Phonetics and Phonology (archive)

Syllabus 2021
Course title
: Phonetics and Phonology
Instructor: Professor Višnja Josipović Smojver
office hours 2020/2021: Monday 15:30-16:30 – B-OO8- by appointment!
e-mail: visnja.josipovic@ffzg.hr

ECTS credits: 6
Language
: English
Status: compulsory
Semester: 6th (summer)

Enrolment requirements:
There are no special prerequisites for taking up this course, except that the student has to be regularly enrolled in the semester in which the course is taught.

Course description:
Students are taught the fundamental notions of contemporary phonetics and phonology. The course starts with a survey of the basic notions of articulatory phonetics, with special emphasis on the standard pronunciation varieties of British and American English (RP, SSBP, and GenAm respectively). This is followed by an overview of suprasegmental phenomena in English, which students will learn to analyse in terms of phonetic transcription, using the IPA notational conventions. Finally, the students are familiarized with the basic approaches of contemporary phonological theory, which are applied to the analysis of the most important English pronunciation phenomena and the formulation of the basic English phonological rules.

Objectives:
Students should learn to approach English pronunciation descriptively, as opposed to the earlier prescriptive approach, which they were used to in the course of pre-university English learning. In order to develop this kind of approach, i.e., to learn how to describe English pronunciation phenomena in a scientific way, through this course the student should develop the ability of selective listening and master the basic notions and terms of phonological and phonetic description.

Obligatory literature:

Cruttenden, A. (2008). Gimson’s Pronunciation of English. 7th edn. London: Hodder Arnold.
Josipović, V. (1999). Phonetics and Phonology for Students of English. Zagreb: Targa.
Lindsey, G. (2019). English after RP: Standard British Pronunciation Today. www.cubedictionary.org.

Reference literature:

Crystal, D. (2008). A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics.6th edn. Oxford: Blackwell.
Pullum, G.K. & W.A. Ladusaw (1996). Phonetic Symbol Guide. The University of Chicago Press.
Trask, R.L. (1996) A Dictionary of Phonetics and Phonology. London:Routledge.
Wells, J.C. (2008). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. 3rd edn. with CD: Person Education Ltd.

Further reading:

Ashby, M. & J. Maidment (2005). Introducing Phonetic Science. Cambridge University Press.
Gussenhoven, C. & H. Jacobs (2005). Uderstanding Phonology, 2nd edn. London: Arnold.
Hayes, B. (2009). Introductory Phonology. Wiley-Blackwell.
Josipović Smojver, V. (2017). Suvremene fonološke teorije. Zagreb: Ibis grafika.
Ladefoged, P. (2002). A Course in Phonetics, 4th edn. Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle.
Odden, D. (2005), Introducing Phonology. Cambridge University Press.
Zsiga, E. (2013). The Sounds of Language. An Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

 Course requirements:

Phonetics and Phonology is a continuous assessment course. The final grade will be based on 3 online continuous assessment tests (CAT), as shown in the table:

 

CAT 1

Friday, 24/04/21- 17:00

CAT2
transcription of connected speech (individualized)

CAT 3
Monday, 14/06/21- 17:00

topics (W)

1-8

uploadable in the period from 21/05 to 21/06

9-10, 12-14

maximum score

45 points

20 points

35 points

Obtaining the final grade:

A maximum of 100 points (45+20+35)
92 -100 = 5
84 – 91 = 4
73 – 83 = 3
65 – 72 = 2

For those who have not successfully completed the course through the regular (obligatory) CAT system, or want a higher grade, two remedial online terms will be offered for re-taking CAT1, CAT3, or both: Monday, 05/07/21 and Monday 13/09/21.

Those who have satisfied the criteria for passing the course and are not satisfied with their grade, an extra-point assignment for additional 5 points will also be offered at the end of the summer exam term.

Week by week schedule:

1. Introduction: Phonetics and Phonology
2. Speech Production: the speech chain, organs of speech, speech production
3. Segments of speech: the basic analytical units of traditional phonology
4. Binarity and Distinctive Feature Theory
5. Types of English pronunciation
6. Consonants
7. Vowels: the traditional parameters in the description and classification of vowels
8. English pure vowels
9. English diphthongs
10. IPA sounds and notational conventions
11. Connected speech phenomena
12. Transcription of connected speech
13: Prosody: rules, domains, typology
14. The syllable
15. Contemporary phonological theory