This course introduces students to techniques of linguistic research
and analysis through direct work with a speaker of a (usually) poorly
described and poorly documented African language. Students work with
the informant/speaker in class as well as 1 hour per week outside of
class. During this first semester of a two-semester sequence students
learn techniques for eliciting and organizing data, for preparing
entries in a field dictionary, and for preparing a grammar. They also
consider ethical problems in field research, health problems in the
field, and some of the social and psychological problems associated
with living alone in a foreign culture for an extended period of time.
By the end of the first semester, students are expected to have a good
grasp of the basic features of the phonology, morphology, and syntax
of the language under investigation. They are also expected to prepare
short dictionary entries and grammatical descriptions, indicative both
of their understanding of the material they have elicited and their
ability to present it in a coherent manner.