Ralf Thiede, Professor of Applied Linguistics,
UNC Charlotte
Explicit instruction in grammar has, for various historical reasons, declined in public schools, but it appears to be making a comeback via SAT, AP and common core curriculum. We will look at grammar (not necessarily only school grammar, but also paying attention to more current linguistics) with an eye on two areas of application. First, grammar for writing – the grammar one must know in order to discuss and do professional (non-intuitive) editing. Second, grammar for the workplace – the grammar one must know to prepare for studies towards a career in any of the many language-related industries. This seminar is not exclusively intended for English/Language Arts teachers, but also for all those who think grammar (linguistics) has its rightful place among the STEM disciplines. For example, a teacher in social studies or mathematics/statistics may be interested in developing curriculum involving topics such as diagnosing linguistic deterioration in Alzheimer’s patients, forensic linguistics (establishing authorship), computer applications (data mining, corpus analysis), etc. Cooperation between ELA and STEM teachers would be especially welcome and encouraged.
Explore curriculum units developed by Fellows in this seminar here.
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