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Course Offerings

• Undergraduate and Graduate Schedule of classes

 

Course Descriptions

• Undergraduate
  • American Sign Language
  • Creative Writing
  • English for Academic Purposes
  • Film
  • Internship and Capstone
  • Linguistics
  • Literature
  • Writing
• Graduate

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Graduate Course Descriptions

Internship / Thesis / Linguistics / Literature / Writing

 

Graduate Internship

 

L590 Internship in English (4 - 8 cr)

A supervised internship in the uses of language in the workplace. (For prospective teachers, the workplace may be a class.) Each intern will be assigned a problem or new task and will develop the methods for solving the problem or completing the task. Interns will complete a portfolio of workplace writing and self-evaluation; they will also be visited by a faculty coordinator and evaluated in writing by their on-site supervisors.

 

Graduate Thesis

 

L699 M.A. Thesis (4 cr)

 

Graduate Linguistics Courses

 

G500 Introduction to the English Language (4 cr)

An introduction to English linguistics, the course covers the principal areas of linguistic inquiry into the English language: sounds (phonetics and phonology), words, (morphology), sentences (syntax), and meaning (semantics). G500 is the core linguistics course in the M.A. program.

 

Ling L532 Second-Language Acquisition (3 cr)

An introduction to a broad range of issues in the field of second-language acquisition, providing the student with an overview of the most important approaches to the fundamental question of how people learn a second language. Provides students with basic knowledge of theories of second-language acquisition and an understanding of how theoretical perspectives inform practical application.

 

Ling L534 Linguitic Resources for TESOL (3 cr)

The course examines recent theories of teaching English as a second or foreign language. Students will get a chance to examine theories and methods and develop knowledge of linguistic resources available to new and/or practicing teachers.

 

Ling L535 TESOL Practicum (3 cr)

Students will be able to put into practice methods and principles of linguistics, second-language acquisition, and language teaching. Under supervision, they will teach ESL classes either at IUPUI or in a local school system.  

 

Ling P512 Methods and Materials for TESOL 2 (3 cr)

This course aims at enhancing participants’ understanding of theoretical principles underlying the preparation of ESL instructional materials as well as participants’ knowledge and skills in materials preparation and effective implementation. It also addresses issues related to course design, content selection, and language assessment.  

 

G541 Materials Preparation for ESL Instruction (4 cr)

Students will learn about materials preparation, syllabus design, and test preparation by applying a variety of theories to books and other teaching devices (e.g., tapes, videotapes, computer and software programs) in order to evaluate their usefulness and will learn to evaluate ESL materials for adequacy.

 

G625 Introduction to Text Linguistics/Discourse Analysis (4 cr)

This course introduces students to current approaches to text and discourse coherence, including recent theories of cognitive and interactional text modeling.

 

G652 English Language Sociolinguistics (4 cr)

This course investigates sociocultural aspects of language use and explores the relationships between language and society. The course provides background in various theoretical and methodological approaches to sociolinguistics. Other topics to be covered include gender and language, ethnicity and language, social factors in language acquisition, and bilingualism. Familiarity with basic issues and concepts in linguistics would be useful.

 

T600 Topics in TESOL and Applied Linguistics (3 cr)

Topics in this course vary, but they include the theory and teaching of English for Specific Purposes in academic, professional, or vocational fields.  

 

T660 Contrastive Discourse:  Readings in Linguistics (3 cr)

This course examines contrastive discourse/intercultural rhetoric and considers the cross-cultural aspects of discourse organization from both the reader’s and the writer’s viewpoints. Comparisons of text organization in different genres and for different audiences will be made, studying the roles of cultural forms and schemata in the interaction between writer and reader.  

 

T690 Advanced Readings in TESOL and Applied Linguistics (1 - 4 cr)

Topics in this course vary, but they include the theory and teaching of English for Specific Purposes in academic, professional, or vocational fields; the teaching of second-language writing, reading, listening/speaking, and grammar; and second-language testing and assessment.  

 

Graduate Literature Courses

 

L501: Professional Scholarship in Literature (4 cr)

Materials, tools, and methods of research. Includes work with standard bibliographical sources (both traditional and electronic), bibliographical search strategies, scholarly documentation, accessing special collections, and preparing bibliographical descriptions of subject texts. Historical case studies reinforce coverage of professional standards of conduct, verification of sources, and thoroughness of research methodology.

 

L506 Introduction to Methods of Criticism and Research (4 cr)

An examination of the importance of the notion of the text for contemporary literary theory. L506 is the core literature course.

 

L553 Studies in Literature (4 cr)

Emphasis on thematic, analytic, and generic study. With consent of instructor, may be repeated once for credit.

 

L560 Literary Studies in England and Scotland (4 cr)

Provides on-site opportunities in England and Scotland to explore the literary landscapes of British authors in relation to the English and Scottish school systems. Designed primarily for education majors and continuing certification credits.

 

L573 Interdisciplinary Approaches to English and American Literature (3 cr)

Social, political, and psychological studies in English and American literature. Topics may vary and include, for example, literature and colonialism, literature and psychoanalysis, or literature and gender. May also include other world literatures.  

 

L606 Topics in African American Literature (4 cr)

Focuses on a particular genre, time period, or theme of African American literature. Examples: twentieth-century African American women’s novels, black male identity in literature, kinship in African American literature, and African American autobiography. May be repeated twice for credit with different focuses.

 

L625 Shakespeare (4 cr)

Critical analysis of selected tragedies, comedies, history plays, and poetry.  

 

L645 English Fiction, 1800 - 1900 (4 cr)

Intensive historical and critical study of nineteenth-century prose fiction, especially the novel.  

 

L655 American Literature Since 1900 (4 cr)

Intensive historical and critical study of all genres from the time of Theodore Dreiser to the present.  

 

L678 Literature and Medicine (3 cr)

This course explores the medical world in literature and the arts, in popular culture, and through the institution of the hospital.  

 

L680 Special Topics in Literary Study and Theory (4 cr)

Reading in sociological, political, psychological, and other approaches to literature.

 

L681 Genre Studies (4cr)

A variable-title course, Genre Studies examines the specific characteristics of individual genres. May be repeated once for credit.

 

L695 Individual Readings in English (1-4 cr)

Enables students to work on a reading project that they initiate, plan, and complete under the direction of an English department faculty member. Credit hours depend on scope of project.  

 

Graduate Writing Courses

 

W500 Teaching Composition: Issues and Approaches (4 cr)

Considers major issues involved in the teaching of composition at elementary, secondary, and college levels, and explores the pedagogical approaches inherent in these issues.

 

L502 Introduction to Literacy Studies (4 cr)

Introduction to Literacy Studies (4 cr.) Explores how and why people in our society, including children and adults, learn to read and write texts; investigates how literacy is defined, acquired, measured, and used in our society.  

 

W502 Fields of Editing:  Theories and Practices (4 cr)

An introduction to general copyediting, technical editing, and scholarly editing, the course serves as a prologue to a comprehensive study of manuscript editing. Course content includes the identification and recovery of modern manuscript texts, with an emphasis on physical description, transcription strategies and techniques, and editing of the transcribed text for publication.  

 

W503 Technologies of Editing: Producing Letterpress and Electronic Texts (4 cr)

An applied study of contemporary text production, the course examines the standards of accuracy required in professional editing and the way that both text and documentation are prepared for publication. It explores issues of textual preservation, storage, retrieval, and the marketplace as they affect the design and modification of letterpress and electronic texts.  

 

W508 Graduate Creative Writing for Teachers (4 cr)

This course will offer current and future teachers insights into the creative process, teach them to think as writers do, suggest strategies for critiquing creative work, and provide guidance in developing creative-writing curriculum. The course will emphasize hands-on writing activities in three genres (poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction), adaptable for use with students at every level.

 

W509 Introduction To Writing & Literacy Studies (4 cr)

This is the core course in the writing and literacy track of the English M.A. program. Students will read, analyze, discuss, and write about key issues in writing and literacy, laying a foundation for further study. Special emphasis will be placed on research methods in this field and on developing a research proposal.

 

W510 Computers in Composition (4 cr)

Proceeds from current theories about writing processes and surveys the use of computer programs (such as word processing) as writing tools, computer-assisted instruction as a teaching aid, and computer programs as research aids to study writing.

 

W511 Graduate Fiction Writing (4 cr)

A graduate-level fiction writing workshop. Seminar study of advanced techniques in the writing of fiction, both short stories and the novel. Workshop discussion of advanced student work in progress.

 

W513 Graduate Poetry Writing (4 cr)

W513 offers graduate students an intensive experience in reading and writing poetry. Part workshop and part seminar in poetic practice and technique, W513 provides an opportunity for graduate students to expand their poetic range and hone their craft.

 

W525 Research Approaches for Technical and Professional Communication (4 cr)

Examines the theory and practice of quantitative and qualitative research approaches used by individuals working in technical and professional communication.  It explores both primary (i.e. field) and secondary (i.e. library) research approaches for learning about content, audience, and publication design, providing hands-on experience in multiple research approaches.

 

W531 Designing and Editing Visual Technical Communication (4 cr)

This course will explore rhetorical theories behind visual communication and foster greater experience in managing the process of creating visually-oriented technical publications for specific audiences and purposes.
 

W532 Managing Document Quality (4 cr)

This course will examine and apply principles of planning, researching audience and content, designing publications, drafting, obtaining reviews, conducting user testing, and negotiating within organizational cultures in order to produce effective technical and professional documents.

 

W553 Theory and Practce of Exposition (4 cr)

Explores the writing and analysis of exposition, especially for prospective high school or college teachers.  

 

W590 Teaching Composition: Theories and Applications (4 cr)

Explores current theories of composition inherent in current classroom practices and considers their pedagogical implications.  

 

W600 Topics in Rhetoric and Composition (4 cr)

Topics will vary each time this course is offered.  

 

W605 The Writing Project Summer Institute (3-6 cr)

By application and invitation only.  For teachers from K-university, who together consider major issues involved in the teaching of writing and explore the pedagogical approaches inherent in these issues.  The institute explores current theories of writing and their application in the classroom.  Preference given to active classroom teachers.  

 

W609 Individual Writing Projects (1-4 cr)

Enables students to work on a writing project that they initiate, plan, and complete under the direction of an English department faculty member. Credit hours depend upon scope of project.

 

W615 Writing Creative Nonfiction (4 cr)

This is a graduate-level course in creative nonfiction prose featuring seminar study of examples in the genre (including travel writing, reportage, portrait/self-portrait, memoir, and analytic meditation), adaptation of creative writing technique for use in nonfiction, and workshop discussion of student work in progress, as well as class presentations on editing, publishing, and the nonfiction book proposal.