Language, Inequality and Globalisation
Code: 45370 ECTS Credits: 5| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| English Studies: Linguistic, Literary and Sociocultural Perspectives | OP | 1 |
Contact
- Name:
- Melissa Moyer Greer
- Email:
- melissa.moyer@uab.cat
Teachers
- Eva Codó Olsina
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
Students must have an advanced level of spoken and written English (between CEFR levels C1-C2) in order to successfully meet the course requirements.
Objectives and Contextualisation
- To develop critical thinking skills related to language and inequality within the context of a globalized world, using a qualitative/ethnographic sociolinguistic perspective. This includes engaging with the conceptual framework to understand how language practices reflect and reinforce social hierarchies across different cultural and geopolitical settings.
- To explore current issues and scholarly debates in the study of societal bilingualism and multilingualism.Students will examine how multilingual practices are shaped by and respond to social, political, and economic forces, both locally and globally.
- To gain familiarity with key conceptual frameworks that support the formulation of informed and original questions on language, inequality, and globalization. Emphasis will be placed on understanding and using foundational concepts to critically assess the role of language in various social contexts.
- To acquire hands-on experience through class exercises and assignments that foster the application of theoretical knowledge to real-world linguistic situations. These activities will encourage students to conduct analyses of specific sociolinguistic cases, connecting theory with practice.
Learning Outcomes
- CA23 (Competence) Formulate research proposals that aim to ensure a more equitable management of language diversity in institutional or professional contexts.
- CA24 (Competence) Design original research proposals that involve the analysis of minority multilingual and multicultural contexts and/or little studied contexts in sociolinguistic literature.
- CA25 (Competence) Write up projects as part of a team that critically examines its own linguistic and cultural diversity.
- KA25 (Knowledge) Describe the principles of critical sociolinguistics and its application to the study of language in society.
- KA26 (Knowledge) Identify plurilingual practices and processes of inequality related to the use of English as a global lingua franca.
- KA27 (Knowledge) Describe the epistemological principles of ethnography as a research method and its contribution to the contextualised study of language use.
- SA33 (Skill) Interpret sociolinguistic data taken from institutional contexts, the world of work or leisure practices in a situated, complex, and intersectional way.
- SA34 (Skill) Apply sociolinguistic theory to the analysis of the impact language has on the construction of social inequality.
Content
Part 1: Linguistic practices in institutional contexts: an introduction (October 15th - November 14th 2025)
Dra. Eva Codó
1. Introducing a critical sociolinguistic approach to the study of language
Introduces interpretivist and ethnographic approaches to the study of language, and sets them apart from positivist and decontextualized understandings of language as a system of signs detached from speakers and its sociocultural and political contexts of use.
2. Linguistic diversity, multilingualism, inequality, and social justice
Examines multilingualism and heteroglossia as linked to social stratification processes.
3. Mobility, globalisation, and language
Discusses how a mobility lens to language questions established notions within sociolinguistics.
4. Studying language in state bureaucracies; language and migration
Introduces main issues in relation to the study of language policy and use in bureaucratic migration-related contexts and encourages reflection on linguistic ideologies, sources of inequality and alternative policies/practices.
5. Contemporary issues in language-in-education policy and practice
Interrogates the current role of English in educational systems all over the world, and the ideologies that sustain those policies; discusses the import of widely circulating concepts such as translanguaging and makes inroads into the discussion of raciolinguistics as a framework for studying language-based discrimination
Part 2: Perspectives on Language and Inequality in a Globalized World – From Theory to Practice
(November 18 – December 19, 2025)
Dra. Melissa Moyer
1. Language, identity, and the negotiationof social position
Explores how language both reflects and shapescomplex, intersectional identities in diverse sociocultural contexts.
2. Agency, voice, and sociolinguistic positioning
Examines how individuals claim and exercise agency through language within stratified sociolinguistic environments.
3. Language ideologies and discourses of power in contemporary societies
Interrogates dominant language ideologies and their role in reproducing or contesting social hierarchies in the 21st century.
4. Linguistic commodification and the global market economy
Analyzes how language becomes a marketable resource and the implications of commodification for linguistic diversity and social justice.
5. Affective dimensions of language in the workplace
Investigates the interplay between language, emotion, and labor in call centers.
Each professor will provide a more detailed description of the course at the beginning of their respective session.
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Assigned readings | 17 | 0.68 | CA23, KA25, KA26, KA27, SA33, SA34, CA23 |
| Discussion of assigned readings | 10 | 0.4 | CA23, KA25, KA26, KA27, SA33, SA34, CA23 |
| In class exercises | 20 | 0.8 | CA25, KA25, KA26, KA27, SA33, SA34, CA25 |
| Two final assignments | 22 | 0.88 | CA24, CA25, KA25, SA33, SA34, CA24 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Task preparation and completion of exercises | 11 | 0.44 | CA23, CA24, CA25, KA25, KA26, KA27, SA33, SA34, CA23 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Analysis of sociolinguistic data | 10 | 0.4 | CA23, KA26, SA33, SA34, CA23 |
Each topic in the syllabus will be presented along with the key theoretical notions and concepts that each student will need to know.
Presentations and discussion of assigned readings
Analysis of practical examples from various social contexts
Correction in class of exercises and assignments
Use of AI: This subject entirely prohibits the use of AI technologies in all of its activities. Any submitted work that contains content generated using AI will be considered academic dishonesty; the corresponding grade will be awarded a zero, without the possibility of reassessment. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
IMPORTANT NOTE: 15 minutes of class time will be reserved, within the timetable established by the faculty or degree program, for students to complete the evaluation surveys on teaching performance and the subject.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assigned exercises | 15 per cent | 10 | 0.4 | CA23, KA26, SA33, SA34 |
| Engagement with assigned readings and class participation | 15 per cent | 10 | 0.4 | CA23, KA25, KA26, KA27, SA33, SA34 |
| Two final assignments | 70 per cent | 15 | 0.6 | CA23, CA24, CA25, KA25, KA26, KA27, SA33, SA34 |
- Two final assignments (one for each section of the course) or a final written exam. The final assessment for each section of the course will count for 35% of the final grade.
- Critical engagement with readings (in class and forum participation) 15%
- In class and assigned exercises 15%
All exercises and assignments that do not reach a minimum grade of 3,5/10 cannot be redone. All grades of 4,9 or higher will be included in the final grade according to the weight established.
The maximum grade for recuperated assignments and exercises is a 6.
If a student fails a recuperation assignment he/she can pass as long as the average grade for submitted work is a 5 or above.
VERY IMPORTANT: Partial or total plagiarism will immediately result in a (0) for the ENTIRE SUBJECT. Plagiarism consists of copying text from unrecognized sources, either part of a sentence or the entire text, with the intention of passing it off as the student's own production. It includes cutting and pasting from Internet sources, which are presented unmodified in the student's own text. Plagiarism is a serious offense. Students must respect the intellectual property of the authors, always identifying the sources they can use; They must also be responsible for the originality and authenticity of their own text. Students are required to use non-sexist language in their written and oral productions. For guidelines on how to do this, they are encouraged to visit the Linguistic Society of America (LSA) website: https://www.linguisticsociety.org/resource/lsa-guidelines-nonsexist-usage. The appropriate use of language will be part of the evaluation criteria.
Procedure for reviewing the grades obtained. When carrying out each assessment activity, teachers will inform students (in Moodle) of the procedures to follow to review all grades awarded and the date on which this review will take place. Weekly tasks and participation in classes where activities are not eligible for reassessment.
The conditions for the “Not Assessable” grade: Students will receive the grade of Not Assessable as long as they have not delivered more than 30% of the assessment activities.
NON-CONTINUOUS EVALUATION
It is possible to request a single assessment for this subject. For more information you can access the link: https://www.uab.cat/web/estudis/grau/informacio-academica/avavaluacio/avavaluacio-unica-1345885008033.html
The non-continuous assessment consists of:
· Two Final assignments 70%
- Written examination of the content of both parts of the course 30%
The review of the final grade follows the same procedure as for students registered for continuous assessment
It is necessary to take into account the dates for requesting this type of evaluation stipulated by the Facultat de Filosofia i Lletres. You can check with the MA coordinator Dr. Cristina Pividori.
Bibliography
Anderson, Benedict. 1983. Imagined Communities. London: Verso, 224Pp.
Appadurai, Arjun. 1996. Modernity at Large. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 229 Pp.
Bex, Tony & Richard J. Watts (eds.). 1999. Standard English. The Widening Debate. London: Routledge, 312 Pp.
Billig, Michael. 1995. Banal Nationalism. London:Sage, 197 Pp.
Blommaert, Jan. 2003. Commentary: A sociolinguistics of globalization. Journal of Sociolinguistics 7/4: 607-623.
Blommaert, Jan and Jef Verschueren. 1998. The "migrant" problem. In Jan Blommaert and Jef Verschueren Debating Diversity. London: Routledge.
Brutt-Griffler, Janina. 2002. World English. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 216 Pp.
Cameron, Deborah. 2000. Good to Talk? London: Sage Publications, 213Pp.
Cameron, Deborah. 2000. Styling the worker: Gender and the commodification of language in the globalized service economy. Journal of Sociolinguistics 4/3:323-347.
Coupland, Nikolas, Srikant Sarangi, & Cristopher Candlin (eds.). 2001. Sociolinguistics and Social Theory. London: Longman.
Gellner, E. 1983. Nations and Nationalism. Oxford:Blackwell. Giddens, Anthony. 1991. Modernity and Self Identity. Stanford: Stanford University Press, Pp. 256 Pp.
Hill, Jane. Published on the web pages http://languageculture.binghamton.edu/symposia/2/part1/index.html and to see the pictures in the article consult the address below: http://www.deaflibrary.org/nakamura/courses/linguisticanthro/hill1995slides/
Hobsbawm, E. J. 1992. Nations and Nationalism since 1780. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Hutchinson, John& Anthony D. Smith (eds.). 1994. Nationalism. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 378Pp.
Inda, Jonathan Xavier & Renato Rosaldo (eds.).2002. The Anthropology of Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell, 498 Pp.
Joseph, John E. Language and Identity. National, Ethnic and Religious. 2004. London: Palgrave, 268 Pp. Lippi Green, Rosina. 1997. English withan Accent. London: Routledge, 286 Pp.
Milroy, James. 1999. The Consequences of Standardization in Discriptive Linguistics. In Bex, Tony & Richard J. Watts (eds.). Standard English. The Widening Debate. London: Routledge, Pp. 13-39.
Moyer, Melissa & Luisa Martin Rojo. 2007. Language, Migration and Citizenship: New Challenges in the Regulation of Bilingualism. In Monica Heller (ed.) Bilingualism. Social Approaches. London: Palgrave, 36 Pp.
Muehlmann, Shaylih & Alexandre Duchêne. 2007. Beyond the nation-state: international agencies as new sites of discourses on bilingualism. In Monica
Heller (ed.) Bilingualism. Social Approaches. London: Palgrave, 13Pp. Pennycook, Alastair. 1998. English and the Discourses of Colonialism. London: Routledge, 239 Pp.
Pujolar, Joan. 2007. Bilingualism and the Nation-State in the Post-national Era. In Monica Heller (ed.) Bilingualism. Social Approaches. London: Palgrave,
Stroud, Cristopher. 2007. Bilingualism: Colonialism and postcolonialism. In Monica Heller (ed.) Bilingualism. Social Approaches. London: Palgrave, 36 Pp.
Sutton, John. 2006. Globalization: A European perspective. In Anthony Giddens, Patrick Diamond and Roger Liddle (eds.) Global Europe, Social Europe.Cambridge: Polity Press, 37-51Pp..
Urciuoli, Bonnie. 1996. Exposing Prejudice. Puerto Rican Experiences of Language, Race and Class. Boulder, Co.: Westview Press, 222 Pp.
Woolard, Kathryn. Language ideology as a field of inquiry. In Schieffelin, Bambi, Kathryn Woolard & Paul Kroskrity (eds.). 1998. Language Ideologies. Practice and Theory. Oxford:Oxford University Press, Pp. 3-27.
Zentella, Ana Celia. 1997. Growing up Bilingual. Oxford: Blackwell, 322 Pp.
Software
A detailed syllabus will be distributed in class.
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TEm) Theory (master) | 1 | English | first semester | morning-mixed |