BA (Hons) English Language with English Language Teaching

How do we learn a second language? Why can it be so hard to become fluent in a language we learn later in life? By understanding how we learn language, we can understand how to teach it.

Through this BA English Language with English Language Teaching you’ll learn about the English Language but you will also learn about teaching English as an integral part of your course. And you’ll be taught by research-active academics working in cutting-edge areas such as language and gender, formulaic language, corpus studies, bilingualism, bilingual processing and codeswitching.

This combined programme of English Language and English Language teaching will give you an excellent grounding if you plan to teach English as a foreign language following postgraduate teacher training. Alternatively you could be teaching children in primary or secondary schools whose second language is English.

In your first year, alongside core English Language modules, you’ll study language and mind, where you’ll analyse child speech transcripts and consider language acquisition. You’ll also explore the diversity of use of the English language including regional variants, pidgin and creole English, language and ethnicity, and slang and street English. In addition, you’ll take two English Language Teaching (ELT) modules each year.

Core modules in your second year focus on English grammar and the sounds of English. You can explore theories of how and why language developed and also have the option to take a language competencies module leading to a work placement. This could involve field work or observing teaching and learning methods in a college setting. We offer a career development module in your second year that will equip you to take up an English Language teaching work placement - perhaps teaching phonics to primary school pupils or teaching at a special needs school - or become a Stroke Association volunteer.