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Psycho-Linguistics: Course Content

Eng 427

Aims & Objectives

Rationale: This course explores the deep levels of language processing that is involved in language comprehension and production. It provides a sound theoretical base for understanding the mechanism of communication and for supporting understanding of courses like Methodology and Language Skills.

Objectives:

  • On successfully completing this course, students will be able to:
  • Understand Processes of Language Comprehension and production.
  • Distinguish contributions of linguistics to the understanding of differing levels of language acquisition.
  • Apply Psycholinguistics to analyze and teach language skills.

Course Outline

UNIT 1

Psycholinguistics

  • The domain of  psycholinguistics
  • Language and the brain: Neurolinguistics
  • Localizing language in the brain
  • Lateralization in the brain
  • Relationship between Neurolinguistics and Psycholinguistics

UNIT 2

Knowing a word

  • Lexical form
  • The meaning of meaning
  • Forming lexical categories

UNIT 3

Lexical storage and lexical access

  • Word association
  • Models of lexical retrieval
  • Lexical processing

UNIT 4

Long term memory and schema theory

  • Meaning representations
  • Inference
  • Anaphor resolution

Course Outline

UNIT 5

Information processing approach

  • Bottom-up and top-down processing
  • Memory and language
  • Working memory: an overview

UNIT 6

Issues in Listening

  • Categorical Perception
  • Listening in Real Time
  • Locating word boundaries

UNIT 7

Decoding in Reading

  • Eye movements in reading
  • Skilled and unskilled readers
  • Decoding versus whole word

UNIT 8

Characteristics of speech

  • Stages in the speaking process
  • A model of speaking
  • Self-monitoring in speaking

UNIT 9

Writing

  • Writing at word level
  • The Stages of writing
  • Factors in skilled writing

Text Books

Recommended Reading