Multilingualism and Beyond in the European Context
On-site in Tartu, 28 July - 11 August 2024
Almost all language practices are multilingual in their nature since they include different languages, language varieties, genres, styles, so-called dialects, etc. In a highly globalised era characterised by emigration and the movement of people with different linguistic backgrounds, questions related to multilingualism are crucial for single individuals immigrants who seek new homes and asylum in Europe, as well as for these hosting countries. A relevant example is the wave of Ukrainian immigration in Europe and, in particular, Estonia. Despite sharing a common background, Ukrainians are characterised by extremely variegated language repertoires and linguistic skills that they accommodate in the hosting countries. When coming to Estonia, Ukrainians might use different ways of communication. They can use English if they have enough proficiency in the language. They can also communicate in Russian as both Estonians and Ukrainians have considerable L2 experience from the Soviet time. However, the varieties of Russian as spoken in Ukraine differ from those of Russia, Estonia, etc., and some Ukrainians speak a version of Surzhik, a cover name for a continuum of in-between varieties. At the same time in Estonia, only 30% of the population constitutes a Russian-speaking minority, and the young generation of Estonians mostly have only passive knowledge of Russian. In this case, it is also possible to employ Ukrainian while communicating with Estonians and reach an understanding via passive knowledge of Russian (e.g., mediated receptive multilingualism) as usually, Estonians are sympathetic towards Ukraine and this may be a factor facilitating communication. Interlocutors can negotiate the meaning, combine codeswitching with other language modes, etc., to make communication happen.
This course is particularly focused on the complexity of multilingualism in Estonia and the European context (based on a few examples). In particular, we aim to pay attention to how individuals use resources for their language repertoire to accommodate communication in the current context of emigration.
We will introduce the concepts of multilingualism, different types of multilingualism and language acquisition theories, multilingual people as agents of change, and various contact-induced language change phenomena. This course aims to equip students with the necessary theoretical and methodological knowledge for designing and developing experimental studies in the field of multilingualism.
We discuss how multilingualism can be studied in concrete communicative situations and particular research guidelines. We explore multilingualism through practical and reflexive tasks and give practical knowledge of how to conduct experiments and approach multilingual practices in different environments (everyday communication, the internet, social media, linguistic landscape, schools, etc.).
| Focus area: | Multilingualism, Sociolinguistics | Coordinating unit at UT |
Faculty of Arts and Humanities |
| Study Field: | Estonian and General Linguistics | Course Leader | Alessandra Dezi and Anna Branets, Ph.D. Students |
| Format | Summer Course | Location | Tartu, Estonia |
| Course dates: | 28 July - 11 August 2024 | Apply by: | 30 April 2024 |
| ECTS: | 3 | Fee: | 650 EUR |
| Study | BA/MA | Language | English |
Lecturers:
- Prof. Anna Verschik, Tallinn University
- Alessandra Dezi, Ph.D. Student of the University of Tartu
- Anna Branets, Ph.D. Student of the University of Tartu
This course introduces the concepts of multilingualism, different types of multilingualism, multilingual people as agents of change, and various contact-induced language change phenomena. It aims to equip students with the necessary theoretical and methodological knowledge for designing and developing experimental studies in the field of multilingualism.
We discuss how multilingualism can be studied in concrete communicative situations and particular research guidelines. We explore multilingualism through practical and reflexive tasks and give practical knowledge of how to conduct experiments and approach multilingual practices in different environments (everyday communication, the internet, social media, linguistic landscape, schools, etc.).
Preliminary programme
Sunday, July 28. Arrival
Monday, July 29. Introduction to the course.
Course programme and assignments overview. Introduction to bi/ multilingualism.
Tuesday, July 30. Introduction to Language Contacts Phenomena
Introduction to Language Contacts Phenomena.
Social, structural, and individual factors in contact-induced language change.
Wednesday, July 31. Language Contacts in the Baltic Region
Illustration: some examples of language contacts in the Baltic region.
Workshop: Assignment 1 - Analyse the collected material. Students shall collect samples of multilingual communication before coming to the summer school. It can be online communication or oral. These should be samples from the same pair of languages or the same users or the same online group, blogger, etc., not just isolated random examples. For instance, online communication during one week or several conversations, etc. They should analyse these samples in any theoretical framework or model discussed during this workshop.
Article review: Contacts of Russian in the post-Soviet space by A. Verschik. Students should read the article “Contacts of Russian in the post-Soviet space” by A. Verschik and discuss it in class.
Thursday, August 1. Multilingualism as a Concept and Practice and the Linguistic Landscape
Workshop: The students are provided the Body Map to reflect on who multilingual people are. The students interview each other about their language repertoire.
Where is multilingualism? Real and Virtual Linguistic Landscape. Language variety. The Monolingual bias.
Workshop: Assignment 2 - Analyse the collected material on the linguistic landscape. Students should collect (preferably take pictures) street signs, signboards, shop boards, street posters, graffiti, etc. that they can find in different languages in their countries, cities, etc. Multilingual examples are welcome. They should record the places and try to think why these signs are there and why or why not in this specific language.
Friday, August 2. Receptive Multilingualism
Receptive multilingualism as a mode of multilingual communication. Types of receptive multilingualism and different language practices.
Mediated Receptive Multilingualism.
Workshop: How to develop a comprehension experiment?
Saturday, August 3 / Sunday, August 4. Weekend/Cultural events
Monday, August 5. Critical period. L1 and L2 Acquisition
Workshop: Who is multilingual? Brainstorming tasks based on real-life examples.
Bilingual brain: Critical period. Early and Late Bilinguals.
L2 learning: individual differences and contexts.
Tuesday, August 6. Sociolinguistic Aspects of Multilingualism
Legitimate language and linguistic capital.
Workshop: Use your BodyMap to analyse the linguistic capital that you have in different fields.
Movie night: Everything is illuminated.
Wednesday, August 7. Pragmatic Aspects of Multilingualism
Workshop: Movie Discussion.
Multilingual awareness, language play, and language change.
Language play and language change in different communication practices, the internet, social media.
Thursday, August 8. Language Ideologies and Language Attitudes
Language Ideologies
Language Attitudes and Testing
Workshop: Mapping explicit and implicit language attitudes
Friday, August 9. Student Projects Presentations
Student projects presentations and Q&A. The students will be provided feedback by the course instructors. The final assessment in this summer course is to develop a research project. The project presentation should include the following points:
(i) the bilingual practices of a language community in a specific environment (real or virtual);
(ii) basic sociodemographic and language-specific information;
(iii) a research question aimed at uncovering patterns in language use relative to a specific bilingual group;
(iv) methods
(v) examples of such language use and first analysis attempts.
The original research should have hypotheses, arguments, examples, and theory-supported interpretations that you will share with your classmates. Presentations will be about 15 minutes long followed by a short Q&A session.
Feedback, conclusions, certificates.
Saturday, August 10/ Sunday, August 11. Departure
Entry requirements:
- Online application form
- Motivation letter (up to 1 page) that demonstrates the applicant’s motivation to participate, his/her expectations about the programme, how participation in the summer programme relates to his/her studies and interests, and how the applicant plans to use the gained experience and knowledge in the future.
- Transcript of academic records
- Copy of passport
PS: Only complete applications including all annexes submitted by the deadline will be considered for selection.
Students completing the course will:
- Understand the complexity of the concept of multilingualism and multilingual practices
- Have an overview of multilingualism in Estonia in the current global situation
- Develop critical analytical skills to approach questions related to multilingualism
- Understand methods applied for the analysis of different material
- Develop own experimental design or research framework
The course presumes active participation and contribution from students with their own reflecting and research tasks. The target group is BA, MA students, and life-long learners who are interested in multilingual studies and aim to expand their theoretical and practical knowledge or who are interested in the Estonian multilingual context.
The required reading: approximately 50 pages assigned by lecturers.
In collaboration with DAAD, the University of Tartu offers 5 scholarships for German students for the course Multilingualism and Beyond in the European Context.
More information and the application form are on the DAAD scholarship page.
Two weeks prior to the start of the programme an information file will be sent to all participants. This file contains the daily schedule and relevant contact information of the programme managers.
Students are responsible for their travel, accommodation and travel insurance (visa arrangements if needed) from their home country to Tartu and back to their home country. It is recommended to visit the Tartu Welcome Centre website and arrival and housing section to find accommodation opportunities.
Flashback to UniTartu Summer School 2023
"I'm Janina, a final-year master’s student diving deep into General Linguistics at Hamburg, Germany! With a passion for sociolinguistics, I'm always on the lookout for intriguing avenues to explore. Remembering my enchanting experience in Tartu back in April 2022 during winter school, I couldn't resist peeking at the University of Tartu's website for summer schools. If you seek a summer activity that is both enlightening and occasionally challenging, highly motivating, and enjoyable, the UniTartu Summer School is made for you!"
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