GSC1802

Dynamics of Koorie language A

Margaret Sharpe and Delsey Tamiano

6 points - 4 hours per week - First semester - Gippsland

Objectives Students successfully completing this subject will be able to carry out simple conversational and analytical skills in the Bundjalung language and will develop the skills required for phonetic transcription of unknown words in other languages. Students will also discover what is known about other languages in the Gippsland area and will have developed an understanding of how language shapes our thinking.

Synopsis The aim of this subject is to give students a grounding in skills in speaking and transcribing Koorie languages. On the successful completion of this subject students will be able to speak some of the Bundjalung language, have a grounding in skills in transcribing Koorie languages including Bundjalung, and appreciate differences in the construction of English and Koorie languages. The subject concentrates on an oral control of the Bundjalung language, once spoken in the northern rivers area of NSW and border areas of south-east Queensland. Practical application of these skills will be tested in short role plays in small groups and in questioning. In addition to the study of the Bundjalung language, the students learn some phonetic symbols from the international phonetic alphabet to aid in accurate transcription of Koorie languages. Practical application of these skills will be tested in dictation of Bundjalung and other Koorie words. Instruction takes place through lectures, language practice, and tutorials. The students are encouraged to speak in the Bundjalung language in class as part of the learning process.

Assessment Two short written assignments: 20% total - Final oral examination: 40% - Final written examination (2 hours): 40%

Prescribed texts

Sharpe M How we are spelling in Bundjalung rev. edn, UNE, 1990
Sharpe M C Dictionary of Western Bundjalung 2nd edn, UNE, 1995
Sharpe M C and others An introduction to the Bundjalung language and its dialects Armidale CAE, 1985

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