Welcome to York LANGUAGE & LINGUISTIC …...the Departments other key activity). You are now also part of a student community belonging to your department. Programme (Course) reps

Welcome to York

LANGUAGE & LINGUISTIC SCIENCE

DEPARTMENT HANDBOOK

2017/18

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Departmental Handbook for undergraduate students

Contents

Introduction

● Introduction to the department 5

● The purpose of this handbook 6

● Where else can I find information? 6

● If things go wrong 6

● Disclaimer 7

Your department

● Welcome to your department 7

● Departmental office 7

● Staff contacts 7

● Communicating with the department 9

● Seminar rooms and offices 10

● Departmental facilities 10

● Health, safety and security 11

● Your supervisor 11

● Departmental committees 13

● Course reps 15

● Student evaluation of modules 16

● Equality and diversity 16

Your programme

● Studying Language and Linguistic Science at York 17

● Programme aims and learning outcomes 17

● Programme structure 17

● Dissertation 22

● Independent study module 23

● Reading Lists 23

● Weeks 8 – 10 provision 23

● Structure of individual programmes 24

● Credit-weighting 39

● Languages for all (LFA) 39

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● Centre for Global Programmes 40

● Placement year 40

● Problems with your Programme 41

● Making a complaint 42

● Change your plan, absence, transferring or withdrawal 42

Teaching and learning

● Studying at university 43

● Teaching methods 43

● Code of conduct – teaching sessions 45

● Attendance 46

● What if I am ill and cannot attend scheduled teaching sessions? 47

● Feedback on Learning and Assessment 47

● What do I need to do to get a good degree? 49

● What happens if I fail a module? 49

● Academic integrity 50

● Online Academic Integrity Tutorial 50

● Referencing 50

● Academic misconduct 50

● Ethics 51

Study skills and support

● Departmental study support 51

● Managing your workload through private study 51

● Online resources – IT services, VLE and others 51

● Library 52

● Student Skills Hub Website 52

● Centre for English Language Teaching (CELT) 53

● Accessibility and disability support 53

● Prizes, bursaries and scholarships (if available) 54

● Activities and societies 54

Assessment, progression and award

● Guide to Assessment 54

● Assessment methods 54

● Formal examination requirements 55

● Assessment format and submission of work 56

● Style guide 58

● Penalties 65

● How my work is marked 67

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● Resits, repeats and readmission 70

● Programme extensions and termination 70

● Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment 71

● Making an appeal 71

● External examiners 72

● Your final degree classification 73

Personal development and employability

● Careers 73

● Personal development planning (PDP) 75

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Introduction

Introduction to the department

Welcome to our department! We are a community of scholars who study language as a cultural, social and cognitive phenomenon. We have degree-length programmes in French, German, Italian, Spanish, English language and linguistics. All of you will be working in one or more of these areas.

We are a multilingual community: members of staff speak or have worked on many languages from all over the world. Some of our big questions as a department are:

• What structures and properties do all languages share? • How is language used to make meaning? • How do social structures affect language? • How do we acquire the structures of language? Answering these questions involves theoretical models, theoretical languages, corpora, experiments and collaboration with others. We hope that during your time here you will come to share our enthusiasm and engagement in both the questions and ways of answering them.

Our goals for you include for you to contribute to the community of language and linguistics within the Department and beyond; to become motivated, self-directed and independent learners; and to have a broad range of skills useful in the wider world. These include writing skills, presentation skills, collaboration, problem-solving and analytic skills.

Our modern language courses offer you insights into cultural and social aspects of your chosen language. They enable you to develop advanced language skills informed by general language awareness and intercultural competence. In our English language and linguistics courses, we explore structural and cognitive aspects of human language more generally. Linguistics at York is broadly organised around a number of sub-disciplines: Psycholinguistics (with particular focus on the acquisition of language), Syntax and Semantics, Phonetics and Phonology, Forensic Speech Science, and Language Variation and Change. Everyone covers some of these during their studies. In the early stages, we provide you with tools for investigating language in a rigorous way, and in later stages we offer opportunities for high level research-related work through which you can develop independence and self-reliance. We will encourage you throughout your degree to reflect critically on the contribution of linguistic theories to our understanding of language, and help you to understand how the skills you acquire through your degree can transfer to the workplace after graduation.

Whether you’re taking just one linguistics module or your whole degree is in linguistics, most of you will be beginning linguistics from scratch. Whatever you are studying, there are bound to be challenges along the way. You’ll need to convert your initial enthusiasm into application. It will also take time and effort, so you’ll need to be patient. Remember, there

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are plenty of you in the same boat, and you can help to build the Department’s community by helping and supporting one another. We will expect you to put in a lot of work — more independently than you are probably used to from school. One credit means ten hours of learning time. Most of our modules are 20 credits, so take 200 hours of learning time, of which perhaps 24 will be contact hours. In return, you can expect enthusiastic teaching by staff who are passionate about their subject. We will support you in learning independently. Please do let us know how things are going. You will find staff happy to help.

Dunstan Brown Head of Department

The purpose of this handbook

It is a reference guide to help you and should be kept along with the University Handbook. This handbook provides a comprehensive introduction to your department and information on all aspects of your degree programme. It outlines what you should expect of your department and what they expect from you, and clarifies the policies and procedures relevant to your area of study.

Where else can I find information? The University Handbook provides information on central services and support for students, including accommodation, finance, living in York and further advice on careers and study skills. This general information can also be found on the website york.ac.uk/students The Department webpages are also full of important information. You can find information

about everything connected with undergraduate issues within the Department: module

descriptions, FAQs, forms and documents, etc:

www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/

The Department Welcome site on the VLE

Most of you will have already accessed the Welcome site on Yorkshare before coming to

York. This site will be available to you throughout your degree, so please refer back to it

from time to time.

If things go wrong

We hope your time at University will be amongst the best experiences of your life. However, it is important that you know where to turn to, should you experience any difficulties. We have a set of web pages dedicated to providing support for you if things go wrong. For further information, visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/help/

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/help/

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Disclaimer

We have tried to ensure that the information contained in this document is accurate as of May 2017. Please check our website for any changes to this information.

Your department

Welcome to your department

You are now a member of an academic department. The department is made up of staff who teach, supervise and undertake research, support staff and other students like you.

● Academic teaching staff - they are there as leaders in their field willing to share their expertise and experience to help you learn, grow and push the boundaries of your capabilities and knowledge. Academic staff also hold certain key administrative roles within the Department, and act as supervisors.

● Your supervisor is there to help guide your studies and to monitor your progress over your degree programme.

Support staff - they are the mechanics behind making the department run smoothly. They will communicate important information, provide technical assistance and help signpost you to other services and support you might need within the University.] Postgraduates who teach (PGWTs) – they are research students working towards a PhD and who are also involved in some of the teaching within the Department.

Research staff – they are involved mainly in research (which alongside teaching is the Department’s other key activity).

You are now also part of a student community belonging to your department. Programme (Course) reps are there to help represent your views to the department and to the University – so there is always a way to get your views heard.

Departmental office

The Department is located on Campus West, and occupies all of Vanbrugh College C Block and part of B Block. The Departmental Office is located on the ground floor of Vanbrugh C Block. It is open from 10am–12pm and 2–4pm during term time and you can ask for information in person during those hours.

Staff contacts All academic staff members have open hours, and you can call in on them during those times without making a prior appointment. Open hours are published on the Department website: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/availability/. This list is kept up to date, and also tells you where and how you can contact staff members.

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/availability/

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You can find other information about staff members, including their areas of expertise and their roles, on the Department website: www.york.ac.uk/language/people/.

Key Departmental roles

Head of Department

Dunstan Brown ([email protected])

The Head of Department is ultimately responsible for all Departmental affairs. More specifically, he takes particular responsibility for staff matters, the Department’s place in the context of University developments, and the Departmental budget.

Department Manager Deborah Hines ([email protected])

The Department Manager has oversight of the day-to-day administration of the Department, and support the Head of Department. She is responsible for issues relating to health and safety, as well as space (e.g. lecture rooms).

First Year Coordinator Julia Kolkmann ([email protected])

The First Year Coordinator will meet you during Week 1 of your first year. She can help with any initial issues that affect all first year students at the beginning of their undergraduate degrees, before first year programme reps are elected in the Autumn Term. For personal issues, your supervisor should be your first point of contact.

Undergraduate Administrator Rachel O’Brien ([email protected])

The Undergraduate Administrator handles the administration of all undergraduate issues. Contact Rachel with issues such as requesting a supervisor change, submitting a module change form, or for advice if you are considering a Leave of Absence or transferring degree programme. Rachel is situated in the Undergraduate Office (V/C/007).

Assessment, Feedback and Year Abroad Administrator Andy Poyer ([email protected])

All undergraduate feedback and examination matters are handled by Andy. Queries on assessment hand-ins, the examination timetables and feedback from your modules should be addressed to him. He is situated in the Undergraduate Office (V/C/007).

Contact Andy if you have any queries regarding the arrangements for your Year Abroad. Andy works closely with Thomas Jochum-Critchley, our Year Abroad Coordinator, to help you get the most out of your experience abroad.

Administrators Michelle Cullivan and Ross Watson ([email protected]/[email protected])

Michelle and Ross are based in the ground floor reception and can point you in the right

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/people/

mailto:[email protected]

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direction if you aren’t clear where to get help. Most of your queries will be addressed to Rachel O' Brien and Andy Poyer in the Undergraduate Office, but Michelle and Ross can advise you on who is the best contact for your particular query.

Technical Supervisor Huw Llewelyn-Jones ([email protected])

The Technical Supervisor deals with the provision and management of computing and audio-visual services in the Department. Chairs of Department Committees Please refer to the Departmental Committees section further on in the handbook.

Communicating with the department

At the heart of any organisation is communication. The Department and the University will need to contact you frequently with important information. You need to be aware of, and check regularly, the different lines of communication between you, the Department and the University.

Your two most important points of contact within the Department are likely to be the Departmental Office and the academic staff member who is your supervisor.

In person

Open hours (see section above on Staff open hours and contact information).

E-mail

E-mail is the primary form of communication used by the Department and University. Note that we only use your University e-mail address. We will not use private accounts like yahoo or gmail (although you may redirect your University e-mail to alternative accounts if you wish). It is essential that you check your University e-mail account every day, otherwise you will miss out on important information.

You are welcome to use e-mail to contact staff members. When you do, please remember to include your name! E-mail is not the same as texting, and we really don’t know who a message is from, when we can only see an e-mail address like [email protected].

E-mail etiquette

Please address the member of staff with their name or title. Email is more formal than a text message. Staff have different preferences: some are happy with ‘Dear [First Name]’, others prefer ‘Dear Dr/Professor [Surname]’. Just ‘Hi’ or nothing at all is usually not well received. That said, your relationship with the staff member will change as they get to know you, and so the way you interact with them will change. And don’t forget to sign off with your name – staff can’t necessarily see it from your e-mail address.


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Other forms of communication

We also use the following means of communication:

• a letter to you at your term time address; • a letter to you at your home address (if we need to write to you outside term time); • a phone call or a text message, if we need to contact you urgently; • a note in the undergraduate pigeonholes (located on the ground floor of Vanbrugh

Block C). This is where printed correspondence from tutors, the Department and the University will be sent;

• a notice on the notice board in the foyer outside the Departmental Office. (This is where general information is displayed.)

In addition to checking e-mail every day, please make sure that you check your mail sling and the Department notice boards, and that you make sure that your term time address, home address and telephone numbers are always up to date on e:Vision.

Seminar rooms and offices If you are unsure of where a member of staff has their office, visit https://www.york.ac.uk/language/people/.

Departmental facilities

The e-lab (V/B/023)

One of the Department's teaching rooms, V/B/023, is also known as the 'e-lab'. Modules for which the use of computers is an element may be timetabled in this lab. When not being used for teaching, students are free to use it for general computing purposes, as per the other PC clusters around campus (there is, for instance, a cluster on the ground floor of Vanbrugh College, room V/N/058). There is access to the e-lab until 6pm, Monday to Friday, via a keypad access code. Check the timetable posted on the external door and any notices pinned to the internal door before entering the e-lab for private use. Note that there is no printer in the e-lab, so you will need to move to a PC classroom if you want to print something out. If you have problems with the computers or other hardware (e.g. the headphones) in the e-lab, you should make direct contact with Huw Llewelyn-Jones, the Department’s technical supervisor ([email protected]).

Please abide by the following rules when you use this room:

Use the space quietly. If you want to chat, even if it’s about work, please go to another location so that you don’t disturb other students.

Don’t eat or drink in the e-lab. Familiarise yourself with the information posted in the room about emergency

procedures.

For our Departmental Language Resources, please see the Library section.

https://www.york.ac.uk/language/people/


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For central IT facilities, please refer to the University handbook.

Health, safety and security

For information about the University’s Health, Safety and Security policy, visit: www.york.ac.uk/admin/hsas/

Your supervisor

Your department will allocate you an academic supervisor who is there to offer you support and advice throughout your degree programme.

Your supervisor will meet with you at least once a term to discuss your academic progress and check that all is well with you and your studies. They will encourage you to develop your academic and personal skills (see Personal Development Planning in the section below on Personal Development and Employability) and can also act as a referee for any applications you might make in the future.

They can advise what to do if things go wrong and refer you to the right people in the University for help with more personal matters.

If you are an overseas student on a Tier 4 visa, you will need to attend at least two individual meetings per term with your supervisor.

For further areas of student support, see the University handbook or student web pages. What expectations are made of supervisors and students? The University has produced a useful poster (shown on the left) summarising the roles of supervisors and supervisees, and emphasising both rights and responsibilities. You can download it from here: http://goo.gl/RqTY41. If you are an overseas student on a Tier 4 visa, you will need to attend at least two individual meetings per term with your supervisor. This is a requirement and you have a responsibility to meet it.

The termly meeting is required by the University. Your supervisor will e-mail you (at your York e-mail address) to set up the meeting.

You may also see your supervisor at other times when necessary. He or she will have open

http://www.york.ac.uk/admin/hsas/

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What is research leave?

When academic staff go on research leave

for a term or a year, it means that they

work only on their research during that

period, and they do not teach or do

administrative duties. Research is an

essential part of the job of an academic

staff member.

hours (see 2.3, above). You can just turn up during these open hours - no appointment is necessary. Additional meetings can be arranged by appointment, and you should always feel free to contact your supervisor as and when you need to. If a supervisor is unavailable and you urgently need to discuss something, please contact the Departmental Office and they will arrange for another member of academic staff to see you.

From time to time, academic staff go on research leave. You will be allocated an alternative, temporary supervisor if your normal supervisor is on research leave. You will receive an e-mail from the Department Office to tell you who your temporary supervisor is.

If you encounter difficulties in your relationship with your supervisor, you can request a change of supervisor without giving any reason. A supervisor is unlikely to be offended if you want to do this. Just inform the Undergraduate Administrator (Rachel O’Brien, [email protected]) by e-mail that you want to change, and it will be arranged.

Combined degree programme advisors

Students on combined degree programmes will have a supervisor in just one of the two departments. Each department will also have a combined degree programme advisor, who can explain your programme and offer advice on choices within the programme. The programme advisor will schedule meetings at key times during the degree (for example, at the start of your degree, and when you need to make choices for the following year). You will receive an e-mail about those meetings, and you should be sure to attend. In addition, you may arrange a meeting with the programme advisor during his or her open hours, or by appointment. Combined programme advisors in the Language and Linguistic Science Department in 2017–18 are: English and Linguistics: Ann Taylor Philosophy and Linguistics: George Tsoulas Mathematics and Linguistics: George Tsoulas French and History: Angela O’Flaherty French/German and Philosophy: Angela O’Flaherty Your responsibility as a supervisee Your supervisor will offer advice whenever you request it. It is ultimately your responsibility to attend supervisions and to keep your supervisor informed of circumstances that impact on academic performance.

For further areas of student support, see the University handbook or visit www.york.ac.uk/students/support/.

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/support/

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Departmental committees

The Board of Studies

Chair of Board of Studies Paul Kerswill ([email protected])

The Board of Studies, though it does not have an obvious physical presence in the Department (for example, there is no door bearing the label ‘Board of Studies’), nonetheless has a significant impact on the whole of the academic side of your university career. The Board is responsible for the content of all our degree programmes, and for teaching methods and assessment, within the constraints of the University regulations.

The Board of Studies meets regularly, typically twice a term. All teaching staff are members of the Board, and student representatives (‘reps’) are also present. Board meetings discuss all matters relating to the teaching and organisation of the Department, and University policies that affect the teaching and welfare of students.

The Board of Studies has two constituent parts, the Open Board and the Closed Board, which deals with matters relating to individual students.

The Open Board: Quality assurance in teaching and supervision

The Board of Studies decides on major policy issues such as what support we need to provide students with, and how and when module programmes should be revised. If you have a wider issue with programme content than can be addressed by a module convenor, you should raise this with your programme rep (see Programme Reps section below), who will be able to raise it at a Board of Studies meeting.

Small changes that the Board of Studies agrees can be implemented immediately; bigger changes are not put into effect until the next cohort of students gets to that point in the course. In some cases therefore, your good suggestions will serve your successors more than they benefit you. Please don’t let this put you off making them.

The Closed Board: Confidential issues

Any Board of Studies issues that relate to individual students are discussed at a smaller, confidential meeting at which student reps are not present. Issues on the agenda of such meetings include approval of proposals for independent study modules, programme transfer applications and bursary nominations. (Note that issues relating to problems that affect an individual student’s academic progress fall under the remit of a separate committee, the Exceptional Circumstances Committee. For more information on Exceptional Circumstances (previously known as ‘mitigating circumstances’), refer to the Assessment, Progression and Award section.)

The Departmental Teaching Committee

Chair of Departmental Teaching Committee George Tsoulas ([email protected])

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Departmental Teaching Committee is primarily responsible for the design and maintenance of degree programmes. It makes sure that our programmes comply with general University policies and monitors all aspects of the department's teaching provision. The committee consists of a number of key staff with responsibility for programme design and delivery and makes recommendations to the Board of Studies. The Board of Examiners

Chair of Board of Examiners Lucia Aiello ([email protected])

The responsibilities of the Board of Examiners include:

• ensuring that the Department’s assessment and marking procedures are in accordance with the University’s principles

• ratifying provisional marks • making recommendations to the Board of Studies about final degree

classifications, progression from one stage of a programme to the next, and resits.

All members of staff involved in teaching are members of the Board of Examiners, together with our external examiners. The external examiners are academics from other institutions who oversee our examinations policy and check that our marking is fair and consistent. The Board meets at the end of each academic year and on such other occasions as may be required. In the interim, all examining queries are dealt with by the Chair.

Committee on Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment

Chair of Exceptional Circumstances Committee: Norman Yeo ([email protected])

This committee considers applications by students for illness or other personal circumstances to be taken into account in relation to assessments. See page 71 for full details of the procedures relating to exceptional circumstances. Departmental Ethics Committee Chair of Departmental Ethics Committee Márton Sóskuthy ([email protected])

This committee considers plans for all studies run by members of the department (both students and staff) that involve data collection from people. If you are planning to collect data as part of your taught work, or as part of your activities in a society, you must seek ethics approval from the Ethics Committee. Contact the committee chair for details of how to do this, well in advance of the start of your project. When data collection is required as part of the assessment of a module, the module will include instruction about the ethics approval process.

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Course reps

Course Reps are elected by students in their departmental year group to represent the views and interests of students on department committees and within the Students’ Union. You can go to them with any concerns or suggestions about how the department or aspects of your programme are run. Course (programme) representation is a partnership between YUSU and University departments. Together, we aim to ensure that students contribute directly to the processes of reviewing, maintaining and enhancing the quality of the academic experience here. Up to three reps from each of the first, second and final years may be elected, one for Linguistics or English Language and Linguistics students, one for students of French/German/Italian/Spanish, and one for students on combined degrees. These are known as Course Reps. These are led by a Departmental Rep (see below). Reps are expected to attend Board of Studies and Staff Student Forum meetings throughout the year, and may be asked to participate in other committees and working groups. If you’d like to represent the views of your fellow students and have a say in how your programme is run, why not apply to be a course rep? You can stand for election at the beginning of Autumn term. Visit: www.yusu.org/campaigns-and-representation/course-reps For a more detailed description of the role, visit: www.york.ac.uk/about/organisation/governance/members-

secretaries/guidelinesforstudentreps/

Department Rep

In addition to the programme reps, YUSU arranges for the election of a Department Rep, who attends Department meetings along with the programme reps. The person has a role representing the Department’s programme reps at YUSU, and can play a part in shaping wider University policy from a departmental viewpoint. Candidates for this role apply through YUSU during April/May before the appointment starts, after which shortlisted applicants are interviewed by them. The Department Rep for 2017-18 will be announced towards the start of the Autumn term ([email protected]).

Staff Student Forum (SSF)

A Staff Student Forum meeting will normally be held once a term before the meeting of the Board of Studies. This is a forum for students to voice opinions about their programmes and modules, the running of the Department as it affects them, aspects of University learning and teaching operations and facilities as they affect them, and provide other feedback to the Department. The forum membership includes all programme reps, the Undergraduate

http://www.yusu.org/campaigns-and-representation/course-reps

http://www.york.ac.uk/about/organisation/governance/members-secretaries/guidelinesforstudentreps/

http://www.york.ac.uk/about/organisation/governance/members-secretaries/guidelinesforstudentreps/

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Administrator and the Chair of Board Studies. Standing items on the agenda will include current modules, and pre-discussion of Board of Studies agenda items.

If you want an issue to be discussed at the SSF, speak to your course rep.

How do I know who my course rep is?

Programme rep details can be found via the VLE, and they will also be made available on the Department website, after elections have been held early in the Autumn Term: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/programme-reps/. (You will need to enter your University username and password.)

Student observers at Board of Studies and the Staff Student Forum

In addition to programme reps, up to five of the Department’s students are permitted as observers at open sessions of the Board of Studies and at the Staff Student Forum. If you would like to attend a meeting, reserve a place for yourself by contacting the Undergraduate Administrator.

Student evaluation of modules We rely strongly on feedback from our students to maintain the quality of our modules, and to improve them. For every module, we give out evaluation forms for you to complete. Here is how our evaluations are run:

For single term modules – evaluations will be done once at the end of the module.

For ‘long, thin’ modules running throughout the year (all three terms), evaluations may be done at the end of Autumn Term and will certainly be done at the end of the module.

The module evaluation forms are anonymous, so do not put your name on them. Once the module convener has received the forms, they will summarise the responses and will outline what actions they intend to take in response to your feedback. You will find those summaries on this password-protected site:

www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/eval/

Summaries will be posted no later than 4 weeks following the module evaluation.

We will also review all the summaries once a year to inform our teaching and share good practice across the department and the university.

If you are dissatisfied with any of the responses from module leaders, please inform your programme rep, giving an explanation why.

Equality and diversity The University of York values the diversity of its students and staff and is committed to the creation of a positive environment which is fair, welcoming and inclusive and where

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/programme-reps/

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/eval/

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everyone is treated with dignity and respect. For further information about the University’s equality and diversity policies, visit: http://www.york.ac.uk/admin/eo/

Your Programme of Study

Studying Language and Linguistics at York

Our department is a leading centre in Europe for research in language and linguistics, with internationally recognised scholars in diverse fields of expertise.

Our teaching

We are enthusiastic and committed teachers who seek to provide high quality education in language and linguistics in a supportive, encouraging environment. Where possible, we try to involve our students directly in our current research.

You will learn from experts – our staff teach modules only in their specific subject or research areas.

Our modern foreign language teaching focuses on fluency and professional competence through an understanding of social and cultural contexts.

From day one you learn in a 'hands-on' approach, combining theory and practical exploration.

Through York’s focus on research-led teaching, and our large and varied staff group, our final-year modules offer an unmatched breadth and depth of choice.

Programme aims and learning outcomes We believe in setting out what we offer as explicitly as possible, and in line with University policy we have set out aims and objectives for each programme. These help you to get a clear picture of what you can expect from the programme you are on. To read about these, visit www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/programme-specs/undergraduate/.

Full details of all Linguistics and Language modules – compulsory and optional – will be published online at the URL below, at least four weeks before you need to make decisions about module choices: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/. (Details of the modules can also be found at https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module.)

http://www.york.ac.uk/admin/eo/

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/people/academic-research/

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/programme-specs/undergraduate/

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/programme-specs/undergraduate/

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module

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For combined students, details of the modules in the partner department will be published by that department.

Programme structure The structure of each of our programmes will be shown below, from page 26. Stages An undergraduate programme of study is divided into a specified number of stages. Each stage is equivalent to a year of full-time study. You must satisfy the requirements for one stage of your programme before being able to progress to the next stage. The first ‘stage’ of your programme (which is your first year, if you are full time) doesn’t count towards your degree classification, but you do have to pass it to continue with your programme, and it will appear on your transcript. When we calculate your degree classification, different stages will be weighted differently. More information on this can be found under ‘Your final degree classification’ in the ‘Assessment, Progression and Award’ section. Modules Each stage is made up of modules. Each of the modules will have a credit value (in our department, 20 credits) and a ‘level’ which indicates the module’s level of difficulty (e.g., “C” for Certificate in first year, “I” for Intermediate (second year) and “H” for “Honours” third year. One credit should mean about 10 hours of work either in class or independently. You will achieve the credit for a module by passing the module assessments. Modules are assessed by a range of methods which will result in a numerical module mark out of 100. If you fail a module there are two possible ways in which you might still be able to pass your year and progress to the next level. These are compensation and reassessment, and are explained in more detail in the Assessment section below. Modules and stages are also subject to credit-weighting. More information on this can be found in the ‘Credit-weighting’ section below. Current modules are listed and explained on the departmental website www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/. Compulsory and optional modules

For most degrees, Stage 1 has few or no choices, since this stage is devoted to learning the core skills that underpin the increasing range of options in Stages 2 and 3. In Stage 2, there


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are choices within constraints. In Stage 3, there is considerable choice, but bear in mind that your options will be constrained by the modules you take in the second year, and they may also be constrained by the requirements of your specific programme. Core areas of Linguistics All degree programmes have some compulsory elements in the core areas of linguistics. The aim of this is to ensure that you get both breadth and depth in linguistics. The core areas of linguistics offered in the Department at undergraduate level are:

● Syntax ● Semantics ● Phonetics and Phonology ● Language Variation and Change (LVC) ● Psycholinguistics (from Year 2 onwards).

In Year 1, we offer four modules in core areas of linguistics and English language: Introduction to Syntax; Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology; Introduction to Sociolinguistics (which covers LVC); and Introduction to Semantics. The final core linguistics area, Psycholinguistics, is introduced in Year 2 with Introduction to Language Acquisition. Most single-subject students take all of these five core linguistics modules. On degrees with two languages and on combined degrees, you will not take all of the core linguistics modules. Core Language modules All of our programmes that include languages have core language modules that are compulsory. The French, Italian, Spanish and German language programmes require at least 40 credits of language modules per taught year. Optional Language and Linguistics modules At Stage 3, and to a lesser extent at Stage 2, you will be able to choose some of your modules. The particular modules offered and their assessment details will vary from year to year depending on staff availability, emerging research interests, emerging student needs etc. Because the programme changes from year to year, we cannot guarantee that a particular module will run in a particular year. However, we will always offer a good selection of interesting modules. Module offerings for the coming academic year are published in the Spring Term. Descriptions of modules are available on the Department’s website at: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/ The year abroad (4-year programmes only) All students on four-year programmes spend their third year abroad. You have the following placement options:


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● Study at one of our partner universities ● Work as a British Council English Language Assistant ● Organise your own placement in industry or in a volunteering organisation

The aim of the year is to improve your fluency and accuracy in the language(s) you are studying and to increase your knowledge and experience of the culture and society of at least one country relevant to your degree. Students who are taking two languages will typically split the year abroad: each semester will be spent in a different country. You can also choose to spend the whole year in a country where just one of your languages is spoken, and specialise in that language in your final year. Students taking just one language may also split their year abroad and choose to do two different placements in countries relevant to their degree. A semester in a relevant country is the minimum prerequisite for the final year core language module French/German/Italian/ Spanish Language and Society 3. In your second year, advice and support are provided by the Year Abroad Coordinator and the Academic Coordinators. Further details about placement options and relevant application procedures can be found on the Department’s webpage: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/year-abroad/ as well as in the Year Abroad Handbook which you will receive at the start of your second year. Please note the following, which affect eligibility to participate in the Year Abroad:

● If a student on a four-year programme fails any Year 2 modules and has to resit them during the August resit period, since the results will not be published until mid-September, this could impact on the start date of your Year Abroad activity.

● If a student on a four-year programme fails Year 2 of their degree (after resits), they will not be allowed to proceed to the Year Abroad.

● Students who are not in good academic standing (see Section 4.3) may not be allowed to proceed to the Year Abroad.

In order to complete the year abroad successfully, you have to pass the year abroad assessment. This consists of two parts:

1. Fulfilment of obligations (following procedures and submitting relevant forms to evidencing placement completion)

2. Passing two year abroad essays, one per semester.

The details of the year abroad assessment can be found in the year abroad handbook and on the Department's webpage:

https://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/year-abroad/instructions

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/year-abroad/

https://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/year-abroad/instructions

21

Combined degrees with a Year Abroad History and French: you can either spend the whole Year Abroad studying at one of our partner universities or you can split the year, studying for one semester and on work placement for another. The assessment of the Year Abroad is shared across both depts. French and Philosophy and German and Philosophy: you can spend the year abroad at university, on a British Council teaching placement, on work placement or doing a combination of university study and work placement. The assessment of the Year Abroad is carried out by this department alone. More optional modules Elective modules Electives are modules which you take towards your degree but which are taken in another department. In most of our degree programmes, electives are permitted in Stage 2 and Stage 3 (note rules specific to each degree programme). If you intend to take an elective, please be sure to discuss this with your supervisor. Please note that registration processes in other departments may not be the same as in ours. You need to contact the host department directly to find out what to do and when. Details of which modules are available as electives can be found via the following webpage: www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/modules/. Elective modules are not taken into account when it comes to timetabling. There is no guarantee that they will not clash with some other module you are taking. If this happens, you will simply not be able to take the elective. For this reason if you intend to register for an elective, you must register for the same number of credits in the same term in this Department as well. Late registration for an elective will be possible only if the timetable for the relevant term is already known and this presents no problem, and as long as taking the elective would not prevent you from meeting the requirements for your degree as set out in this handbook. Registering for modules The module registration process Registration takes place in the Spring Term of each academic year. Early in the Spring Term, the Department publishes a list of modules to run the following academic year. These webpages include details about module prerequisites, aims, contact hours, teaching programme and assessment: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/. For your second and final years, you will register for modules online during the preceding Spring Term. We will give you information on how and when to do this early in the term.

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/modules/


22

Before registering, you should meet to discuss your choices with your supervisor, who will provide guidance on module choices given your intellectual interests, career goals, etc. We will do our best to match student module choices of modules. However, because of constraints on the timetable and other resources, we cannot always guarantee this. Most Stage 3 modules in English Language and in Linguistics have caps on student numbers. We do this so that we can offer appropriately smaller teaching groups in Stage 3, compared with the large lecture classes of Stage 1 and (to a lesser extent) Stage 2. This means that in some cases you may not get your first choice of module. We aim to offer enough choice for you to be able to select appropriate second choices, and we will ask you to rank your choices and give alternatives. Having chosen your modules via an online system, an algorithm is used to allocate places fairly, after the deadline for completing the online registration has passed. Withdrawing from or changing modules Once the timetable has been fixed, any changes to modules will be possible only if the change of module involves selection of an alternative that does not clash with any of your other selected modules. It will not be possible to adjust the timetable to avoid clashes. If you drop a module you must replace it by another, in the same term. Withdrawal from a module is possible until the end of the second week of teaching of that module. However, if any deadline for assessed work occurs before that date then approval for withdrawal must be sought directly from the Chair of the Confidential Board of Studies. You must formally withdraw from any module you have registered for, even if you change your mind before it has begun. This is done by completing a Module Change Form. You can obtain one from the Department foyer and online: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/documents/. If the form is not completed and returned to the Undergraduate Administrator by the end of the second week of teaching, your withdrawal will not be recorded on the University’s Student Record System, which will lead to you being deemed to have failed the module. If your module withdrawal involves two Departments (e.g., if you are changing to/from an elective, or if you are adding/removing a Linguistics or Language module on a combined degree), you must hand in a Module Change Form at the Language and Linguistic Science Department, in addition to following the procedures of the second department.

Dissertation

Some students would like the opportunity to do a dissertation, involving an extended piece of writing. These are called Research Extensions, being based on a particular final-year module but involving a separate, double-weighted assessment usually of 9,000 words (40 credits). Instead of a separate research project, a Research Extension can also take the form

http://www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/documents/

23

of an extended essay based on one of the assignments for the module (5,000 additional words). If you wish to do a Research Extension, you must achieve an average of 60% in the second year and 60% in relevant modules. You should notify the Undergraduate Administrator in the Summer Term preceding the final year.

Independent Study Module

An Independent Study Module (ISM) is a 20-credit module where the content and assessment are designed by the student him- or herself, supervised by a member of staff, and replacing an existing final-year module. If you wish to do an ISM, you must first write a detailed proposal, which will be considered by members of the DTC.

Reading lists Information on reading lists for individual modules can be found under the Programme tab on the online module description on the Department website. Fuller lists will be posted on the Library’s Reading Lists system. The VLE site for each module will also provide further details. For certain modules, a reading pack, which will consist of a collection of relevant articles, will be available to buy. If this is the case, your module convenor will let you know when it is ready to be collected.

Weeks 8 – 10 provision and York Strengths Programme Through the York Strengths Programme first year students explore a framework of nine qualities valued by employers, finding those which particularly appeal to them; the York Strengths Framework. The programme has three components:

· York Strengths Discovery – an online exercise that considers reactions to different situations and the use of data to make decisions. This will be available to students from Spring term onward. It is expected that all students will complete this exercise, which takes about 25 minutes.

· York Strengths Day – Students will be provided with a date to come along to a day of interactive exercises and activities that will help reveal their working preferences against the nine characteristics of the Strengths Framework. York Strengths days happen from the spring term onward and are allocated by department.

The majority will occur toward the end of the summer term (i.e. weeks 8 - 10). Students are expected to attend these events. If they are unable to do so, or they believe that attendance would be inappropriate, they will be asked to let Careers and Placements know.

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· York Strengths Award – at the start of the second year students will be invited to apply for the York Strengths Award, a certificate of the University that demonstrates an ability to reflect on experiences and present them in a way that will appeal to employers. The York Strengths Award is the new name for the York Award and has a different submission date to give students the opportunity to reflect on the results of their Strengths day as well as the experiences of their first summer vacation. In all other respects it remains the same, retaining the format and objectives established over the last two years.

In combination, the Strengths Programme will provide students with greater self-awareness and can help inform their search for graduate roles that they might be suited to. Coming at the end of the first year the programme gives the student time to use the remainder of their time at York to best effect.

Second year students will be able to apply to become a York Leader in the Spring term with some weighting to those that have been through the York Award/Futures process last summer.

York Strengths Gold will be available to third year and PGT students in the summer.

Structure of individual programmes On the following pages, you will find outlines of each of our programmes. For details of the Programme Learning outcomes and to see how individual modules contribute to these, please see the Programme Specifications here https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/programme-specs/undergraduate/language/.

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/programme-specs/undergraduate/language/

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/programme-specs/undergraduate/language/

25

LINGUISTICS (UBLINSLIN3)

STAGE ONE (C-level)

Autumn Spring Summer

Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology

Introduction to Syntax

Introduction to Semantics

Introduction to Sociolinguistics

C-level English Language option, C-level elective, or LFA module at any level

C-level English Language option, C-level elective, or LFA module at level 3

STAGE TWO (normally all I-level; one 20-credit module below I-level may be permitted)

Autumn (40 credits) Spring and Summer (80 credits)

Introduction to Language Acquisition

Intermediate Phonetics and Phonology

AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax

Intermediate Language Variation and Change

Intermediate Semantics

Other I-level Linguistics options, as offered

I-level Linguistics and/or English

Language option

I-level English Language option

LFA module

STAGE THREE (normally all H-level; one 20-credit module below H-level may be permitted)


Linguistics and/or English Language option

modules


modules

LFA module

KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree.

26

ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LINGUISTICS (UBELASLIN3)

STAGE ONE (C-level)






Understanding English Grammar

History of English I

STAGE TWO (normally all I-level; one 20-credit module below I-level may be permitted; at

least 40 credits must be taken in English Language)


Introduction to Language Acquisition


AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax



Other Linguistics options, as offered

English Language modules in autumn or spring-summer

Linguistics or English Language option English Language options(s)

LFA module

STAGE THREE (normally all H-level; one 20-credit module below H-level may be permitted; at least 40 credits must be taken in English Language)



modules


modules

LFA module


27

LINGUISTICS WITH FRENCH/GERMAN/ITALIAN/SPANISH (UBLINSFRE3, UBLINSGER3, UBLINSITA3, UBLINSSPA3)

STAGE ONE (C-level) (For students who have A-level in their target language):






French/German/Spanish Language and Society I

French/German/Spanish Grammar

OR STAGE ONE (C-level) (German, Italian or Spanish only. For students beginning German, Italian or Spanish from scratch.):




Introduction to Semantics OR Introduction to Sociolinguistics

Ab initio German/ Italian/Spanish Language Skills (30 credits)

Ab initio German/ Italian/Spanish Language & Society (30 credits)



Introduction to Language

Acquisition


AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax



Other Linguistics and/or English Language options, as

offered

French/German/ Italian/Spanish Language and Society II

Language option module

Language option module, LFA module



Linguistics and/or English

Language option modules

Linguistics and/or English Language option modules

Language option module(s)*, LFA module

*Year-long language options may be available, as well as autumn or spring-summer options. No more than 50 credits can be taken in a single term. KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree.

28

FRENCH/GERMAN/ITALIAN/SPANISH & LINGUISTICS (WITH A YEAR ABROAD) (UBFRASLIN4, UBITASLIN4, UBGEASLIN4, UBSPLSLIN4)

A-level route (for students who begin with an A-level in their target language)

STAGE ONE (C-level)






French/German/Spanish Language and Society I

French/German/Spanish Grammar




Acquisition


AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax




offered

French/German/Spanish Language and Society II



YEAR AWAY IN A FRENCH/GERMAN/SPANISH-SPEAKING COUNTRY (120 credits)

The year may be spent on a study placement at a partner university, a work placement as an

English Language Assistant, or an alternative work placement, subject to availability.





Linguistics and/or English Language option module(s)

French/German/Spanish Language and Society III

French/German/Spanish option module*


*Year-long language options may be available, as well as autumn or spring-summer options. KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree.

29

Single language degrees continued

Ab initio route (German, Italian or Spanish only. For students beginning German,

Italian or Spanish from scratch.)

STAGE ONE (C-level)




Introduction to Semantics OR Introduction to Sociolinguistics

Ab initio German/Italian/Spanish Language Skills (30 credits)

Ab initio German/Italian/Spanish Language & Society (30 credits)




Acquisition


AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax



Other Linguistics and/or English language options, as offered

German/Italian/Spanish Language and Society II



YEAR AWAY IN A GERMAN/ITALIAN/SPANISH-SPEAKING COUNTRY (120 credits)







Linguistics and/or English Language option module(s)

German/ Italian/Spanish Language and Society III

German/ Italian/Spanish option module*


*Year-long language options may be available, as well as autumn or spring-summer options.


FRENCH AND GERMAN/FRENCH AND ITALIAN/FRENCH AND

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SPANISH/GERMAN AND ITALIAN/GERMAN AND SPANISH/ITALIAN AND SPANISH LANGUAGE (WITH A YEAR ABROAD) (UBFGESLAN4, UBFILSLAN4,

UBFSPSLAN4, UBGILSLAN4, UBGSPSLAN4, UBISLSLAN4)

There are two routes and three pathways through these degrees.

Routes:

1. Post-A-level route, for students who begin the degree with an A-level in both

languages.

2. Ab initio route, for students who begin the degree with an A-level in one of the

languages and a lower qualification (if any) in the other language (Spanish, Italian or

German).

Pathways

1. Two languages and linguistics throughout the entire degree (year abroad in two

countries)

2. Two languages throughout degree, with linguistics in years one and two only (year

abroad in two countries)

3. One language and linguistics throughout degree, with a second language in years

one and two only (year abroad in one country).

The differences between the two routes are in Year 1 and Year 2, whichever

pathway you want to take. There is no difference between the two routes in Year 3

(year abroad) or Year 4.

The differences between the three pathways depend on the choices you make for

Years 2, 3 and 4. An important difference between Pathway 3 and the other two

pathways concerns your year abroad: whether you spend it in one country or two.

31

2-language degrees, Post-A-level route Year 1 and Year 2

STAGE ONE (Year 1: C-level)


Language and Society I in each language of your degree (total, 40 credits)

Grammar module in each language of your degree (total, 40 credits)



STAGE TWO (Year 2: normally all I-level; one 20-credit module below I-level may be

permitted)


Language and Society II in the two languages of your degree (total, 40 credits)

One Language option module in each of the two languages (total, 40 credits)


Acquisition

Intermediate Phonetics and Phonology*

Intermediate Syntax*

Other Language or Linguistics option, or LFA module*

*Choose a Linguistics option if you intend to take Linguistics in Stage 3.

See page 33 for the year abroad and the final year.


32

2-language degrees, Ab initio route Year 1 and Year 2

STAGE ONE (Year 1: C-level)


Language and Society I in Language 1 (from A-level)

Grammar module in Language 1 (from A-level)

Ab initio German/ Italian/Spanish Language Skills (30 credits)

Ab initio German/ Italian/Spanish Language & Society (30 credits)

Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology OR Introduction to Syntax

STAGE TWO (Year 2: 100 credits at I-level, 20 credits at C-level)


Language and Society II in the two languages of your degree (total, 40 credits)

One Language option module in each of the two languages (total, 40 credits)

C-level Introduction to Phonetics & Phonology OR Introduction to Syntax (whichever was not

taken in Stage 1)

Intermediate Phonetics and Phonology*

Intermediate Syntax*

Other Language or Linguistics option*

LFA module*

*Choose a Linguistics option if you intend to take Linguistics in Stage 3.

See page 33 for the year abroad and the final year.


33

2-language degrees, Year abroad and final year options (any route) Pathways 1 and 2 (continuing both languages throughout the degree) STAGE TWO continued: YEAR ABROAD (Year 3: 120 credits):

Half year (one semester) in a country where one of your target languages is spoken.

Half year (one semester) in a country where the other target language is spoken. The year may be spent on study placements at partner universities, work placements as an


STAGE THREE (Year 4: normally all H-level; one 20-credit module below H-level may be permitted)


Language and Society III in the two languages of your degree. (total, 40 credits)

At least one Language option module in each of the two languages* (total, 40 credits)

Language option module(s)*



Phonetics of a Modern Language (if offered)

Other Linguistics and/or English Language option module(s)

LFA module


OR

Pathway 3 (taking only one language for year abroad and Year 4)

STAGE TWO continued: YEAR ABROAD (Year 3: 120 credits):

Whole year in a country where one of your target languages is spoken.



STAGE THREE (Year 4: normally all H-level; one 20-credit module below H-level may be permitted)


Language and Society III in the language of your Year Abroad (20 credits)

Language option module in the language of your Year Abroad* (20 credits)

Language option module(s)*


Language option module(s)

Phonetics of a Modern Language (if offered)

Other Linguistics and/or English Language option module(s)

LFA module


34

ENGLISH AND LINGUISTICS (UBENGALIN3)

STAGE ONE (C-level)




Introduction to Sociolinguistics OR History of English I

Approaches to Literature I Approaches to Literature II

Key Concepts: An Introduction to Genre, Theory and Writing

STAGE TWO (normally all I-level; one 20-credit module below I-level may be permitted. At least 40 credits must be taken in each department. Electives are not permitted at Stage 2 on this degree)



Acquisition


AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax


Other Linguistics and/or English Language option

Period or Special module* Period or Special module*

Critical Questions

*You may substitute either of these two Period/Special modules or one Period/Special module and Critical Questions for one Literature and Language module and one Topic module or Part 1 of a Foreign Literature module and one Topic module.

STAGE THREE (normally all H-level; up to 20 credits below H-level may be permitted. No more than 50 credits may be taken in a single term.) Three possible routes:

1. Bridge Dissertation route: Bridge Dissertation (40 credits) plus 40 taught credits in Linguistics and 40 taught credits in English.

2. English Dissertation route: English Dissertation (40 credits) plus 80 taught credits. At least 40 credits (dissertation or taught) must be taken in each department.

3. Taught (no dissertation) route: 120 taught credits. At least 40 credits must be taken in each department.



Language option(s)

Linguistics and/or English Language option(s)

Bridge Dissertation (40 credits)* OR Literature Dissertation (40 credits)

Period or Special or Foreign

Literature module(s)

Period or Special Literature

module (s)

*Students will have the option to undertake a bridge dissertation, as long as the topic is approved by both departments and a member of staff is available in each department with the appropriate expertise to act as supervisor. You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Light grey shading = obligatory module. No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree. Dark shading = modules in partner department.

FRENCH/GERMAN AND PHILOSOPHY (UBFREAPHI4, UBGERAPHI4)

STAGE ONE (C-level)

35


A-level route (for students who have A-level in their target language):

French/German Grammar

French/German Language and Society I

One of Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology; Introduction to Syntax; Introduction

to Semantics; or an LFA module at any level

OR

Ab initio route (German only. For students beginning German from scratch.):

Ab initio German Language Skills (30 credits)

Ab initio German Language & Society (30 credits)

Reason and Argument Ethics Ancient Philosophy (10

credits)

Beginning Philosophy (10 credits)

STAGE TWO (Year 2. Normally all I-level)


French/German Language and Society II

French/German option module

French/German or Linguistics and/or English Language or LFA option

3 Key Ideas Modules OR 2 Key Ideas Modules plus 20 credit Tutorial Module OR 2 Key Ideas Modules plus 2 x 10 credit Option Modules. (The Philosophy of Language module is compulsory.)

Year 3 (120 credits at I-level)

YEAR AWAY IN FRENCH/GERMAN-SPEAKING COUNTRY

This must be spent at a partner university.

STAGE THREE (Year 4. Normally all H-level. Up to 20 credits below H-level may be permitted. At least 40 credits must be taken in each department.)


French/German Language and Society III

French/German Language option module (year-long OR autumn/spring-summer)

French/German Language option (year-long OR autumn/spring-summer) or LFA option

Ling. / Eng. Lang. option Linguistics and/or English Language option

Philosophy option Philosophy option Philosophy advanced

module (10 credits)

Philosophy option or extension module in any term

French/German philosophy text (bridge) module (10 credits) in Autumn or Spring Term

KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Light grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree. Dark shading = modules in partner department

36

HISTORY AND FRENCH (UBHISAFRE4) STAGE ONE (C-level)


French Grammar

French Language and Society I




LFA module at any level

Making Histories Thinking through History (10

credits)

History option (30 credits)

STAGE TWO (Year 2. Normally all I-level; 60 credits in each department)


French Language and Society II

French option module

French or Linguistics option in either Autumn or Spring/Summer

Histories and Contexts

option

Explorations option (30 credits)

Using Primary Material (10 credits)

Year 3 (120 credits at I-level)

YEAR AWAY IN FRENCH-SPEAKING COUNTRY

This must be spent at a partner university.

STAGE THREE (Year 4. Normally all H-level. Up to 20 credits below H-level may be permitted. At least 40 credits must be taken in each department.)


French Language and Society III

French option module*

Language or Linguistics and/or English Language option(s)*

History Special Subject (40 credits)

Comparative Histories option

History Dissertation (40 credits)

*Year-long language options may be available, as well as autumn or spring-summer options. KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Light grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree. Dark shading = modules in partner department

37

LINGUISTICS AND MATHEMATICS (UBLINAMAT3)

STAGE ONE (C-level)





Mathematical Skills I: Reasoning and Communication (10 credits)

Calculus (30 credits)

Algebra (20 credits)

STAGE TWO (normally all I-level; 60 credits in each department)



Acquisition


AND/OR Intermediate Syntax

Intermediate Semantics; other I-level Linguistics and/or

English Language option(s), as offered

Introduction to Group Theory

(10 credits)

Linear Algebra (10 credits)

Option 1: Vector Calculus

(10 credits)

Rings & Fields + Intro to Number Theory + Geometry (10 +

10 + 10)

OR Option 2: Mathematical Skills 2: Programming and Recent Advances (10)

Rings & Fields + Intro to Number Theory + Geometry (10 +

10 + 10)

OR Option 3: Mathematical Skills 2: Programming and Recent Advances (10)

Vector Calculus (10) Two from: Rings & Fields, Intro to Number Theory, Geometry

(10 + 10)

STAGE THREE (Normally all H-level. Up to 20 credits below H-level may be permitted. At least 40 credits must be taken in each department.)

Autumn Spring and Summer

H-level Linguistics and/or

English Language option(s)

H-level Linguistics and/or English Language option(s)

H-level Mathematics

option(s) H-level Mathematics option(s)

Final Year Project in Mathematics (40 credits)

KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Light grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree. Dark shading = modules in partner department

38

PHILOSOPHY AND LINGUISTICS (UBPHIALIN3)

STAGE ONE (C-level)





Reason and Argument Knowledge and Perception Metaphysics (10 credits)

Beginning Philosophy (10 credits)

STAGE TWO (normally all I-level; 60 credits in each department)

Autumn Spring and Summer


Acquisition


AND/OR

Intermediate Syntax



offered

3 Key Ideas Modules OR 2 Key Ideas Modules plus 20 credit Tutorial Module OR 2 Key Ideas Modules plus 2 x 10 credit Option Modules. (The Philosophy of Language module is compulsory.)

STAGE THREE (Normally all H-level. Up to 20 credits below H-level may be permitted. At least 40 credits must be taken in each department. No more than 50 credits to be taken in a single term.)



Language option

Linguistics and/or English Language option(s) and/or

electives

Philosophy option Philosophy option Philosophy advanced

module (10 credits)

Other 10-credit phil. module or further advanced module (10) or elective module – in any one

of the terms. Philosophy option or extension module in any term (10 credits)

KEY: You must take 120 credits in each year. All modules are 20 credits, except where stated. Light grey shading = obligatory module No shading = Select options from among available modules. Electives are permitted at Stage 2 and Stage 3 (except where indicated otherwise). Max. 20 elective credits per term, 40 per year, 60 across degree. Dark shading = modules in partner department.

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Credit-weighting Credit-weighting means that, in calculating your average stage mark, each module mark will be given more or less weighting in proportion to the volume of credit (i.e. workload) that is associated with it. For further information on credit-weighting, including how you can use it to calculate your marks, consult the Student Guide to the University’s Rules for Progression and Award in Undergraduate programmes: www.york.ac.uk/media/abouttheuniversity/supportservices/academicregistry/registryservices/Student_guide_to_rules_for_progression_and_awards_in_ug_programmes.pdf

Further information on calculating your final degree mark is available under ‘Your final degree classification’ in the ‘Assessment, Progression and Award’ section.

Languages for All (LFA)

LFA modules for credit

You may take Languages for All (LFA) modules for credit as part of your degree wherever your degree programme allows electives. In addition, some degree programmes allow electives in Stage 1. LFA offers modules in several modern and ancient languages, subject to demand. See the LFA website (www.york.ac.uk/lfa/) for a current list of languages taught. LFA offer modules at the following levels:

Level 1 – beginners

Level 1 PLUS – suitable if you have basic language skills or have completed a beginner’s course

Level 2 – intermediate

Level 2 PLUS – higher intermediate; suitable if you have AS-Level or equivalent (4-5 years of previous study)

Level 3 – advanced: for those with A-Level or equivalent (e.g. 6 years of previous study). Corresponds to ‘C-level’.

Level 4 – for those with 7 years of previous study. Corresponds to ‘I-level’.

Level 5 – for those with 8 or more years of previous study. Corresponds to ‘H-level’. When LFA modules are taken for degree credit they must normally be taken at specified levels corresponding to degree stages: Level 3 modules are C-level (first year); Level 4 modules are I-level (second year); and Level 5 modules are H-level (final year). However, there is an exception to this:

You may take up to 30 credits below I-level in your second year and up to 20 credits below H-level in your final year. In terms of the degrees in Language and Linguistic

http://www.york.ac.uk/media/abouttheuniversity/supportservices/academicregistry/registryservices/Student_guide_to_rules_for_progression_and_awards_in_ug_programmes.pdf


http://www.york.ac.uk/lfa/

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Science, this means that you can take a 20-credit Level 3 LFA module in Year 2. In your final year, a 20-credit Level 4 LFA module is permitted. The mark for these modules count towards your stage average in the normal way.

On the other hand, you may choose to take an LFA module that is two levels or more below your stage. In this case, the module counts for 20 credits out of your 120 credits for the year, but your stage average is calculated on the basis of the other 100 credits. The module is non-compensatable (see section 6.10), which means you need a mark of at least 40% to pass the year, or you will have to be reassessed in the module.

Centre for Global Programmes

If you’re interested in spending part of your studies abroad, or would like to make the most of your Easter and Summer vacations, the University offers exciting opportunities to study, work or volunteer in countries across the world. We offer programmes abroad from three weeks to 12 months duration and grants and bursaries are available to eligible students. Most application deadlines will be during your first year, and places are limited, so start thinking about this early and attend events run by the Centre for Global Programmes throughout the Autumn term. It should be noted, however, that such exchanges will be possible only if the exchange university offers modules comparable to the core options required in Stage 2 of your degree. In recent years, Language and Linguistic Science students have found suitable exchange programmes at the Santa Cruz campus of the University of California, York University Ontario, and the University of Hong Kong. The applications for these exchanges are arranged during the preceding year, so you need to decide in the Autumn Term in your first year if you want to do an exchange in your second year. You should tell your supervisor that you want to take advantage of these schemes by the middle of the Autumn Term of the first year so that he/she can help you seek approval of the Board of Studies. For further information, including the full range of opportunities and how to apply, visit: www.york.ac.uk/globalyork

Placement Year

Almost any student can apply to undertake a Placement Year. This offers you the chance to gain valuable work experience at a challenging level that will help prepare you for graduate jobs. There is an opportunity for you to pursue a Placement Year as part of your studies, receiving recognition within your degree title. This would be an additional year, which you would take between your second and third year of study and you would be supervised by the Careers and Placements team for the duration of this year.

http://www.york.ac.uk/globalyork

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Benefits of a placement year

increase your confidence

opportunity to fast track to a graduate job

try out the day to day of your future career

put your skills into practice

strengthen your academic performance

build up your professional network

strengthen your commercial awareness

You will need to find and secure your own placement and we (Careers and Placements) can help you through the selection and approval process. Full details about the Placement Year option can be found at york.ac.uk/careers/placements

Key steps

a) Start your search early – placement roles are often advertised a year before the placement start date so start looking for opportunities from the summer vacation after your first year.

b) Register for the Placement Year – register between 1 September and 21 January of your second year (please note, this does not guarantee approval onto the programme).

c) Get your placement approved – once you have got a placement, complete the approval form by 31 May.

Eligibility for the programme:

This programme is open to undergraduate and integrated masters students who are not already registered on a Year in Industry course.

If your department already offers a Year In Industry option we recommend you explore that option first.

Students from the Departments of Health Sciences, Social Work and Hull York Medical School are not eligible for this programme.

Problems with your programme If you are having problems with your programme you should seek help and advice as soon as possible. In the first instance you may wish to talk to your supervisor. You can also find advice here www.york.ac.uk/students/help If you are having any problems while studying at York which might affect your ability to complete assigned work, you may be eligible to make a claim of “Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment”. If successful, this would allow you an extension or a resit for the assessment affected. See the section on Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/skills/placement-year/

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/help

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under Assessment for further information.

Making a complaint You can complain about your experience of a service you have received as a student within the University, whether academic or non-academic.

For further information, visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/help/appeals/ For information on academic appeals, see the Assessment section.

Change your plan – absence, transferring or withdrawal Most students progress routinely through their programme with no changes. However, if you do wish to or need to make changes you should discuss any problems or doubts you are experiencing with your supervisor in the first instance. We try to accommodate students who encounter changes or challenges and who may need to change their plan.

Transferring to another programme of study You may wish to transfer to another programme of study due to changing academic interests or because you want to change the structure of your degree programme. Transfers cannot be guaranteed, and are dependent on you meeting the academic requirements of the new programme and there being space on your preferred programme. Transfers usually happen during or at the end of the first year of study, but if you are considering transferring, you should speak to your supervisor as soon as possible. Leave of absence A leave of absence allows a student to take an authorised break in their studies for a maximum of one calendar year in the first instance. This can be on a variety of grounds including medical or compassionate grounds. Withdrawal Withdrawal is the term used when a student decides to leave the University permanently prior to completion of the award for which they are registered, whether for personal or academic reasons. Students who withdraw any time after the end of their first year are often eligible for recognition of their earlier achievements through the award of a Certificate or Diploma of Higher Education.

Details about these options are available at:

www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/plan/

For further support, visit Student Support in Market Square or visit: www.york.ac.uk/sshub

Also see section on Assessment and Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment.

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/help/appeals/

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/plan/

http://www.york.ac.uk/sshub

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Teaching and Learning

Studying at university

You are now part of a dynamic academic community that will encourage, challenge and support you to reach your full potential. At university we expect you to take more responsibility for your own learning than before. This means being self-motivated and independent when it comes to your studies and your personal development. You will get out of your time at university what you put in. You will graduate into a world in which you will continually refresh and increase your knowledge. Our aim is to equip you as a life-long learner who can excel in this environment. We offer the support and the facilities you need to become an independent learner who is equipped to succeed in a fulfilling career. In return we expect you to attend your lectures and seminars, research and study your subject areas, work with fellow students as required and complete your assignments on time. We also expect you to approach your studies with enthusiasm and put in the effort to excel at your studies and master your subject. Independent learning means that you are expected to do the work involved to prepare for lectures, seminars and tutorials and to produce assignments and undertake exams based on your studies. You will have world-class facilities and resources at your disposal, and fellow students with opinions and experience with whom you can share your thoughts and study experience. So make the most of your time and the opportunities available to you.

Teaching methods

The timetabled classes that the Department provides to help you learn for yourself are of various kinds, including lectures, practicals and back-up classes. They vary in size from as low as 8 up to 150. Attendance at all of these is compulsory. A big difference between school and university is that there is much less contact time at university. We expect you to work more independently, and to take responsibility for preparing yourself for classes. This means you need to do the background reading and other preparation in advance.

We use a variety of teaching methods and formats in the Department, reflecting the diversity of the things we teach. In the sections below, we describe some of them.

Lectures

Lectures in the core areas of linguistics and English language are conducted in large groups in Year 1. Class sizes in French, German, Italian and Spanish are smaller. Lecture sizes in linguistics and English language also get smaller as you progress through your degree.

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The aim of lectures is to provide orientation in a subject and to give you suggestions about what to read or to do in order to engage fully with the content of the module. Lectures provide a framework for your learning, but they do not tell you everything you need to know. You must also work on your own, through independent reading and/or exercises, as advised by the lecturer.

Seminars

First year back-up seminars

In the first year, your linguistics lectures will be backed up by teaching in groups of around 15–20 students. These aim to help you develop your understanding in detail by working actively with the types of data or concepts introduced in the lectures. Back-up seminars also give you more opportunity to ask questions. In back-up groups you will do exercises to give you practice in whatever subject that particular class is concerned with.

First year linguistics modules have weekly back-up seminars. For these, you can expect to do some reading and some exercises.

Practicals

For some subjects, there are practical classes. These usually involve working in a hands-on way, e.g., learning computer software, working through data in a more intensive way, or practising specific skills. For these classes, you can expect to prepare things in advance, and you will most likely need to continue with the practical outside the class. Many language classes are practicals.

In some modules, there is an emphasis on practical hands-on work, such as learning how to use computer software, working with recorded data, etc. In practicals, the emphasis will be on doing things and acquiring and practising skills.

Student-led seminars

Some seminars in Stages 2 and 3 are mainly student-led (though supervised by an instructor). Medium-sized groups of students meet to carry out group work, asking questions, debating a particular topic, discussing reading or the analysis of data. It is likely that you will be asked at some point to make a seminar presentation. These seminars require good preparation from those who attend. The emphasis is on your participation and engagement.

Workshops and other kinds of group work

Many subjects use other kinds of small group work, such as workshops or discussion groups. These provide students with an opportunity to ask questions, work on pieces of data together, etc. The instructor will make it clear what is required.

Workshops tend to be problem-based, and have a more open structure. They might combine practical and theoretical work; they might combine large group discussion and small group discussion with a member of staff acting as a consultant. Group work might be used as a way for a whole class to cover a range of topics, so that each group takes charge of

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a different aspect and presents it to the rest of the wider group.

Reading week

Mid-way through the Autumn and Spring Terms, in week 6, the Department has a ‘reading week’. The main aim of this week is to provide time for independent study. (The ability to work independently is an important, marketable skill.) Formal teaching is not usually scheduled during reading weeks. Instead, module instructors will set you a programme of work (such as formative assessment) to complete during the week. We also expect you to take the initiative in deciding how you should organise the time to consolidate what you have done in the preceding half term. Note that, although there is a pause in formal teaching, you are likely to have at least some contact hours during reading week: some transferable skills teaching takes place at this time, and some catch-up teaching sessions may be scheduled if (exceptionally) a lecturer has needed to cancel sessions due to illness or to conference attendance. You are required to remain in York during reading weeks, so that you can use the library and University resources effectively, complete group work where that forms part of your reading week assignments, and attend any training or back-up sessions that have been scheduled. There is no reading week in the Summer Term. Teaching in the Summer Term finishes by the end of Week 4, to allow for examinations and marking to be completed before the end of term.

On combined degrees, the partner department may not treat Week 6 as a reading week. Combined students may have reading week in the Language and Linguistic Science Department, but continue with teaching as usual in the partner department. Please check with your partner department.

Timing of teaching

Most timetabled slots last one hour; some last two. Because many departments in the University do not have dedicated teaching rooms, you may have to cross campus between lectures (including travelling between Campus West and Campus East). To facilitate this, although classes are timetabled as starting on the hour, they actually begin at 5 past the hour and end at 5 to the hour. Teaching normally runs between 9.00am and 6.00pm Monday-Friday, although Wednesday afternoons are kept free of teaching for extra-curricular activities.

Code of conduct – teaching sessions

We expect all students to maintain ‘good academic standing’ throughout their degree. To be in good academic standing, you must follow the code of conduct, below:

Maintain satisfactory attendance at classes (including lectures, seminars, back-up classes etc.). You are expected to attend all teaching sessions in every module. See the next section for what to do if you have to miss classes due to illness or personal

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circumstances. If your attendance is poor we will contact you to determine the reason.

Complete all formative and summative assignments.

Participate in group work, where this is part of a module’s teaching programme.

Conduct yourself in a way that is appropriate to the settings connected with your studies, including in the classroom, in communication with staff and peers, in work or study placements that you are undertaking as part of your degree, and in any other University-related environment.

If you do not follow this code, you will not be in good academic standing. This could have consequences for your studies. For example, students who are not in good academic standing may not be allowed to take up their Year Abroad placement, or a place on the worldwide exchange programme. In addition, unsatisfactory attendance is likely to result in you falling behind with your work, and achieving low marks.

Attendance You should attend all scheduled teaching sessions that we set for you. Regular attendance is vital to your progression through your degree programme and will help you become a well-rounded learner capable of achieving your full academic potential. University Regulations state that you should be present at any time at which teaching or other academic engagements have been arranged for your programme (including Saturdays). Absence If you must be absent at such a time you must consult your Supervisor who can permit an absence of no more than three days. An absence of over three days, but no longer than four weeks, can be approved by your Chair of the Board of Studies. Any longer absence during a term which will be counted towards completion of your degree programme requires the approval of Special Cases Committee. See the information on taking a Leave of Absence in the ‘Change Your Plan’ section of ‘Your Programme’. If you stop turning up to scheduled teaching sessions without saying you are withdrawing and do not respond to our efforts to make contact with you within a specified time-scale, the Board of Studies will assume that you have withdrawn from your studies. For further information on the decision process, visit: www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/taught/withdrawing/

http://www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/taught/withdrawing/

http://www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/taught/withdrawing/

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If you are unable to attend due to illness please see section below on Self certification. If you are having problems with completing your studies please see the section on Assessment - Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment. Employment is not a justification for absence from classes and permission for absence will not be given on these grounds. The University requires members of staff to keep records of student attendance, and attendance will be taken at every teaching session.

What if I am ill and cannot attend scheduled teaching sessions? If you are unwell for up to seven consecutive days during term-time you should register your illness, either through your e:Vision account or by completing an ‘illness self-certification’ form and forwarding it to Student Support Services. For further information, including self-certification forms, visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/support/health/ or see the University handbook.

If your illness interferes with your ability to complete assessments, see the section on Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment under Assessment.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

‘Feedback’ at a University level can be understood as any part of the learning process which is designed to guide your progress through your degree programme by providing commentary on your work to date. We aim to help you to reflect on your own learning and help you feel clearer about your progress through clarifying what is expected of you in both formative and summative assessments. The University guidelines for feedback are available in the Guide to Assessment Standards, Marking and Feedback. We see it as a two-way process between students and staff, so while we will offer written and spoken comments on your work, we hope you will also make the most of other opportunities to discuss your work. Make use of staff open hours; make sure you collect feedback; discuss your progress with your supervisor. Our policy on feedback has been agreed as follows. 1) Marks for both formative and summative assessment will be communicated to students by marks on the University mark scale. 2) All modules will provide an opportunity for students to receive some interim feedback on work that has been undertaken for the module before the final assessment. 3) Feedback on assessed work will, wherever practicable, provide an indication of what would have improved the mark.

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/support/health/

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4) Teaching staff will indicate at the start of a module the types of feedback they expect to provide for that module. 5) Teaching staff will include information in their module outlines about the timing of feedback for the module. 6) Where a module is examined by more than one exam, students will be provided with outline model answers for all exams except the final exam, shortly after the relevant early exams have been marked. The time at which such answers are provided may be delayed if some students have not been able to sit the early exams. 7) The Department considers the following to be appropriate times for providing feedback on formative assessment:

a) For written feedback: within three teaching weeks of the date that the work was submitted;

b) For oral feedback on written assessment: at the next relevant teaching session after all students have completed the assignment and the work has been marked.

8) Feedback on summative assessment will be provided within six weeks of submission of the assessed work, in accordance with the University’s policy. 9) The Department aims to provide feedback on all non-exam based summative assessment.

a) Where the assessment for a module comprises an essay or project, students will receive an assessment feedback sheet.

b) Where the assessment for a module is in several parts, departmental best practice is to provide feedback sheets for each component, including oral presentations. However, staff may consider alternative types of feedback more appropriate, and they will inform students of this at the start of the module.

10) The Department is unable to provide detailed individual feedback on the following: a) Performance on closed University examinations; b) Performance on open University examinations, other than oral language exams.

• However, students are invited to view their exam scripts at designated ‘sight of scripts’ sessions.

11) Under exceptional circumstances, when marking of a summative assessment cannot be carried out within published deadlines, the Chair of the Board of Examiners will notify students as soon as possible, at the latest as soon as the deadline has passed. When marking of formative assessments cannot be carried out within published deadlines, module co-ordinators will inform students of this. 12) The Department considers all of the following as feedback, whether it is given in response to work that is assessed or not:

a) Oral comments on areas of work that could be improved or that were particularly successful;

b) Oral provision in class of correct answers to an exercise; c) Oral comments in class on presentations or on student participation; d) Any of the above provided individually (this is often more appropriate when the

feedback is particularly negative); e) Oral or written comments on transferable skills; f) Written comments on individual work; g) Corrections written on exercises; h) Marks written on exercises;

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i) Marks posted on notice boards or on the department’s website; j) E-mail answers to individual queries; k) Discussion in open hours; l) (Outline) model answers to exercises or exams; m) Sample answers to exercises or exam questions (written or oral); n) Comments in response to discussion in an electronic forum; o) Departmental Assessment Feedback sheets; p) Departmental Presentation Feedback sheets.

13) Students have a duty to take account of all feedback made generally available, whether it is addressed to them as individuals or not. 14) Students who think that they have not received feedback should raise the matter with the member of staff concerned and, where appropriate, with the module co-ordinator. You should also alert your student representative.

What do I need to do to get a good degree?

The Student Guide to Rules for Progression and Award in Undergraduate Programmes clarifies what we mean by ‘academic progress’. They explain what you need to do to progress through your degree programme and how you can calculate your current classification marks along the way. www.york.ac.uk/media/abouttheuniversity/supportservices/academicregistry/registryservices/Student_guide_to_rules_for_progression_and_awards_in_ug_programmes.pdf

What happens if I fail a module?

There are two possible ways in which you may still be able to pass your year and progress to the next level. Compensation For modules at an undergraduate level, in levels 4,5 and 6, the pass mark for module assessments is 40. However, in any year other than your final year if your mark for a module is in the 30 – 39 range, you may still be able to get the credits for the module if your performance in other modules is good enough to compensate. In other words, ‘marginal’ failure in some modules may be compensated by achievement in others. In your final year, the same principle can apply as long as your mark in a module is at least 10. Reassessment If you get a module mark below the level at which it can be compensated, or if you have too many modules with failing marks to be allowed to compensate them all, you will have to be reassessed. However, there is a limit to the number of credits in which you can be reassessed. If you get a mark between 30 and 39 (or 40 and 49 for Masters-level modules) and you are not eligible for compensation, you may also need to be reassessed in those modules.



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If you need to be reassessed to pass a module, it is important to note that it will be your mark on your original attempt that will be used to calculate your degree classification. We will not use your re-sit mark. Please note that not all modules can be reassessed or compensated. For further information on compensation and reassessment, see the Student Guide to the University’s Rules for Progression and Award in Undergraduate Programmes. http://www.york.ac.uk/media/abouttheuniversity/supportservices/academicregistry/registryservices/Student_guide_to_rules_for_progression_and_awards_in_ug_programmes.pdf

Academic integrity

Academic integrity represents a set of values and behaviours which members of the academic community abide by. To be a trusted member of this academic community you must understand and demonstrate academic integrity in your studies and the work you produce. Such values include honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility.

Online Academic Integrity Tutorial This module will take you through key principles around integrity and how to avoid things like plagiarism and collusion. You are required to complete successfully the University Online Academic Integrity Tutorial within your first year, preferably within your first term to progress smoothly onto your next term (i.e. receive 100% on the three tests included in the tutorial).The tutorial can be found on the VLE; more information is available on www.york.ac.uk/integrity. If you have any questions about this, you can contact [email protected] or ask your supervisor. If you do not uphold the values and conventions of academic integrity, you may be subject to the University’s academic misconduct procedures.

Referencing

The Department uses the APA referencing system. Please see the ‘Style Guide’ section below, under ‘Referencing’.

Academic misconduct

Academic misconduct means breaking the rules of academic integrity and this is why we regard any form of academic misconduct as a very serious offence. For a list of what the University considers as academic misconduct, and the policy covering misconduct visit: https://www.york.ac.uk/staff/teaching/procedure/examinations/guide/



http://www.york.ac.uk/integrity



















































https://www.york.ac.uk/staff/teaching/procedure/examinations/guide/

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Ethics

If you engage in any research involving people (e.g., interviews, questionnaires, grammaticality judgements) in which you identify yourself as a student of the Language and Linguistic Science Department or as a student of the University of York, you should consult the Chair of the Ethics Committee about how to obtain ethics approval for the research. This is not limited to research that you conduct as part of a module assessment. It applies even when research is being carried out independently of the department (e.g., for a society, or for your own interest). See page 15 for more information on the Ethics Committee.

Study skills and support

Departmental study support

Study skills and writing are areas where our students often seek support. We provide dedicated writing sessions for our first-year students, as well as broader study skills sessions throughout your programme. These are often integrated into our teaching programme, but are also free-standing. We will provide information about these at the relevant time. For more details, don’t hesitate to contact Cinzia Bacilieri.

Managing your workload through private study

Teaching at York is done by academic experts who will introduce you to academic subject areas, key concepts and outline your learning objectives. You are responsible for researching, studying and managing your own learning.

You will need to plan your time carefully and be aware of timescales and deadlines for assessments, projects and exams.

We know that adjusting to new ways of working and having to produce work at this level in accordance with the many academic rules and regulations can be daunting. However, your tutors and your supervisors are there to help and we have further support in place through the Student Skills Hub to help you gain any additional skills you might need with your maths, academic writing, referencing, IT skills and languages. See the section below on the Student Skills Hub.

Online resources – IT facilities, VLE and others

The Department houses a PC laboratory (the 'e-lab', room V/B/023), which is open to all our undergraduates. Here you will have access to a variety of resources, including specialist linguistics and phonetics software, corpora of texts and speech recordings, and online language-learning materials accessible via the University's Virtual Learning Environment. A variety of undergraduate modules are taught in the e-lab, particularly ones that provide students with practical training in the use of relevant software packages and other

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electronic resources. The Department’s technical supervisor is Huw Llewelyn Jones, who can be contacted by email at [email protected]. For information on the facilities and services IT Services provides, consult your University handbook or visit: www.york.ac.uk/it-services/

Library

www.york.ac.uk/library For an introduction to using the University Library and its resources, visit: www.york.ac.uk/library/informationfor/newusers This includes, amongst others, information on using the library catalogue, your library account, online induction resources and opening hours. The University Library is open 24 hours a day, 362 days a year. For general help, contact the Library Help Desk in the JB Morrell Library. Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1904 323873 Your Academic Liaison Librarian is Tony Wilson. He can help you to search effectively for resources, understand how to use and evaluate these and how to reference your work correctly. He can be contacted at [email protected] Further details on your Academic Liaison Librarian and your subject guide can be found at: http://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/language

The main print collections to support the Department of Language and Linguistic Science are located in the JB Morrell Library, the main University Library. The new Harry Fairhurst building, immediately adjacent to the JB Morrell Library, offers a range of IT, group and collaborative spaces in which to study. Both buildings are open 24 hours a day (with the exception of Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day). The Raymond Burton Library for Humanities Research, also adjacent to the JB Morrell Library, has reference materials for advanced study in the humanities. The Department has a range of language resources available to students, including dictionaries, audio-visual and print materials in several languages, and magazines. These can be found in the Languages Hub located on the first floor of the Harry Fairhurst Building in the library.

Student Skills Hub Website

The Student Skills Hub enables you to see and access a range of helpful Centres and resources which are available to the whole university community. These resources will be at


http://www.york.ac.uk/it-services/

http://www.york.ac.uk/library

http://www.york.ac.uk/library/informationfor/newusers


http://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/language

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your disposal throughout your studies:

The Writing Centre - for planning academic work and discussing academic writing;

The Maths Skills Centre - for discussing issues with mathematics, statistics and numeracy skills;

The Library - for addressing information skills and accessing research materials;

IT skills - for solving IT issues and developing more advanced IT capabilities;

Language skills - for further developing academic English language and engaging with other languages;

Transferable skills - for working in teams, presenting to audiences and other employability skills;

For further information, visit: www.york.ac.uk/student-skills-hub

Centre for English Language Teaching (CELT)

The Centre for English Language Teaching provides a variety of term time classes and summer courses for intermediate and advanced level English language support. Visit: www.york.ac.uk/celt

Accessibility and disability support

The department’s disability officer is Géraldine Enjelvin ([email protected]). Disability Services can provide support, advice and guidance for those with a diagnosed disability, including: dyslexia and specific learning difficulties; Asperger’s syndrome; visual and hearing impairment, physical/medical impairments and amongst others. All students with disabilities are encouraged to contact them to discuss meeting your individual needs. Please let the department know as soon as possible if you have a disability and may require support. You can discuss this with your supervisor. For further information, visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/support/disability/ You may also require individual arrangements for formal examinations. See the information provided on formal examinations in the Assessment section for further information. Please note that for students with dyslexia, it is not possible to make adjustments in the marking of work written in a closed language exam and/or submitted as an item of coursework (French, German, Italian or Spanish). This is because accurate spelling and grammar are part of the assessment objectives in language assessment. Closed exams make up only a proportion of the assessment types used for languages; other assessment types

http://www.york.ac.uk/celt


http://www.york.ac.uk/students/support/disability/

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such as oral presentations are also used.

Prizes, bursaries and scholarships

The Department offers the following prizes to graduands:

Robert B. Le Page Prize

Ursula Wadey Memorial Fund (BA in English and Linguistics)

G. K. Pullum Prize (BA in Mathematics and Linguistics)

For information on financial support, including bursaries and scholarships offered by the University, see the University handbook.

Activities and societies

There are many opportunities at York to get involved with societies and extra-curricular

activities both related and unrelated to your course. For a full list of societies and activities

provided by YUSU, visit: www.yusu.org/activities

Assessment, progression and award

Guide to assessment

The University’s guide to Assessment Standards, Marking and Feedback contains the University’s formal procedures relating to the conduct of assessment. It provides clear and detailed information on each aspect of student assessment and is a useful resource if you want to know more about how your work is assessed. For further information, visit: www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/registry-services/guide/

Assessment methods

You will encounter two types of assessment during your time at University: formative and summative. Formative assessment is there to help you develop. While it does not contribute to your final degree mark, it will help you to learn more effectively – you will be provided with feedback which will help you to review and improve your performance.

http://www.yusu.org/activities

http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/registry-services/guide/


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Summative assessment indicates the extent of your success in meeting the assessment criteria and how well you have fulfilled the learning outcomes of a particular module or programme. The marks from this type of assessment will contribute to your final degree result or towards progression decisions. Modes of summative assessment Summative assessment for a module typically takes the form of an examination, an essay, a dossier of coursework or a combination of these, completed at the end of a module. A closed examination is a timed, invigilated examination conducted under traditional examination conditions. An open examination is an examination that is not completed under closed examination conditions, but which is subject to a time limit and usually a length limit. Open examinations are typically used for some language modules, and may be used for linguistics modules as well. The time limit specified for open examinations is usually longer than the assessment actually requires: if you are given one week for an open examination, you are not expected to spend all of your time writing the exam, and in fact you may be required to sit other examinations during the specified period. Open assessment is assessment that is not completed under closed examination conditions and which typically takes the form of essays, course work dossiers or project reports. Oral/aural examinations are individual encounters between a candidate and one or more examiners, intended to assess the candidate’s speaking/listening performance in a target language or the candidate’s performance in phonetic production and transcription. Details of the specific forms of assessment and their relative weightings are given in the entries for individual modules on the web. Other forms of assessment Diagnostic assessment provides an indicator of the learner’s aptitude and preparedness for a programme of study, and identifies possible learning problems. Procedural assessment consists of attendance in class and performance in seminars. Written comments are made about individual students’ seminar performance, but no mark is given and the judgment made by the tutor will not count towards the students’ marks.

Formal examination requirements For information on the University’s formal examination requirements, consult your University handbook or visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/assessment-and-examination/ Individual examination arrangements may be approved for students who are unable to sit formal University examination conditions as a result of a disability or other condition. It is important to note that such arrangements must be in place at least six weeks prior to the exam in question, so it is essential that students requiring individual arrangements contact

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/assessment-and-examination/

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/assessment-and-examination/

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Disability Services as soon as possible to ensure that adjustments can be made. Visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/assessment-and-examination/disability/making/

Assessment format and submission of work The method of assessment for each module depends upon the work carried out during the module. The module tutor will outline the chosen method of assessment at the beginning of the module. This information can also be found on the relevant module webpage (www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/modules/). The deadlines for the submission of projects, essays or assessed coursework will be spread throughout the teaching period, or in the common assessment periods (Week 1 of Spring Term for Autumn modules, Weeks 5–7 of Summer Term, for Spring/Summer modules). Deadlines will be clearly stated in the module documentation at the start of each module. Where you have several assessment deadlines falling around the same time, you must plan your work accordingly, well in advance. You are responsible for managing your time carefully so that you can hand in all assignments on time. All submissions must be accompanied by a cover sheet, which is available from www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/documents/. Almost all assessed work must be word-processed. (An exception, of course, is work that you produce in a closed examination.) Make sure that you:

put page numbers at the bottom of each page;

put your candidate number in the header of each page;

use 12-point type in a standard font such as Times New Roman or Arial;

use margins of 2.54cm;

use 1.5-line spacing, but not double spacing, unless you are instructed to do so;

print the work out single-sided.

You must attach a standard Department cover sheet to all assessed work submitted. Hard copies of the cover sheet are available from the department foyer, or you can find the electronic file on the web at: www.york.ac.uk/language/current/undergraduates/documents/. The cover sheet includes:

a declaration that the work is all your own and that you are aware of issues relating to academic misconduct as explained in the Academic Integrity Tutorial;

your examination number, in the top right-hand corner;

the number and title of the module;

a title, if appropriate;

the word count. (The word count must include EVERYTHING except the title, the reference list and the appendices, except in specific cases where the module

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/assessment-and-examination/disability/making/




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documentation provides different instructions about the word count for that module.)

Before you submit an assessment, make sure that you have shown the following information on the cover sheet: your examination number in the top right-hand corner, the module code and module title, the title of the assessment, your year of graduation and the number of words contained in your essay. There is a special set of metal boxes for the submission of assessed work, situated in the foyer through the doors directly opposite the departmental reception. Except in the case of work for which an extension has been granted (see below), or unless explicitly instructed to do so by the module convener, do not place assessed work in any other location. The department does not give receipts for work submitted for assessment. In some circumstances, you may be asked to submit your assessed work electronically. Finally, it is your responsibility to make and retain a back-up copy of any work that you hand in. This means that if your computer crashes the night before the deadline, you can recover your work, or that you could immediately re-submit the work in the unlikely event that it was lost, and also that you would be able to refer back to your work after receiving marks, since work submitted for formal assessment will not be returned for you to keep after marking (although you will usually have a chance to see comments written on the essay). Extensions If you have a reason to request an extension of a deadline on medical or compassionate grounds, you should follow the instructions for requesting extensions provided in the Exceptional Circumstances section on page 71. It is essential that you submit the documentation described 24 hours before the assessment deadline. If you do not declare your mitigating circumstances at the time, it will be very unlikely that you will be able to make a retrospective appeal. Once an extended deadline has been approved, you must meet that deadline. If you do not, you will be penalised according to the rules laid out on page 65. All assessed work with an extended deadline must be submitted to the Departmental Administrator for date stamping on or before the extended deadline. Do not submit the work to the module instructor’s metal assessment box; if you do so, you risk incurring penalties for lateness.

Be aware that you can check your work for potential plagiarism using Turnitin text-matching software; however, you must attend a workshop to gain access - go to www.york.ac.uk/integrity for details.


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Style guide

Writing linguistics essays, projects and research papers

There are a number of conventions that you should follow when writing about linguistics topics. The following notes are intended to give you some guidance on writing essays in linguistics. You may receive further guidance within modules where an essay forms part of the module assessment. As well as essays, you may be asked to write reports, summaries of data analysis, etc., but the same principles apply. Linguistics essays that do not follow the conventions outlined here are likely to lose marks.

(This section does not cover French, German, Italian and Spanish essay-writing, as practice of essay-writing skills forms a key part of the content of the language modules.)

Essay structure and organisation

Essays should be clearly structured into sections and the relationship between these sections should be made clear. Here are some examples of typical essay structures in linguistics:

When you read linguistics articles, you will find that they often have a structure along these lines. The compare/contrast essay structure can be used in all domains of linguistics. The ‘data’ may be, for example, some structures of a particular language in a syntax essay, or utterances from a one-year-old in a language acquisition essay. The structure for a report of an experiment is likely to be used when you collect data yourself, perhaps in a phonetics/phonology module, where you may make recordings or collect data from databases that your lecturer directs you to. Both structures can be adapted to suit the needs of your particular essay, but some basic guidelines are as follows:

Begin with an introduction (or introductory paragraph) that states what you intend to do in the essay. For example, if you aim to answer a question in your essay, then state the question and say how you will try to answer it.

In your introduction, or immediately after your introduction, present the key claims and/or key data, or present previous research that forms the rationale for your study. The information you provide at this point sets the scene for your essay, so make sure that you explain key terms/ideas/questions that you will return to throughout the essay (and do not provide information that you will not use again

1. A compare/contrast essay 2. A report of an experiment

Introduction The data and/or the key claim X’s analysis (Y’s analysis) Discussion of X’s (and Y’s) analysis Alternative analysis Conclusion

Introduction Rationale for study (previous research) Hypotheses Materials and Methods Results Discussion Conclusion

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later).

Body of compare/contrast essay: Present the analyses of the data/claims you have set out. Make sure that each new point links logically to the preceding point.

Body of experiment report: Describe the experiment, introducing each element in a logical order. For example, if you conducted an interview, make sure you state what questions you asked before you start to describe the responses.

At the end of the essay, return to the key issues you set out at the start. Point out how the body of the essay has addressed these key issues. In your conclusion, briefly sum up what the essay has achieved

In longer essays (e.g., 1500+ words), you should organise your work into sections. It is useful to give each section an informative heading. (You may use headings in shorter essays too, if you wish.) Headings help you and the reader to understand clearly what each section is supposed to do.

Exemplification Linguistics essays almost always need examples to be comprehensible. If you are writing about a particular syntactic structure, or about typical pronunciation errors in second language learners, you should provide examples of structures, errors, or whatever linguistic forms are discussed in your essays. Examples should be set on a new line, and numbered consecutively throughout the essay. Here are some examples of examples:

1. [VP buy [NP apples]] 2. /p/ v. /b/ 3. CHILD (age 2;0): Baby go sleep

In (1), you see a syntax example, in (2) a phonetics/phonology example, and in (3), a language acquisition example. Notice that once you have numbered your examples, it is very easy to refer back to them (as shown in the previous sentence). It is also essential that you do refer to the examples that you provide, because you must briefly explain why the example is useful. Here is an example of how to do that: –––––––––––––––––––––– The structure in (1) illustrates word order in English, where the object follows the verb. In many languages, objects precede verbs. This is illustrated for Japanese, in (4) (‘ACC’ = accusative): 4.

ringo-o kau apple-ACC buy ‘buy apples’

––––––––––––––––––––––

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Example (4) also shows you how to provide examples in languages other than English. As you can see, a non-English example consists of the following three components, each on a separate line:

• an orthographic or phonetic transcription of the example • a literal word-for-word (or morpheme-for-morpheme) gloss in English • an idiomatic English translation (enclosed in quotations marks).

This is the standard way of presenting non-English examples in linguistics, and you must follow it. Notice the neat layout of the original, the gloss, and the translation in (4). Use tabs to make sure that each part of the literal gloss lines up with the word or morpheme that it translates. A final point to notice about numbered examples is that it may be useful to group related examples together, as in (5). 5.

a cat b catty c. cat-like

You can then refer back to ‘the examples in (5)’.

Referencing Every essay or report should contain ample reference to published literature. A reader (or examiner) wants to see evidence that you have read appropriately in the area concerned, that your claims are based on robust sources, and that you are familiar with the relevant theoretical issues and controversies. It is essential to acknowledge the sources you have taken your information from, and to cite them correctly. Failure to do this could result in charges of academic misconduct. Fortunately there is plenty of information available about how to cite sources correctly, including the following:

the ‘Academic Integrity Tutorial’ on the VLE (you are required to complete this tutorial during your first year);

www.york.ac.uk/integrity: a University website that provides guidance on referencing and avoiding academic misconduct.


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There are several different conventions for citing sources, used by different disciplines. The Department uses the APA referencing system for in-text citations and bibliographic references. It is a variant of the Harvard system. APA guidelines can be found here:

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/develop-your-skills/study-skills/study/integrity/referencing-styles/apa/

Additional information about APA style can be found at Purdue University’s OWL website: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/.

Do not use ibid. or op.cit. for recurring references, but repeat the full form given above. You may, however, omit the author’s name if the second reference is within the same paragraph and there is no possibility of confusion.

The APA system is an ‘author-date’ system, which means that you include the author’s surname and the year of publication in the text. For example: Sprouse (2006) proposes that second language acquisition may have more in common with Creole genesis than previously recognised. He argues that models for language development that have emerged separately for Creole formation (Lefebvre 1998) and second language acquisition (Schwartz and Sprouse 1996) in fact share certain key concepts. You then create a list of references at the end of your essay, and give the full bibliographic details for Sprouse (2006), Lefebvre (1998), Schwartz and Sprouse (1996), and any other sources your cite. In other words, there are two components to

correct citation:

in-text citations, at the point where you refer to the information that you have obtained from the book or other reference that you are citing; and

a list of references at the end of your essay or report (a section headed ‘References’).

Your list of references should be organised alphabetically, by the author surnames. It will look something like the box below. Some points to note are as follows:

Help! I’m a combined student and my other

department uses a different referencing

system.

Although different disciplines use different

referencing styles, all referencing systems

essentially do the same thing: they indicate

the source of the cited material. You’ll need

to master both systems and make sure that

you use the style appropriate to each

discipline. The ability to work efficiently in

more than one system is a useful workplace

skill. Help on all of the commonly used

referencing styles is available at:

http://www.york.ac.uk/integrity/



https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

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Titles of books and journals are set in italics, and the rest of the text is regular font.

You may use full first-names in the reference list if you wish. In the example here, we have shortened each first-name to the initial.

For the journal article (Schwartz and Sprouse 1996), we have not included a URL, even though the article is available electronically via the University Library. References for journal articles should only include a URL if the journal is only published online. If it has both a print and an online format, do not include the URL even if you accessed the journal online.

References Lefebvre, C. (1998). Creole genesis and the acquisition of grammar: the case of Haitian Creole. New York: Cambridge University Press. Schwartz, B. and Sprouse, R. (1996). L2 cognitive states and the full transfer/full access model. Second Language Research, 12, 40–72. Sprouse, R. (2006). Full Transfer and Relexification: Second language acquisition and Creole genesis. In C. Lefebvre, L. White and C. Jourdan, eds. L2 acquisition and Creole genesis: Dialogues (pp. 169–181). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

In addition to books and journals, the sources you cite may come from a variety of other media, including databases, radio and TV programmes, and websites. (Remember to be particularly cautious when citing information from websites. Consider whether the site is a reliable source.) See the referencing guidelines on University webpages (www.york.ac.uk/integrity) for details of how to cite each of these different types of source, both within the text and in the references list. Good referencing Good referencing starts with reading: as well as making notes on what the book or article says and how it is relevant, remember also to make a note of what type of source it is (a book, or a journal article etc.) and keep a copy of the full citation (including page numbers for any direct quotations that you copy into your notes). When you are stuck on how to cite a source or how to present an example etc., take a look at a recent article from a journal in the field (e.g., Lingua), to see how the authors there solve similar problems.


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Remember that failure to cite sources appropriately will lead to charges of academic misconduct. Be very careful not to use notes that you have made on other people’s work and then recycle it as your own text. Footnotes and appendices It is not essential that you use footnotes and/or appendices in a linguistics essay. Read the following guidelines and then use them if they are appropriate to the particular essay. Footnotes Footnotes are used in linguistics to qualify or add to something mentioned in the text in a way that is useful and informative but which would be distracting within the body of the essay. For example, if you need to use unfamiliar abbreviations in the gloss of a non-English example (like example (4) above), you could provide definitions of the abbreviations in a footnote. Use footnotes with care: do not use them to add information that should be in the main text, and do not overload your essay with footnotes. Ideally, there should be at most no more than one per page. Many short essays do not need footnotes at all. Do not use footnotes to provide references for quotations, examples, or paraphrases taken from other works (even if footnotes are used in this way in your partner department on combined degree programmes). For linguistics essays, use the citation style outlined above, which does not make use of footnotes. Word-processing packages make it easy to insert footnotes at the bottom of a page. Note that footnotes are included in word counts. Appendices If your project work is data-based you may need to use one or more appendices. Appendices are attachments to the end of an essay. They are used for information that is too long to put in the body of the essay, but that is nonetheless essential to the piece of work. This includes things like:

a copy of a questionnaire used for collecting data (including the script used for interviews);

transcriptions of data, the lines of which should be numbered so that examples referred to in the text can be easily located;

tables or sets of information, which are too long to put in the text or, while pertinent to the issues under discussion, would be too distracting if inserted into the text (e.g. a complete list of the responses to some question, a lengthy statistical analysis, or a long checklist of linguistic features).

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If you include an appendix, be sure to refer to it in the main text (e.g., “The full text of the interview is provided in Appendix A.”). Appendices are not included in the word count (unlike footnotes). Note, however, that you (of course!) should not use appendices to get around a word limit. Material in appendices should contain useful supplementary material, rather than things that are essential to understanding or to the flow of an argument.

Other features of linguistics essays In addition, the following are important:

Balance: Aim to devote adequate space in your essay to all the crucial elements. For example, if your essay requires a final discussion of data that you have presented or of two sides of an argument, organise the work so that your discussion can be detailed enough within the word limit. Don’t try to squeeze the whole discussion into just a few lines.

Clarity: Aim to articulate your ideas clearly. This involves structuring your essay in a logical way, but it also involves your style of writing. Aim to write in a way that is easy to understand, avoiding long confused sentences. Use paragraphs effectively: develop one point in one paragraph, then start a new paragraph for the next point.

Appropriate use of linguistic terminology: Be sure to use the linguistic terminology that you have learnt during your studies. For example, if you’re writing about phonological development, discuss children’s awareness of the phoneme /p/, not the letter /p/.

Tips for developing writing skills Writing essays and reports is a skill, and you will improve with practice. Here are some things you can do to help with the process:

When you read linguistics papers, notice how the authors express themselves. Make a note of papers that seems particularly clear, and, when you come to write an essay, look back at those papers for inspiration about how to write clearly.

Consult writing guides such as the following:

Some DON’Ts in essay writing

Do not write a long essay without an introduction, sections, and a conclusion.

Do not use first names when referring to authors: “Lydia White has researched learners of French, who …”

Do not use footnotes to cite references. Footnotes are used for descriptive material (see 7.1.4).

Do not hand in an essay that you have not proofread.

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Greetham, B. (2001). How to write better essays. Basingstoke: Palgrave.

Redman, P. (2006). Good essay writing: a social sciences guide. London: Sage Publications.

Strunk, W. and White, E. B. (1999). The elements of style (fourth edition). Boston; London: Allyn & Bacon.

Consult a dictionary when you’re not sure of the meaning of a word you want to use.

Allow time to proofread your work, and to correct it after proofreading. Be honest with yourself when you proofread. You may notice that a particular paragraph is no longer relevant. In that case, cut it and use the additional space that you gain to improve another paragraph.

A good tip is to print out your draft and read it out aloud (either alone, or to a friend) as if you were presenting it. You will notice if there are any gaps in the structure or flow of the essay, or any parts that are unclear or vague.

Penalties

Knowing how to manage your time, write succinctly and provide a complete and comprehensive piece of work to a strict deadline are skills you will develop at university. In the interests of fairness, transparency and to be equitable we have strict rules around deadlines and the quality or quantity of work submitted, and have clear penalties where these rules are not followed. All work submitted late, without an approved claim of Exceptional Circumstances affecting Assessment, will have ten percent of the available marks deducted for each day (or part of each day) that the work is late, up to a total of five days, including weekends and bank holidays, e.g. if work is awarded a mark of 30 out of 50, and the work is up to one day late, the final mark is 25. After five days, the work is marked at zero. The penalty cannot result in a mark less than zero.

Submitted Penalty

1 day 10% deducted from mark

2 days 20% deducted from mark




Over 5 days Work marked at zero

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Word limits Word limits must be taken seriously. Examiners allow a margin of ± 10%; e.g. if a length of 3,000 words is specified for an essay, a length of 2,700 – 3,300 words is permitted. If a piece of assessed work is too short, it is not directly penalised, but a very short essay will probably not have the required content, and therefore will not receive a high mark. If a piece of assessed work is more than 10% longer than the specified length, the examiner will not read beyond the prescribed word limit. The mark will thus be based only on the material up to the word limit + 10%. Question limits When students fail to follow the instructions for an assessment and answer more questions than are specified, examiners will base the mark on the first questions answered. For example, if the instructions state that the student is to answer three questions from Section A out of a possible six, and the student answers four questions, the examiners will mark the first three of the four. The transcribing of illegible examination scripts If the two designated internal examiners of the scripts for an examination cannot read an examination script, it will be transcribed at the student’s expense. Transcription will be carried out by postgraduates who teach, approved by the Standing Committee on Assessment (SCA). The student will be charged at the published rate paid for assistant invigilators. The transcribed script will not be marked until the payment has been received. Any disputes between the transcriber and the student must be recorded by the transcriber and include the student’s signature. Disputes will be referred to the Chair of the Board of Examiners (or Board of Studies if there is a conflict of interest) for resolution. All cases will be reported to the SCA for monitoring and all students referred to Disability Services for disability testing. Should a relevant disability then be confirmed, the fee will be refunded and an amanuensis will be provided for future examinations. Failure to submit If you, with no approved claim of Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment, fail to submit an assessment by the deadline after five days or fail to attend an examination, a mark of zero will be awarded. You may be given the opportunity for reassessment – see the Feedback on Learning and Assessment section on page 19. However, the zero will be used to calculate your degree classification, and if the examination or assessment missed is already a re-sit or re-assessment to redeem an initial failure, no further re-assessment opportunities will be available without proof of exceptional circumstances.

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If you are struggling to meet deadlines, submit a piece of work or will miss an exam due to personal circumstances you will need to inform the University as soon as possible and apply for Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment – See section on Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment.

How is my work marked?

Degree class descriptors The University applies the following mark scale to undergraduate work:

First-class Honours: 70-100 Upper second-class Honours: 60-69 Lower second-class Honours: 50-59 Third-class Honours: 40-49 Fail: 0-39

In assigning marks, examiners are guided by the following descriptors: First 70 – 100 (Since this mark range is larger than most of the others, we divide it into two.) EXCEPTIONAL. (mark: 88–100). The work reveals an exceptional understanding and command of the material in analytical and presentational respects (and all the other qualities expected for a ‘very good First’). VERY GOOD. (70–87). The work reveals a very good command and understanding of the material and clear evidence of reading well beyond the standard source material; it shows considerable insight into the topic, presents a clear and coherent argument and shows considerable originality in the treatment of the topic. Upper Second 60 – 69 GOOD. The work demonstrates a good understanding of the topic and discusses it clearly and coherently, but is more restricted in terms of the material covered and does not show the degree of originality or command of the subject required for a First. Lower Second 50 – 59 ADEQUATE. The work demonstrates some understanding of the topic, but goes little beyond standard textbook treatments. There may be some errors of fact or interpretation. The work is structured but may not be as well organised as it could be. There has been some attempt to construct a coherent argument.

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Third 40 – 49 PASSABLE. The work clearly relates to the relevant topic, but it exhibits incomplete command of the topic. Reading has been restricted, the structure is muddled, and there are errors in the presentation. The content includes errors of fact and interpretation. There is little sustained argument. Fail below 40 (There are two bands within the fail range:) WEAK [POTENTIALLY COMPENSATABLE FAIL: 29.5–39.4]. The work shows incomplete understanding of the topic. There is little evidence of thought about the topic or understanding of the issues involved. Exemplification is poor or inappropriate. The work is poorly structured and the presentation is defective. EXTREMELY WEAK [STRAIGHT FAIL 29.4 or less]. The work contains almost nothing that can be seen to bear on the topic. There is little or no evidence that the student has acquired any understanding of the topic from taking the module. The work is badly structured and there is little or no attempt to construct an argument. Mark scheme In marking work such as essays or projects, the following mark scheme is used:

Class Level within class Mark (%)

First class (I) Exceptional 1st: high 100

Exceptional 1st: mid 95

Exceptional 1st: low 88

Good 1st: high 80

Good 1st: mid 75

Good 1st: low 70

Upper second class (II.1) High 68

Mid 65

Low 62

Lower second class (II.2) High 58

Mid 55

Low 52

Third class (III) High 48

Mid 45

Low 42

Potentially compensatable fail (n/a) 35

Outright fail (assignment attempted) (n/a) 17

Outright fail (assignment not attempted) (n/a) 0

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For example, if the markers agree that the piece of work meets the standard of mid-II.1, a mark of 65% is assigned. Marks that are not listed in the above scheme can be used where the markers agree that there is a specific reason to assign a non-listed mark. The above mark scheme is not used for multiple-choice tests, or other tests where strict numerical marking can be applied on the basis of ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answers. Anonymous marking In accordance with standard University practice, we mark all summative assessment anonymously. You write your examination number on your work and this (and not your name) is what the examiners see. Do not write your name on any piece of work submitted for summative assessment. Results Individual modules are marked by an Internal Examiner and moderated by a second Internal Examiner. If the Internal Examiners fail to agree on the mark to be awarded, they will resolve the disagreement internally. These internal marks are communicated to the External Examiner, who ratifies the marks. This last stage takes place at the end of the Summer Term. In order to provide feedback to students, the department will make the provisional mark and the degree classification for summative assessments corresponding to the internal examiners’ mark as soon as possible after the work has been submitted. Results for work submitted at the beginning of the term or exams taken in Week 1 will normally be released no later than the end of Week 6 of that term. Results for work submitted at the end of term will normally be marked by the end of Week 1 of the following term. Results for work submitted at the end of the Summer Term teaching period of exams taken in Summer Weeks 5–7 will normally be released by the end of the Summer Term. Provisional marks are made available via the module VLE, the Department website, depending on which of these options will be quickest at the time. When marks are made available in this way, candidates are identified by examination number, and information about student names is accessible only to the Chair of the Board of Examiners and the Departmental Administrator. We will inform you of where to look for your marks. Please note that the results that will be released are provisional marks that will not yet have been ratified by an external examiner. These posted marks are therefore a guide, and may not be your final mark in the subject. These provisional marks include any penalties for late submission, but may not include academic misconduct penalties. Once summative marks have been confirmed by the external examiner, they are recorded on the SITS student records database and will be visible to you via e:Vision.

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Variation of assessment If the department wishes to make any modifications to the module assessment procedures in the published module descriptions, it is required to seek permission from the University Teaching Committee. According to the Guide to Assessment Standards, Marking and Feedback, permission will be granted only if all students taking the module give written consent for the change, or if the Department can show that no students will be disadvantaged by the modification. The Department will therefore consult with you if you are affected by a proposed variation to the assessment, and amendments will usually require written consent from each student taking the module.

Resits, repeats and readmission

● If you have failed or missed an examination because of medical or compassionate circumstances the department may request permission for you to take the examination again ‘as if for the first time’, which means discounting the failed or missed attempt.

● Students are not normally allowed to repeat any part of the teaching on their programme. Repeat study will only be considered in cases where a student can show that they had truly exceptional circumstances which did not allow them to benefit from the teaching on their first attempt, and that there was good reason why the student could not have informed the University of the circumstances at the time

. ● If you have to leave your programme because you have failed the year then you will

not be permitted to restart the same programme at the University of York. For further information, visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/support/academic/taught/resits/ You will need to submit evidence of mitigating circumstances to qualify for resits and repeats. See ‘Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment’.

Programme extensions and termination

A programme extension can be recommended where a student cannot complete the programme within a normal timescale because of exceptional circumstances. If you find yourself in this situation, talk to your supervisor. If you are academically unsatisfactory the Board of Studies can recommend that your programme is ended before its normal end date. This may be due to reasons such as poor attendance (without good reason) or through having failed so much of the programme that it is no longer possible to graduate. Further information can be found at www.york.ac.uk/students/support/academic/taught/programme/

http://www.york.ac.uk/students/support/academic/taught/resits/

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Also, see ‘Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment’ for any other circumstances which may affect you undertaking any assessments.

Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment

If circumstances in your life significantly affect you undertaking any assessments (including examinations) then you can submit a claim of Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment to the department. To find out how to submit an application for exceptional circumstances, or to see what kinds of circumstances would normally be accepted or not accepted, visit: https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/progress/exceptional-circumstances/ If your claim is successful, and the committee accepts that your assessment was significantly affected by your circumstances you will usually be given an opportunity to take the assessment again as if for the first time. If it is an open assessment then you may be given an extension. Grades will never be altered without a further attempt at the assessment, and work will not be ‘re-marked’, although you may be allowed to re-submit it following revisions. Please note: it is very important that you submit your case for Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment as soon as possible, preferably BEFORE the assessment which you believe may have been affected. For a full list of documents and policy information visit: https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/progress/exceptional-circumstances/

Making an appeal

You can appeal against a procedural error in arriving at an academic decision or on the basis of Exceptional Circumstances Affecting Assessment that, for good reason, the examiners didn’t know about (see above) or a procedural irregularity in the assessment.

However, you cannot appeal against an academic judgement of your work (this is, the marker’s opinion). For further details on both terms and how to appeal, visit: www.york.ac.uk/students/help/appeals/ Assistance with appeals and representation at hearings is also available through the Students’ Union Advice and Support Centre. All communication is confidential and free. For further information, visit: www.yusu.org/advice-and-support For information on making a complaint, see the ‘You and the department’ section.

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/progress/exceptional-circumstances/



http://www.york.ac.uk/students/help/appeals/

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External examiners

External examiners perform a vital function in the British higher education system in ensuring fairness and quality. External examiners are members of the academic staff of a university other than York. They are appointed because they are experts in the field and can provide an independent appraisal of the department’s assessment practices. External examiners are nominated by the Board of Studies and are approved by the University’s Standing Committee on Assessment on behalf of Senate. They have a fixed term of office (normally three years). They bring an impartial and objective attitude to the assessment of students’ work. Pieces of assessed work are made available to an external examiner. External examiners approve examination papers and comment on the appropriateness of essay and coursework topics. They have the responsibility for ensuring that the department’s assessment procedures are fair and of a standard which is comparable with that of other universities in this country. The department has six external examiners: the chief external, whose remit covers linguistics modules, and a specialist examiner for each of the language areas (English, French, German, Italian and Spanish). They are:

- Prof Amalia Arvaniti (Kent): Linguistics - Prof Nikolas Gisborne (Edinburgh): English Language and Linguistics - Dr M. Chiara La Sala (Leeds): Italian - Dr Franck Michel (Newcastle): French - Ms Claudia Alsdorf (Essex): German - Dr Tom Whittaker (Liverpool): Spanish

It is inappropriate to make direct contact with external examiners, in particular regarding your performance in assessments. If you have any issues or concerns you can register these through an appeal or complaint. You may wish to engage with the way the department responds to external examiners' reports. Please consult your course rep, who will get in touch with the Chair of Board of Examiners. See the Programme Reps section under ‘Your Department’ here: http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/registry-services/guide/


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Your final degree classification

The University applies the following mark scale to undergraduate work: First-class Honours: 70-100 Upper second-class Honours: 60-69 Lower second-class Honours: 50-59 Third-class Honours: 40-49 Fail: 0-39

A different mark scale is used for masters-level modules, including any taken as part of an undergraduate programme. The pass mark for masters-level modules is 50. If you are on an Integrated Masters programme, you will have to undertake some masters-level modules in the later stages of your programme. Some modules at this level may also be available as options in some Bachelor’s programmes. You should be aware of the higher level and pass mark for such modules when deciding whether to take them as options.

For information on calculating your degree classification, see the Student Guide to the University’s Rules for Progression and Award in Undergraduate Programmes.

www.york.ac.uk/media/abouttheuniversity/supportservices/academicregistry/registryservices/Student_guide_to_rules_for_progression_and_awards_in_ug_programmes.pdf

Personal development and employability

Careers

Developing your employability is about extending your skills, making contacts, broadening your ideas, and understanding how to gain and use your experiences to enhance your future prospects. It is a good idea to start exploring career options in your first year. The key link is to the Careers website and their gateway where you can get support, find info about job vacancies and work placements: www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/careers

You can access information about activities organised by Careers, including volunteering and training sessions, etc., here:

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/

This is the link to the Careers gateway where you can see job vacancies outside the university divided by subject and also book appointment with Careers to get support with your application:

https://york.targetconnect.net/home.html?Service=Careers%20Service



http://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/careers

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/

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Your time at University offers you much more than your degree. There are many opportunities to get involved in activities and training which can help to prepare you for life and work. Take time to think about how you can enhance your personal development through doing things that interest you, whether that is getting involved in clubs and societies, joining your College JCRC, volunteering, or even starting your own business.

Skills to think about include:

working with others - are you a good team member and an effective leader?

communication - can you get your message across to others, both in written and spoken form?

planning and organising - can you plan your time to make sure you meet deadlines and make things happen?

For inspiration take a look at the range of careers that past students from our Department have gone on to enjoy: www.york.ac.uk/language/careers. Look at the skills tab, to see video interviews with former Language and Linguistic Science students, describing how the skills acquired during their degree are used in their professions. Also press the links (by degree programme) to see government UNISTATS statistics about typical salaries and jobs of recent graduates.

Applying for teacher training Students who are considering applying for teacher training should choose their modules carefully, taking into consideration the subject knowledge requirements for admission to initial teacher training (ITT) programmes. These can be flexible, as admissions tutors are required to consider the full range of an applicant’s achievements, not just the degree title or content. As a rough guide, at least 50% of your degree should relate to the subject(s) you wish to teach. So even if your degree is not a direct match to a national curriculum subject, if you can demonstrate its relevance to the subject(s) that you wish to teach, or you can demonstrate subject knowledge from activities and experience undertaken outside your degree then you may still be considered for a place.

In the past Language and Linguistics students have gained places to teach in primary schools and to teach English and Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) at secondary level. For primary teaching, modules relating to language acquisition, phonetics and grammar would all be relevant. Primary schools are now required to offer MFL teaching and there are a number of Primary PGCE courses which incorporate MFL teaching. As primary school teachers must be able to teach across the curriculum you should indicate knowledge of other subject areas, so you may be able to relate some of your learning to IT, maths and science and to promote A-Level knowledge in other subjects.

If you intend to teach secondary level English you need to plan your module choices carefully and make clear in your application how they relate to the national curriculum for English. This will include teaching both language and literature so you should contact initial

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teacher training course providers first to discuss your application. Familiarising yourself with key literature texts and gaining relevant work experience will help.

If you intend to teach modern languages you must ensure that you have taken appropriate modules and be aware that most training providers will expect you and to have spent a period of your studies in an appropriate country. When seeking teaching posts it is an advantage to be able to teach more than one language. Native speakers of modern languages are welcomed and linguistic ability need not have been formally assessed via a degree programme.

Ultimately it is Admissions Tutors who decide whether or not to offer places so if you are at all unsure about the suitability of your degree to teacher training you should speak to them directly – their responses may vary and this will allow you to target those institutions which appear most encouraging. If you are advised to increase your subject knowledge, take advice from tutors as to how to do this, as there are a number of options open to you. Funded subject booster courses are available if you wish to teach MFL or you might be able to study for relevant ‘top up’ modules via part time study, e.g. with the Open University. The following link, from the Teaching Agency website, details subject requirements for entry to ITT programmes and provides information on subject enhancement opportunities: http://www.education.gov.uk/get-into-teaching

There are a number of different routes into teaching: some are HE institution-led, such as the PGCE; and some school-led, such as SCITT, Schools Direct and Teach First. For more information see the Careers Service information sheet, ‘Considering Teaching’ found at https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/explore-options/resources/info-sheets/

The University’s Employability Tutorial enables you to assess your skills, research career options and access guidance on how to gain experience and develop new skills to prepare for your future. It can be accessed via the VLE: http://vle.york.ac.uk For further information on Careers and employability, visit: www.york.ac.uk/careers or see the University handbook.

Personal Development Planning (PDP)

As you work through the Employability Tutorial, you will complete your Employability Plan. You should discuss this with your supervisor on an annual basis; they will arrange a time for this. This is a great opportunity for you to reflect on your personal, academic and professional development and plan for the future. Your supervisor should:

encourage you to think through and articulate personal ambitions and possible career paths;

http://www.education.gov.uk/get-into-teaching

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/explore-options/resources/info-sheets/

https://www.york.ac.uk/students/work-volunteering-careers/explore-options/resources/info-sheets/

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encourage you to think about the skills and attributes you will need to develop and demonstrate in order to achieve your personal, academic and professional aims;

encourage you to seek relevant advice and guidance on these matters from other academic staff, the Careers team, the College System and YUSU and signpost development that is available within and beyond the curriculum.

Documents

Welcome to York LANGUAGE & LINGUISTIC …...the Departments other key activity). You are now also part of a student community belonging to your department. Programme (Course) reps