ADVANCED ENGLISH PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY
- Arts
- 800 level
- 2 credit units
- 90 pages
- 9 units
This course serves as a follow-up to previous courses such as tests of orals, spoken English, and introduction to general phonetics and phonology of English. It aims to improve perceptive and receptive skills in the sound system of the English language. The course provides an insight and understanding of the phonology of varieties of English, including British, American, and Nigerian English. It also explores theories of segmental and suprasegmental features.
About this course
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Study hours
- 208 hours
- Maths
- None
- Content
- Theoretical, practical, case study, problem solving
- Practical work
- Yes
- Assignments
- Tutor marked assessments
- Final examination
What you'll read
The real module and unit structure of ENG841, taken from the course material NOUN publishes.
One paragraph, so you can see how it reads
ENG841 · UNIT 1: Concept of phoneme
The date to finish the course and the procedure for the submission of your TMA will be made known to you by the authorities in a later date. You are advised to adhere strictly to instruction and regulation on how to go through your TMA and the examinations so that you can come out with good grades in this course.
What you should be able to do
- Identify and describe phonemes and allophones in English.
- Explain the major views on the concept of the phoneme.
- Apply generative phonology to analyze English sound patterns.
- Utilize optimality theory to account for stress and syllable structure.
- Describe the phonological features of Nigerian English.
- Distinguish between segmental and suprasegmental features of English.
What it prepares you for
- Linguist
- Phonologist
- Speech Therapist
- Language Teacher
- Lexicographer
- Education
- Linguistics Research
- Speech Pathology
- Language Technology
- Publishing
- PRAAT
- Speech Analyzer
- Wavesurfer
- LingWAVES
- Audacity
Where it gets hard
The units students slow down on, and what makes each one heavy.
- Module 1: Phonetics and Phonology of English
Unit 1: Concept of the phoneme and allophone
The abstract nature of phonemes and allophones requires a strong understanding of linguistic theory.
- Module 3: Generative Phonology III
Unit 3: Suprasegmental features in generative phonology
Understanding and applying the Main Stress Rule (MSR), Nuclear Stress Rule (NSR) and Compound Stress Rule (CSR) require a deep understanding of English phonological patterns.
A suggested way through it
13 weeks, about 54 hours in total. Yours will differ.
- Week 1Course Guide
Course Guide · 2 hours
Read the course guide to understand the course structure, objectives, and assessment methods.. Familiarize yourself with the course materials and recommended textbooks..
- Week 2Module 1: Phonetics and Phonology of English
Unit 1: Concept of the phoneme and allophone · 4 hours
Define phoneme and allophone.. Identify concepts in phonemes.. Describe problems in phonemic analysis, such as affricates and syllabic consonants.. Differentiate between a phoneme and an allophone with examples..
- Week 3Module 1: Phonetics and Phonology of English
Unit 2: Major Views on the concept of the Phoneme/concepts in phonemic analysis · 4 hours
Discuss the three major views of phonologists on the concept of the phoneme: phonetic, phonological, and psychological reality.. Identify concepts used in phoneme analysis, such as contrastive distribution, complementary distribution, and free variation.. Differentiate between phonemes in contrastive and complementary distribution..
- Week 4Module 1: Phonetics and Phonology of English
Unit 3: Concept of Phonetics · 4 hours
Define phonetics and identify the main duties of a phonetician.. Explain the three main branches of phonetics: articulatory, acoustic, and auditory.. Describe the place of articulation, manner of articulation, and quality of speech production..
- Week 5Module 1: Phonetics and Phonology of English
Unit 4: Concept of phonology · 4 hours
Define phonology and identify its branches.. Discuss English phonology rules, including segmental phonemes and suprasegmental features.. Explain the mode of representation and rules of the structure of English phonemes..
- Week 6Module 3: Generative Phonology I
Unit 1: Generative phonology: overview, phonological rules and feature descriptions · 4 hours
Trace the origin of generative phonology and discuss the levels of representation.. Explain natural classes in relation to distinctive features.. Identify and discuss functions of phonological rules.. State and formalize phonological rules..
- Week 7Module 3: Generative Phonology II
Unit 2: Extending the frontiers of Generative Phonology · 4 hours
Identify phonological rules that generative phonology fails to account for.. Identify the features of the phonological rules that generative phonology did not account for.. Extend the frontiers of generative phonology by accounting for previously unaccounted rules..
- Week 8Module 3: Generative Phonology III
Unit 3: Suprasegmental features in generative phonology · 4 hours
Discuss how generative phonology accounts for stress.. Identify exceptional cases in stress assignment.. Apply main stress rule, nuclear stress rule and compound stress rule..
- Week 9Unit 3: Optimality theory and suprasegmental features (2)
Unit 3: Optimality theory and suprasegmental features (2) · 4 hours
Describe how optimality theory treats suprasegmental features.. Describe syllable and how optimality theory accounts for it.. Explain syllable-related constraints and provide examples of syllabic patterns in optimality theory..
- Week 10Unit 4: An overview of optimality theory and the handling of stress
Unit 4: An overview of optimality theory and the handling of stress · 4 hours
Explain constraint ranking for stress patterns.. Discuss how to orderly arrange the constraints.. Interpret constraints arranged on the Tableau.. Apply optimality theory to account for patterns of stress in lexical items..
- Week 11Unit 5: Optimality theory and constraints
Unit 5: Optimality theory and constraints · 4 hours
Identify different constraints of optimality theory.. Apply constraints of optimality theory to account for segmental and suprasegmental features.. Explain the constraints and differentiate constraint families of optimality theory..
- Week 12Module 5: Phonology of Nigerian English
Unit 1: Overview of Nigerian English · 4 hours
Overview of Nigerian English phonology.. Segmental features of Nigerian English.. Suprasegmental features of Nigerian English..
Unit 2: Segmental features of Nigerian English · 4 hours
Overview of Nigerian English phonology.. Segmental features of Nigerian English.. Suprasegmental features of Nigerian English..
- Week 13Module 5: Phonology of Nigerian English
Unit 3: Suprasegmental features of Nigerian English · 4 hours
Overview of Nigerian English phonology.. Segmental features of Nigerian English.. Suprasegmental features of Nigerian English..
Preparing for the exam
- Review the definitions and examples of phonemes and allophones from Module 1, Units 1-2.
- Create diagrams illustrating articulatory phonetics concepts from Module 1, Unit 3.
- Practice applying generative phonology rules from Module 3, Units 1-3 to various English words.
- Study optimality theory constraints from Unit 3, Module 4 and practice ranking them to analyze stress patterns.
- Focus on the distinctive segmental and suprasegmental features of Nigerian English covered in Module 5, Units 1-3.
- Use the recommended textbooks and other learning aids to deepen your understanding of key concepts.
- Review all Tutor Marked Assignments (TMAs) and Self-Assessment Exercises (SAEs) to identify areas needing further study.
- Create flashcards for key terms and concepts to aid memorization.
- Form a study group with other students to discuss challenging topics and share insights.
- Allocate specific time slots for focused study and revision in the weeks leading up to the exam.
Questions students ask about this course
What is ENG841 about?
This course serves as a follow-up to previous courses such as tests of orals, spoken English, and introduction to general phonetics and phonology of English. It aims to improve perceptive and receptive skills in the sound system of the English language. The course provides an insight and understanding of the phonology of varieties of English, including British, American, and Nigerian English. It also explores theories of segmental and suprasegmental features.
How many units does ENG841 have?
ENG841, ADVANCED ENGLISH PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY, has 9 units across 2 modules, over 90 pages of course material. You can read it one unit at a time.
How many credit units is ENG841?
ENG841 carries 2 credit units, at 800 level in Arts.
Is ENG841 hard?
ENG841 is rated advanced level, with no mathematical content. It is mostly theoretical, practical, case study and problem solving work, and it has a practical component.
How long does ENG841 take to study?
About 208 hours of study, spread across its 9 units.
How is ENG841 assessed?
ENG841 is assessed by assignments, tutor marked assessments and final examination.
What can I do with ENG841?
Linguist, Phonologist, Speech Therapist, Language Teacher and Lexicographer.