Linguistics

Program Information

As students’ progress through the applied linguistics major or the linguistics minor, they will acquire the following:

Skills and Abilities

• Recognize and understand the basic fields of linguistics and applied linguistics
• Be familiar with the types of representational units that are used in describing and analyzing patterns of sound, word, and sentence structure
• Be able to formulate rules to describe the patterns of speech sounds, morphemes, and words in English and across other languages
• Formulate and test hypotheses
• Conduct linguistic research and present findings
• Apply knowledge of linguistics to other fields
• Impart critical thinking by hypothesis creation and testing predictions
• Involve in different types of data collection and management

Knowledge

• Understand language as a grammatical system and social
• Analyze the structural components of language
• Create new constructed languages
• Understand how languages vary across time and space
• Apply linguistic principles to other domains, such as food studies, music, social contexts

Program Goals

Increasing interest in the program has led to a thriving minor and a brand new applied linguistics major. To support this program, faculty continue to:

• Pursue cutting edge research agendas that encourage professional visibility through professional conferences and publications
• Make effective use of technology in instruction, particularly through the use of computers for linguistic analysis
• Provide career advising to help prepare students for higher education in the field

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  Major in Applied Linguistics

A brand new, interdisciplinary major in applied linguistics was approved by KBOR in December 2020. There are three concentration tracks for this major. The first concentration track is a general linguistics track. The second concentration track is a speech pathology track. The third concentration track is a computational linguistics track.

120 hours are required for graduation, and students must earn a 2.0 overall GPA, a 2.0 Wichita State GPA, and a 3.0 GPA in the major. Students must also complete all courses required for Liberal Arts and Sciences General Education. In addition, Foreign Language courses (or the equivalents) are required for every BA degree in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Curriculum in the first year is the same for all three concentrations.

Curriculum varies for each of the three concentrations in years two through five.

1. Plan of study for the General Linguistics concentration

Total Number of Semester Credit Hours  ……………………………………………………….  [120]

2. Plan of Study for the Speech Pathology and Communication Sciences Concentration (collaboration with the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, College of Health Sciences)

Total Number of Semester Credit Hours  ……………………………………………………….  [120]

3. Plan of Study for the Computer Science and Data Science Concentration (in collaboration with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, College of Engineering)

Total Number of Semester Credit Hours  ……………………………………………………….  [120]

Students can take electives from the following courses:

Minor in Linguistics

A minor in linguistics consist of 15 credit hours selected from the following courses. Note: Courses applied toward another major or minor will not apply toward a minor in linguistics.

Group A: Basic Linguistic Theory

At least 6 credit hours must be selected from Group A.

Group B: Linguistic Study of Specific Languages or Language Groups

Group C: Areas of Contact Between Linguistics and Other Disciplines

Course List

Several new courses are being developed and offered that count towards the Minor in Linguistics. These include:

• LING 152: Language of Food
• LING 665: Field Methods of Linguistics
• SPAN 546: Spanish Language Learning
• SPAN 547: Spanish in the U.S.
• CSD 270 / LING 270. American Sign Language I
• CSD 304 / LING 304. Early Language Development
• CSD 306 / LING 306. Applied Phonetics
• CSD 506 / 506H / LING 506: Acoustic and Perceptual Phonetics
• CSD 520 / LING 520. ASL: Nonverbal Communication

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Linguistics Faculty

Dr. Mythili Menon

Director of the Linguistics Program

mythili.menon@wichita.edu
316-978-6763
Lindquist Hall 608A
www.mythilimenon.com

Educational Qualifications

BA in Mass Communication and Journalism, Mahatma Gandhi University, India;
MA and MPhil in Linguistics, Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages, Hyderabad, India;
MA and PhD in Linguistics, University of Southern California.

Research and teaching interests

Syntax and semantics interface- Adjectival meaning, Comparatives, Plurals, Numerals and Measurement, Spanish Copulas and Measure Phrases
Language and Musical processing- Language and Music, Artificial Language Learning
Language documentation and revitalization- Praire-Band Potawatomi, Judeo-Malayalam

Dr. Francis X Connor

francis.connor@wichita.edu
Lindquist Hall 607

Dr. Andrew Hippisley

Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences

andrew.hippisley@wichita.edu
316-978-6659
Dean's Office, Lindquist Hall 200

Affiliated Faculty

Dr. Rachel Showstack

rachel.showstack@wichita.edu
316-978-6006
Jardine Hall
www.rachelshowstack.com
Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures

Educational Qualifications

Ph.D., Hispanic Linguistics, The University of Texas at Austin
M.A., Spanish, Sacramento State University
B.A., History, The University of California, Santa Cruz

Research and teaching interests

Spanish in the U.S., Language and Identity, Language Ideologies, Language Maintenance, Heritage Language Learning and Pedagogy, Discourse Analysis and Pragmatics, Language in Health Care, Service Learning

Dr. Jens Kreinath

jens.kreinath@wichita.edu
316-978-7193
Department of Anthropology

Dr. Douglas Parham

douglas.parham@wichita.edu
316-978-5634
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders

Educational Qualifications

2008 PhD, Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, University of Memphis
1996 MA, Philosophy, University of Memphis
1992 BA, (1) Foreign Languages and (2) Philosophy, Memphis State University

Research and teaching interests

Typical and Atypical Speech-Language Development
Speech Production
Speech Breathing
Speech Acoustics
Infant Vocalization
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Physiological Instrumentation
Conversational Interaction

Emeritus Faculty

Dr. Tina Bennett

tina.bennett@wichita.edu

Professor Emerita of English and Linguistics
Department of English

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Advising

Dr. Mythili Menon is the Director of the Linguistics Program. Please contact her directly through email, telephone, or at the office during office hours. If you have questions about our program, classes, or need general information about the Linguistics program, and/or applying please talk with Dr. Menon.

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WichiLing: WSU Linguistics Club

Welcome to Wichiling, the linguistics club at Wichita State University!

We generally meet every other Friday afternoons at 12:00 pm in Lindquist Hall 503!
The Linguistics Club at Wichita State University is open to everyone, whether or not you're a linguistics minor, and is free to join! Each week we meet to hang out, eat snacks, play language games, and talk linguistics. Sometimes an invited speaker comes in to talk about their job or research in linguistics, so WichiLing is a great way to network and think about your career as a linguist. It's also a good way to meet other linguistics students on campus if you want a study buddy!

» Check out the WichiLing website

» Follow WichiLing on Facebook

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