LING 3038 - Phonology: Language Sounds and Sound Systems

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2025

Pronunciation immediately identifies each of us as belonging to a certain ethnic group, social class, locality, age group and gender. This course investigates the nature of speech sounds, the mechanisms of speech production and perception and the ways by which these sounds are classified into a fixed inventory of meaningful sounds, the phoneme inventory, by speakers of a language. Students will learn how to transcribe speech sounds using phonetic symbols (International Phonetic Alphabet or IPA). Students will learn how to identify phonemes and how to analyse and provide formal accounts of sound system processes across a range of languages, paying attention to segmental phonemes as well as to factors such as stress, tone and intonation. This course is essential for all linguistics students, and provides vital understandings for language teachers (English or otherwise), speech pathologists and students of disciplines such as psychology, anthropology and social inquiry.

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Course Details

Course Code	LING 3038
Course	Phonology: Language Sounds and Sound Systems
Coordinating Unit	European Languages, and Linguistics
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Up to 4 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	Y
Prerequisites	LING 1101 and at least 6 units of Level II undergraduate study
Incompatible	LING 2040
Assessment	Practical 1 - 20%, Practical 2 - 20%, Review (1500 word) 30%, Exam (1.5 hours) 30%.

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Ian Green

E-mail: <ian.green@adelaide.edu.au>
Consultations by appointment, email ian.green@adelaide.edu.au or phone/text 0438 756 936 to arrange

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Lectures: face-to-face Tuesday 2pm-4pm, recordings available shortly after the lecture

Tutorials: face-to-face Wednesday 9am -11am

Course Learning Outcomes

1	Be able to describe the general physical mechanisms underlying the production & perception of speech.
2	Be able to classify speech sounds according to vocal tract configuration, laryngeal activity and airflow.
3	Be able to utilise the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) in both ‘broad’ and ‘narrow’ transcription of speech, and to work with other practical orthographies in speech transcription.
4	Be able to identify the role of stress, intonation, pitch and duration in the production & perception of speech.
5	Perform a phonemic analysis of any given language, drawing on notions of minimal pairs, contrastive vs complementary distribution, conditioning of allophones & free variation.
6	Identify the distinctive features of any given set of phonemes.
7	Explain the concept of ‘underlying phonological form’, drawing on examples from a variety of languages.
8	Formulate phonological and phonetic realisation rules, having regard to rule ordering principles.
9	Understand the basic principles of Phonological Typology.
10	Undertake comparisons of conventional vs non-linear approaches to phonological representation.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.	7, 8, 9, 10
Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.	4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Attribute 3: Teamwork and communication skills Graduates convey ideas and information effectively to a range of audiences for a variety of purposes and contribute in a positive and collaborative manner to achieving common goals.	1, 2, 3, 4
Attribute 4: Professionalism and leadership readiness Graduates engage in professional behaviour and have the potential to be entrepreneurial and take leadership roles in their chosen occupations or careers and communities.	1, 2, 3, 10
Attribute 5: Intercultural and ethical competency Graduates are responsible and effective global citizens whose personal values and practices are consistent with their roles as responsible members of society.	2, 3, 4, 5, 9
Attribute 6: Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competency Graduates have an understanding of, and respect for, Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander values, culture and knowledge.	.
Attribute 7: Digital capabilities Graduates are well prepared for living, learning and working in a digital society.	.
Attribute 8: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence Graduates are self-aware and reflective; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity and take responsibility for their actions.	2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10

Learning Resources

Required Resources

Course Text Book:
Odden, D. (2013). Introducing Phonology. Cambridge University Press, 2nd edn.

Recommended Resources

Clark, John E, Yallop, C & Fletcher, J 2007, An introduction to phonetics and phonology, 3rd edition, Blackwell

Goldsmith, JA, Riggle, J & Yu, ACL 2011, The handbook of phonological theory, 2nd edition, Wiley-Blackwell

Gussenhoven, C. 2004, The Phonology of Tone and Intonation, Cambridge University Press.

Gussenhoven, Carlos & Jacobs, H 2017, Understanding phonology, 3rd edition, Hodder Education

Kennedy, R. 2016, Phonology: A Coursebook, Cambridge:University Press

McMahon, AMS 2002, An introduction to English phonology, Edinburgh University Press

Zsiga, EC 2013, The sounds of language an introduction to phonetics and phonology, Wiley-Blackwell

Online Learning

Lectures are recorded, with the recordings available via Echo 360 and embedded in the relevant weekly module.
Tutorials are also recorded, and the recordings will be available through the relevant weekly module. Note that tutorial recordings cannot capture small group discussions, and cannot always adequately capture class discussion and problem-solving demonstration.

There is a wide range of on-line resources, many of them interactive, to support the development of phonetic and phonological learnings and analytic skills. References to these are provided via MyUni.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

There are 4 contact hours per week.

LECTURES
Lectures are delivered face-to-face in a two hour block. The first hour is generally spent outlining key concepts, while the second hour is generally a more 'applied' session, involving, for example, extended phonetic & transcription practice, experimenting with machine analysis, developing problem-solving techniques etc

Lectures are recorded; the videos are made available through Echo 360 shortly after class & are subsequently embedded in the weekly module. However, students are strongly encouraged to attend the live lectures so that they can benefit from the on-the-spot demonstration, guidance and interactive learning of the face-to-face context.

TUTORIALS
Tutorials are also conducted in on-campus face-to-face mode. Tutorials are focused on developing practical speech production & transcription skills, and on building effective techniques for phonological analysis and problem solving, via a combination of small group work and whole of class demonstration & discussion.

Tutorials will also be recorded &, with the permission of participants, made available to members of the tutorial group for catch-up and review purposes. However, the tutorial is designed as a hands-on learning experience; you only benefit from it if you apply yourself to the activities and problems presented to you. Reviewing the tutorial recordings is therefore no substitute for actual attendance, especially since only the whole of class discussion, and not the small group interaction, is able to be captured on the recording.

Tutorial attendance is therefore compulsory, and attendance lists will be kept. If you are unable to attend a tutorial you need to notify the Course Coordinatoras soon as possible. You may sometimes be asked to supply documentation of the reasons for your absence, you may sometimes be asked to complete and submit some catch-up exercises.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

1 x 2-hour lecture/workshop per week (x12) 24 hours
1 x 2-hour tutorial per week (x12) 24 hours
4 hours Practicals/Reading per week (x12) 48 hours
3 hours Assignment Preparation per week (x12) 36 hours
2 hours Research per week (X 12) 24 hours
TOTAL 156 hours

Learning Activities Summary

Lecture outline: please note that this is a guide only, and may not be in this order; fuller details will be given during the semester.

Week 1
About this Course | The phoneme (Odden Ch1 & Ch2)

Week 2
Speech mechanisms and the classification of sounds (Odden Ch1 & Ch2, plus supplementary material)

Week 3
Distinctive features (Odden Ch3)

Week 4
Underlying representations (Odden Ch4)

Week 5
Interacting processes (Odden Ch5)

Week 6
Doing analysis (Odden Ch6)

Week 7
Historical Phonology (supplementary material)

Week 8
Non-linear representations (Odden Ch9)

Week 9
Typology & Naturalness (Odden Ch7)

Week 10
Abstractness & psychological reality (Odden Ch8)

Week 11
Review: key concepts; rule formulation; problem-solving techniques (supplementary material)

Week 12
Contemporary phonological theory (supplementary material)

Week 13
Revision - no classes

Week 14
Online test

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

There will be three assignments in phonological/phonetic analysis (due in Week 3, Week 6 & Week 9), together with a final online test reviewing the work of the whole semester to be made available in Week 14. All assignments are of equal weight. ie. each assignment counts for 25% of your overall mark.

All four assessment components must be completed in order to pass the course.

Assessment Related Requirements

Submission of assignments:

All assignments are to be submitted by 5pm on the due date, through the relevant assignment upload facility in MyUni.
Uploaded assignments must have file names that include (a) your name and/or student number & (b) the number/name of the assignment.
Unless otherwise approved by the coordinator, each assignment must be submitted as a single file.
Always keep a copy of your work, as ocasionally files can go astray in MyUni.
All assignments must be in grammatical English, and must be set out in a coherent, readable manner.
Extensions should in the first instance be negotiated through the Course Coordinator, as far as possible prior to the due date.
Extensions will normally require a doctor’s certificate, counsellor’s certificate or similar proof/documentation.
Assignments submitted late with no extension will be penalised at 2% per day for up to 7 days, and will not be accepted thereafter.

Assessment Detail

Assignment #1 – Phonemes & allophones
Assignment #2 – Phonological rules
Assignment #3 – Historical phonology
Test – Practical analyses & short answer questions ranging over the content of lectures, tutorials & prescribed readings across the semester

Submission

All assignments are to be submitted through MyUni.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator