PSYC 3320: Psycholinguistics

• Professor: Thomas J. Faulkenberry, Ph.D
• Office: Math 319
• Office hours: MTWRF 9-11 am (or by appointment)
• Email: faulkenberry@tarleton.edu
• Website: http://tomfaulkenberry.github.io
• Phone: 254-968-9816

(from catalog) The course emphasizes the study of language, understanding languages, producing language and speech, language development, and related topics such as reading, language and the brain, linguistic diversity, and universals.

Psycholinguistics is an area of specialization within cognitive psychology that focuses on the psychological mechanisms of language processing. This course provides an introduction to the field of psycholinguistics. Psycholinguistics is the field that studies the information processing mechanisms that govern the use of language in comprehension and production, acquisition, and representation. A common misconception is that one learns about the specifics of particular languages in a course on psycholinguistics. This is not the case. Rather, like most of cognitive psychology, this course emphasizes the commonalities that underlie human languages everywhere, and we will focus on what these commonalities tell us about the human ability to construct and understand language.

• The Psychology of Language: From Data to Theory (4th ed.) by Harley Amazon link

1. Define the basic vocabulary of psycholinguistics
2. Discuss the biological bases of human communication.
3. Describe how humans perceive and produce speech.
4. Describe how sentences and discourse are processed and comprehended.
5. Discuss the acquisition of language.
6. Describe the psychological processes involved in reading.
7. Identify and explain problems in speech and language processes.
8. Explain bilingualism and second language acquisition.

• Exam 1 (100 pts)
• Exam 2 (100 pts)
• Exam 3 (100 pts)
• Exam 4 (100 pts)
• Unit quizzes (100 pts)
• Total = 500 points

Grades will be assigned based on the percentage of points you accumulate out of these 500 points. I will use the standard grading scale of A=90%, B=80%, etc.

Email is the primary means of communication for this course. If you have questions about the course, always feel free to send me an email at faulkenberry@tarleton.edu. I only ask that you adhere to two guidelines:

• please include the course number (PSYC 3320) in the subject line. For example, one good way to do this is: Subject: [PSYC 3320] Question about Exam 2
• please use proper email etiquette. Include a salutation (e.g., Dear Dr. Faulkenberry), complete sentences, and a closing (e.g., "Regards, Your Name"). You might be surprised how many times I get an email from a nondescript email address with no indication from WHOM the email was sent!

Also, I will be sending periodic emails to each of you that update you on course progress, due dates, etc. It is imperative that you check your Tarleton email address regularly so that you don't miss any of these messages.

All Tarleton psychology majors will be required to accumulate a certain number of "CV points" as a pass/fail component of their senior capstone course. CV is an acronym for "curriculum vitae", which is the traditional name of an academic resume. Because it is a requirement of senior capstone, no psychology major will be able to graduate without completion/verification of the required 15 CV points. Some classes may build in CV point assignments, but ultimately it is the students’ responsibility to monitor their participation and acquire points during their time at Tarleton. More information on pre-approved CV points, submission, and tracking of these points can be found in the CV Point Canvas site. Please note that submissions are graded, and may not be approved for points if they do not meet the CV standard. If a student has a question about CV points, they should send an email to psychcvpointga@tarleton.edu.

Beginning in Fall 2015, Tarleton will begin differentiating between a failed grade in a class because a student never attended (F0 grade), stopped attending at some point in the semester (FX grade), or because the student did not pass the course (F) but attended the entire semester. These grades will be noted on the official transcript. Stopping or never attending class can result in the student having to return aid monies received. For more information see the Tarleton Financial Aid website.

Cheating, plagiarism (submitting another person’s materials or ideas as one’s own without proper attribution), or doing work for another person who will receive academic credit are all disallowed. This includes the use of unauthorized books, notebooks, or other sources in order to secure of give help during an examination, the unauthorized copying of examinations, assignments, reports, or term papers, or the presentation of unacknowledged material as if it were the student’s own work. Disciplinary action may be taken beyond the academic discipline administered by the faculty member who teaches the course in which the cheating took place.

In particular, any quiz or exam taken online must be completed without the aid of any unauthorized resource (including using any search engine, Google, etc.). Authorized resources are limited only to the official textbook and any lecture notes from the course. Any other authorized resources will be provided to you before the exam.

The minimum sanction for any act of academic dishonesty is a grade of 0 on the affected assignment; a grade of F for the course may be assigned in severe cases.

It is the policy of Tarleton State University to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and other applicable laws. If you are a student with a disability seeking accommodations for this course, please contact Center for Access and Academic Testing at 254.968.9400 or caat@tarleton.edu or stop by Math 201. More information can be found at www.tarleton.edu/caat or in the University Catalog.

Note: any changes to this syllabus will be communicated to you by the instructor!