Bilingualism

The course introduces students to the phenomenon of using two languages by an  individual or a community. It presents main definitions and types of bilingualism (individual vs societal; balanced vs dominant; early vs late) . The course also encourages students to analyse bilingual practices in their own environment and to reflect critically on common beliefs and attitudes towards bilingual speakers.

 Objectives 

At the end of the course, students will be able to: 

•  Define bilingualism and distinguish it from related notions such as diglossia and multilingualism.

• Help students identify main types of bilingualism (individual vs societal; balanced vs dominant; early vs late; simultaneous vs sequential) and illustrate each with examples.

• Develop students’ ability to describe bilingual repertoires and patterns of language use across domains (family, school, administration, media, peer groups) in their own community.

• Train students to analyse short case studies or profiles of bilingual speakers and classify them according to type and degree of bilingualism, with justified arguments.