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New linguistics course addresses American multiculturalism

Written by Johnathan Silver, Contributor to The Shorthorn

Tuesday, 05 May 2009 09:12 PM

Where to Find It

Those interested in enrolling in the course can find it under:
LING 2371 Language in a Multicultural America

The Linguistics Department will expand its curriculum next fall by offering a new course that addresses common prejudices toward people from different regions.

There was only one 2000-level course available before Language in a Multicultural America was accepted by linguistics faculty.

Linguistics Chairwoman Colleen Fitzgerald said she taught the course at Texas Tech University and at State University of New York at Buffalo. She lobbied for the class because she thought it would fit with the university’s diverse student body.

“Many people in society have lots of misconceptions about language, especially varieties associated with certain ethnic or racial groups,” she said. “This course offers a terrific way to clear up some of those misconceptions and educate people.”

The department designed the course to cover certain issues concerning students on campus, Fitzgerald said. Topics include Texas English, language issues and American Sign Language.

The instructor, Eunjin Park, linguistics visiting assistant professor, is a sociolinguist — someone who studies social influences on language and linguistics. She said she wants to provide a tool to students that will allow them to evaluate their surroundings.

“I want to demystify the misunderstandings among different groups,” Park said. “This course is about the students and communication. I can’t make the class a success on my own.”

After attending a linguistics pizza party, Spanish freshman Yongwoon Cho enrolled in the class.

“I want to know how languages are developed,” he said. “When people think of linguistics, they tend to only think about language. It’s more than that. It’s the history of cultures.”

Park said differences can bond under one idea, and that her classroom will be exciting.

“We can unite when celebrating diversity,” she said. “Some people think that unity and diversity are antonyms and believe that it is hard to unite when we have diversity. I think understanding and knowledge of each other’s differences will enable us to find a better way to unite us, the UTA community and Americans in a broader sense.”

Cho began learning English three and a half years ago and wants to learn more languages to connect with society. Before coming to Texas, his misunderstanding of the state’s culture made him believe that an overwhelming majority of the population was white, and a small group were minorities.

“Texas has a variety of languages,” he said. “If I could only speak Korean, I couldn’t communicate with anybody else. I wouldn’t like that.”

The class has no prerequisites. As of Tuesday afternoon, 67 openings remained in the 70-seat class, according to the university Web site.

Park wants students to bring their experiences to the table.

“I want to challenge their ideas of who we are and who Americans are,” Park said.

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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 23 June 2009 02:02 PM )

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