Page 18 - ELG2207 Jul Issue 481

SPECIAL FEATURE .

Choosing the right department

Going for a Master’s degree is a big time investment, so do your homework
before deciding where to aim for

n essence, ELT-related Masters cover three
things: English, language and teaching. But
the emphasis they give to each one, and
Ithe research areas they focus on depend
on the university department they belong
to – typically English Language, Linguistics
or Education.
The degrees have three main titles. First
we have MATESOL, which is almost always
more teaching and learning focused, and is
often aimed at new or inexperienced English-
language teachers, particularly in a department
that has two or more ELT-related degrees.
Then we have applied linguistics and TESOL/
ELT/ESL, etc, which is generally aimed at
more experienced English language-teaching
professionals. Finally, there are Master’s in
applied linguistics, which are often also aimed
at teachers of other languages, as well as other
professionals involved with language and
communication.
Almost all Master’s include a compulsory
module on research methods (aimed partly
at helping students do their dissertation) PHOTO BY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
and many have a module on the nitty-gritty
elements of language, called something like
language awareness, language description or
language analysis. A module on learning and
teaching is also common, often under the title The campus of the University of Bedfordshire
‘second language acquisition’.
Though almost all courses cover these core
areas, the focus of the rest of the course depends bilingualism and multilingualism, and how 6. Birmingham City University
at least partially on the department it’s in. A foreign and second languages (particularly 7. University of Sheffield *
Master’s run in a department of education is English) are learned. Most cover both 8. Swansea University (W)
easy to differentiate, as well as having a heavier sociolinguistics and psycholinguistics, which 9. Northumbria University
emphasis on teaching and learning. Focusing may include not only cognitive, but also 10. Canterbury Christ Church University
on the context of mainstream education, the neuroscience of language processing in
you can normally expect to find modules on the brain. Linguistics ranking
educational language policy, national curricula So, before you sign on for a Master’s at any The linguistics revolution of the 1960s inspired
and assessment. of the departments listed in this special feature, the recently opened ‘plate glass’ universities
Establishing the difference between an MA there are a number of questions you need to (in blue) to offer the subject and two of them
in a department of English language and a ask, as we show in the case stuy opposite. top our list. However, ‘red brick’ universities
department of linguistics can be a lot more (in black), including Russell Group members
problematic. As a rule of thumb, the English English language ranking (marked*) make up the majority, while two
language departments concentrate on English: The English language has been an academic ‘post 1992’ universities (in red) have joined
analysis of discourse in English, the differences subject in UK uniiversities since at least 1828. them.
between spoken and written English, teaching Small wonder then that our ranking features
reading skills in English (reading in English six 19th-century ‘redbrick’ universities (in 1. Lancaster University
is much more complicated than reading in a black), five of which are in the Russell group 2. University of Essex
very transparent language like Spanish). Until (marked*). 3. University of Newcastle*
recently, most departments were focused on The number-one university, though, is one 4. University of Reading
sociolinguistics, but there is an increasing focus of the new ‘post 1992’ universities (in red) and 5. University of Edinburgh*
on psycholinguistics, in particular, cognitive three more of these also did well in REF 2021. 6. University of Southampton*
linguistics, which deals with the way language 7. Bangor University
is organised in the mind and it concentrates 1. University of Bedfordshire 8. Birkbeck, University of London
on semantics. 2. University of Nottingham* 9. University of Central Lancashire
Typically, linguistics departments (English language) 10. University of Westminster
concentrate on language, of which English 3. University of Birmingham*
is only one example. They tend to focus in 4. Cardiff University* Our listings are based on the scores assigned by
areas like language development in children, 5. University of Liverpool * the THE rankings of the REF 2021.
18 July 2022