Job Discussion Forums

[amandajoy99]

i've been doing some teaching english abroad for a while, and some other education-related experience (interpretive park rangering), and am sort of considering a career (CAREER? what's that?) in language/culture education. i am curious to see if anyone knows something about applied linguistics programs - what types there are, what qualifications you need to get into one, what the best ones are, and what exactly you might do with such a degree.

[you forgot Poland]

Just use the search tool, there's more information already on this site about applied linguistics than you're probably willing to read

[shmooj]

[amandajoy99]

sorry. new to this site. totally posting on the wrong forum, and somehow missed the whole "search" thing at the top of the screen.
my first degree is in linguistic anthropology. i love languages, and am interested in linguistic/cultural education. i posted because i have a phobia of academia and am afraid an advanced degree would turn out NOT to be what i expect. but it seems like the best idea would be to search myself for answers to my specific questions and concerns on other forums and other sites.
thanks!

[you forgot Poland]

It sounds like you would be an excellent candidate for a masters in languages...it would certainly help if you actually loved languages, like you say you do.
As for being afraid of academia, from my personal experience, after about a year or two of school I look forward to working, and after a year or two of work I look forward to going back to school. If you're hesitant, you probably shouldn't go back right away, there should be plenty of teaching opportunities for you based on your undergrad and prior experience...just keep your MA in the back of your mind in case you feel trapped after you do land a job.
Note: As someone just told me on the post above this one, Applied linguistics is looked upon more favorably in general with regards to teaching ESL than traditional linguistics...I assume the reason is because of less theory, more practice. Check out gradschools.com for more info, and keep your bookmarks organized, mine was out of control for awhile...a few dozen sites to regularly check ought to keep you well informed enough. PM me if you want a start on some good sites; I just started posting here, but it's been a big resource for months now..

Cheers

[lozwich]

I'm interested in this question myself, but also how it connects with the distance learning debate.

I've read elsewhere on this forum that its not a good idea to do a MA in TESOL via distance because of the lack of teaching practice. I agree with that, but is Applied Linguistics solely theoretical, and therefore a lot more suitable for distance learning?

Have a good day,
Lozwich.

[shmooj]

[Ben Round de Bloc]

Quote:

Kaplan argues that "early applied linguistics was dominantly associated with language teaching" but that "while the relationship continues in the present . . . , the field has diversified." (vii) In his carefully structured introductory account of the field, "Applied linguistics: An emerging discipline for the twenty-first century," (pp. 3-12) William Grabe examines the growing diversity of the field, and the relationship of applied linguistics to linguistics, in some detail. He notes the importance of the concept that "applied linguistics is driven first by real-world problems rather than theoretical explorations," (p. 4) and lists the following areas of problems that applied linguists address, among others: [-1-] Language learning problems (emergence, awareness, rules, use, context, automaticity, attitudes, expertise) Language teaching problems (resources, training, practice, interaction, understanding, use, contexts, inequalities, motivations, outcomes) Literacy problems (linguistic and learning issues) Language contact problems (language and culture) Language inequality problems (ethnicity, class, region, gender, and age) Language policy and planning problems (status planning and corpus planning; ecology of language) Language assessment problems (validity, reliability, usability, responsibility) Language use problems (dialects, registers, discourse communities, gate-keeping situations, limited access to services) Language and technology problems (learning, assessment, access and use) Translation and interpretation problems (on-line, off-line, technology assisted) Language pathology problems (aphasias, dyslexias, physical disabilities) The list gives a reasonable indication of the breadth of the areas addressed in this volume, though some receive fuller treatment than others. Overview of Robert Kaplan's The Oxford Handbook of Applied Linguistics From http://www-writing.berkeley.edu/TESL-EJ/ej23/r3.html

This may shed some light in understanding the scope of applied linguistics.

[lozwich]

[shmooj]

Good post Ben...