M.

Mohaghegh

LIN200H1S Intro to Language

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Course Syllabus: Intro to Language (LIN200H1S)

Summer 2015

Instructor
Office
Office Hours
E-mail
Lecture Time
Lecture Place

Mercedeh Mohaghegh /mrsd mohGG/

Sidney Smith Hall 4056
Tuesday 5-6 & Thursday 5-6 pm, or by appointment
mercedeh.mohaghegh@mail.utoronto.ca
Tuesdays 7-9 pm & Thursdays 7-9 pm
Ramsay Wright Laboratories (RW) 117

Tutorials
TAs

Tuesdays 6-7 pm & Thursdays 6-7 pm

David Logue
T5101 (BF 215)
Emilia Melara
T5102 (LM 155)
Luke West
T5103 (SS 2128)
Na-Young Ryu
T5104 (WI 523)

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course serves as an introduction to linguistics for a general audience. Topics include core
concepts in the study of language form and meaning (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax,
semantics and pragmatics), psycholinguistics, language change and diversity. By the end of the
course students are expected to be familiar with study of language from various perspectives and
to develop basic skills to view and analyze linguistics data as it appears in our daily lives.
TEXTBOOK
Denham, K. & A. Lobeck. 2013. Linguistics for Everyone. Boston: Wadsworth.
This textbook is available at The University of Toronto Bookstore.
(Please bring the textbook to all lecture and tutorial sessions.)
TUTORIALS
The goal of tutorials is to provide an opportunity for students to practice hands-on exercises and
ask their questions about course materials and homework. Homework will be collected at the
beginning of the tutorials. Students receive a participation grade based on their presence and
participation in tutorials. Tutorials start on Thursday July 2nd and take place on Tuesdays and
Thursdays at 6PM. Please attend the tutorial you are registered in on ROSI. Tutorial changes will
not be permitted.

M. Mohaghegh

LIN200H1S Intro to Language

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COURSE WEBPAGE
All course materials, such as syllabus, assignments, announcements, grades, etc. will be provided
through Blackboard (http://portal.utoronto.ca). You will need your UTORid and password to
log in. Please ensure that your utoronto e-mail address is updated and correct on ROSI so that
you receive all course-related announcements. You are responsible for the content of these
announcements.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Please note that the schedule may change if we need to spend more or less time on certain topics.
Date

Lecture

Readings

Tutorial

June 30

Introductory concepts

Ch. 1

None

July 2

Phonetics

Ch. 3

July 7

Phonology

Ch. 4

HW1 due (Intro & phonetics)

July 9

Morphology

Ch. 5 & 6

HW2 due (Phonology)

July 14

Syntax I

Ch. 7

HW3 due (Morphology)

July 16

Syntax II

Ch. 8

July 21

Midterm test

July 23

Psycholinguistics

Ch. 2

July 28

Semantics & pragmatics

Ch. 9 & 10

July 30

Language variation

Ch. 11

HW5 due (Psych., semantics)

Aug. 4

Language diversity

Ch. 12

HW6 due (language variation)

Aug. 6

Wrap-up

TBA
IMPORTANT DATES
July 6
July 27
August 11-17

None
HW4 due (Syntax)

***Final Exam August 11-17***

Last day to enroll in summer courses

Last day to drop a summer course without academic penalty
Exam period

M. Mohaghegh

EVALUATION
Assignments
Midterm Test
Participation
Final Exam

LIN200H1S Intro to Language

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30%
25%
10%
35%

ASSIGNMENTS
1. There will be 6 assignments. They will be posted on the course webpage (Blackboard) the
week before their due dates.
2. Assignments must be handed in at the beginning of the tutorial, to the TA (not later than 15
minutes past the hour), or before the tutorial, in person, to the instructor. This is the only
acceptable way to hand in the assignments. Late assignments or faxed or emailed assignments
will not be accepted unless accompanied with a valid documentation.
3. Assignments must be neat and legible. Illegible assignments will not be graded.
TERM TEST AND EXAM
1. There will be a midterm test and a final exam.
2. The midterm test will be held on July 21, 7-9 pm; room TBA. The time and location of the
final exam will be announced later.
3. If you have a course conflict with the midterm test, it is your responsibility to resolve the
conflict. University policy clearly states that lectures and tests in a regularly-scheduled class time
(such as for this course) are given priority; the other course must give you an alternative time.
4. Students who miss the midterm test will be assigned a mark of zero unless they provide me
with appropriate documentation. In case of a missed test, you must provide me with a written
request for special consideration explaining the reason for missing the test, and attach
appropriate documentation, an official UofT Verification of Student Illness or Injury form
or a letter from a College Registrar:
(http://www.illnessverification.utoronto.ca/getattachment/index/Verification-of-Illness-or-Injuryform-Jan-22-2013.pdf.aspx). Requests and documents must be provided within one week of the
test.
Please note that as indicated on the U of T Health Services website: Mild colds, non-acute
diarrhoea and/or vomiting, headaches, menstrual cramps, insomnia or other non-acute problems
may benefit from medical advice and/or treatment, but may not warrant a certificate. Nonmedical issues, such as a death in the family, should be addressed through your college (if A&S)
or faculty registrar.
The physicians report must establish that you were examined and diagnosed at the time of
illness, not after the fact. I will not accept a statement that merely confirms a report of illness
made by a student and documented by the physician. If I feel that your condition was not serious

M. Mohaghegh

LIN200H1S Intro to Language

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enough to miss the midterm or a quiz you will receive a mark of zero. Furthermore, I regularly
contact physicians to confirm that verification forms are genuine and warranted. All suspicious
forms will be forwarded to the Office of Student Academic Integrity.
Note also that a medical verification will not automatically result in alternative arrangements.
5. Further, under no circumstances will students be allowed to write the midterm test early. If
you have travel plans or career plans during the term, you are responsible for ensuring that they
do not conflict with our exam schedule.
6. No alternate arrangements for the final exam can be made. If you cannot attend the exam for
any reason, you must go through the registrar to petition to write a deferred exam. Even if you
are granted a deferral, please be aware that there is no guarantee that the content of this course,
the instructor or the textbook in future semesters will be identical to what you learn this term.
GRADING POLICY
The Faculty of Arts and Science uses the Refined Letter Grade Scale, defined in section A.c. ii
of the appendix to the University Grading Practices Policy. It should be noted that when
numerical raw scores are used in marking, the numerical equivalents in the grade tables are not
to be used to translate a score to a grade directly (University Grading Practice Policy, Part 1,
section 5). You can ask for regrading only by filling out the Regrading Request Form that will be
posted on the course website. Work done in pencil cannot be submitted for regrading.
COURSE EXPECTATIONS
1. Students are expected to attend all lectures and tutorials. Students are expected to arrive on
time so that classes may begin promptly and so that they will not disrupt the class.
Announcements will be made at the beginning and end of classes regarding the assigned readings
and the expectations for exams.
2. Students are responsible for all materials covered in the assigned readings and lectures.
Lectures will contain material which is not covered in the textbook and may not appear on the
lecture slides. Students are expected to take their own notes. Tests/exams require students to
refer to readings, handouts, and their own lecture and tutorial notes.
3. Students should be respectful of other students and the instructor. In particular, students
should not talk or use electronic devices while the instructor or another student is talking.
EMAIL POLICY
1. Due to the large size of the class and my other responsibilities, course-related email
communication will be limited in the following way:
a. I reserve the right to not respond to messages in the evening or on weekends. If you send a
message late on Friday or during the weekend, I might not reply until the following week.

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b. I will only respond to email regarding administrative questions/problems or requests of an

appointment. Questions requiring replies longer than a few sentences should be asked in
class or during office hours.
c. I will not respond to email questions about the content of the course or about grades. If you
have questions about the content, you should ask them during class or in tutorial, or visit me
during my office hours.
2. Before sending me an email, please check whether the Syllabus and the webpage contain the
answer to your question.
3. When sending me an email message, please make sure you have proof-read and signed it.
Anonymous messages or messages sent from an account other than @mail.utoronto.ca will not
be answered. Please make sure the Subject line contains the name of the course
(LIN200H1S).
PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is claiming that someone elses work is your own. Plagiarism also includes copying a
classmates assignment. It is a serious academic offence and will be dealt with accordingly.
Plagiarism will severely affect your academic standing. Note that the homework assignments are
bundled together so that any cheating (e.g. copying) on one assignment will affect the entire
homework component of your grade. Suspected cases of academic dishonesty will be forwarded
to the Department of Linguistics and
the Office of Student Academic Integrity. For information on How Not to Plagiarize, please
see:
(http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/using-sources)
ACADEMIC SUPPORT
Additional useful information will be found on Blackboard. Also, UofT provides students with a
variety of services to help them with their academic progress. You can consult the following
websites for further information:
- Academic Success Center (http://asc.utoronto.ca/)
- Academic Support website (http://life.utoronto.ca/get-smarter/academic-support/).
- University Writing Center (http://writing.utoronto.ca/news)