing linguistic thinking to young people and there exists the Committee for Linguistics in Education (CLIE). Notable initiatives are: UKLO, the UK Linguistics Olympiad which works with schools to organise competitions that involve typological analysis of data; and The Language Detectives, a linguistics summer school for children run with the Villiers Park Educational Trust.
For such projects to grow, it is up to the next generation of linguists and linguistically aware teachers to develop and uphold the ideology that a descriptive, investigative and creative approach to KAL in the curriculum is needed to enrich young peoples’ understanding of language and ensure that that understanding is based on contemporary research.
We offer some preliminary answers regarding the current state of KAL in the curriculum, summarise the existing academic projects and introduce ideas for educational outreach that are being developed by students at Edinburgh. We hope this will lead to further discussion over the weekend as other universities get involved.
Knowledge About Language (KAL) is considered to be a fundamental part of the curriculum. However, much of the delivery of KAL seems to come from prescriptive ideologies of how to speak and write ‘properly’ and often centred around ‘standard’ English as the norm, even in areas where local varieties are predominant.
Why is this the case given the academic progression of linguistics over the last 50 years? Why is there such a disjunct between the rich, descriptive and scientific body of knowledge about language and the provision of this area in pre 16 education? English Language is a course option for A-levels, Highers and the IB but this is not taken by everybody and obviously focused on just one language.
Recent initiatives by academics such as Richard Hudson (UCL) and Graeme Trousdale (Edinburgh) are introducing linguistic thinking to young people and there exists the Committee for Linguistics in Education (CLIE). Notable initiatives are: UKLO, the UK Linguistics Olympiad which works with schools to organise competitions that involve typological analysis of data; and The Language Detectives, a linguistics summer school for children run with the Villiers Park Educational Trust.
For such projects to grow, it is up to the next generation of linguists and linguistically aware teachers to develop and uphold the ideology that a descriptive, investigative and creative approach to KAL in the curriculum is needed to enrich young peoples’ understanding of language and ensure that that understanding is based on contemporary research.
We offer some preliminary answers regarding the current state of KAL in the curriculum, summarise the existing academic projects and introduce ideas for educational outreach that are being developed by students at Edinburgh. We hope this will lead to further discussion over the weekend as other universities get involved.