Bachelor of Arts (BA)

BA Film Studies and Linguistics

Develop expertise in the science of language and its use in film and media.

  • Duration: 3 years
  • Year of entry: 2025
  • UCAS course code: PQ12 / Institution code: M20

Full entry requirementsHow to apply

Fees and funding

Fees

Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2025 will be £9,250 per annum. Tuition fees for international students will be £26,500 per annum. For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

Scholarships/sponsorships

Scholarships and bursaries are available to eligible Home/EU students, this is in addition to the government package of maintenance grants.

Course unit details:
Language, Mind and Brain

Course unit fact file
Unit code LELA10201
Credit rating 20
Unit level Level 1
Teaching period(s) Semester 1
Available as a free choice unit? Yes

Overview

How do young children acquire language so easily? What role do social structures play in the development of language? How are writing and reading different from speaking and listening? This unit addresses these questions and explores the cognitive underpinnings of human language.

The unit introduces students to the foundational concepts in the study of language from a cognitive perspective. We will explore questions that are still a matter of debate in the field, critically examining both evidence and arguments. Students will come away with a deeper understanding of how language works, some of the principles governing the complex interactions between language and other cognitive dimensions (such as attention, perception, and thought), and a basic understanding of how language functions in the brain.

Along the way we’ll examine evidence from babies, chimpanzees and other animals, the birth of new languages, perceptual illusions, stroke patients, experiments on the influence of alcohol on speech and of swearing on pain, together with modern brain imaging techniques.

Aims

The aim of this unit is to introduce students to the foundational concepts in the study of language from a cognitive perspective. We will explore questions that are still a matter of debate in the field, and examine the arguments bearing on matters such as the uniqueness of human language, the place of language in the architecture of the mind, and the physical structures in the brain responsible for language.

Teaching and learning methods


2-hour lecture weekly

1 hour tutorial weekly

Blackboard:

  • Lecture slides.
  • Discussion board.
  • Study questions for lectures.
  • Downloadable readings.
  • Study questions for readings.
  • Online administration of reading quizzes
  • Submission of essays via Turnitin

Knowledge and understanding

On completion of the unit students will be able to:

  • Distinguish the differences and similarities between language and other communication systems
  • Evaluate the role of the brain in developing and employing language, including key arguments surrounding issues such as modularity of mind
  • Critically assess scholarly and scientific claims from the literature, and the arguments supporting them
  • Engage in interdisciplinary group discussions to compare competing approaches and hypotheses, using evidence-based reasoning
  • Research and prepare coherent written communications
  • Understand the fundamental role of the brain in developing and using language
  • Identify the differences and similarities between language and other communication systems
  • Recognise and understand the key arguments surrounding issues such as modularity of mind

Intellectual skills

On completion of the unit students will be able to:

  • Support an argument using evidence and reasoning.
  • Critically assess scholarly and scientific claims and the arguments supporting them
  • Compare competing hypotheses and bring evidence to bear in selecting between them.

Practical skills

On completion of the unit students will be able to:

  • Read and interpret scientific articles
  • Write brief essays providing evidence and reasoning in favour of a scientific claim.

Transferable skills and personal qualities

  • Writing skills
  • Independent study skills
  • Time management skills
  • Critical thinking skills

Employability skills

Other
This course unit aims to develop students' ability to assess the quality of evidence from diverse sources, as well as critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It also aims to develop students' written communication skills, and provides an opportunity to practice good time management and organisation.

Assessment methods

 

Assessment TaskFormative or SummativeWeighting
Example ArgumentFormative  
Written ExerciseFormative and Summative 30%
Written ExerciseSummative50%
Engagement / ReflectionSummative10%
QuizzesSummative10%

Feedback methods

 

Feedback MethodFormative or Summative
Written feedback on written exercisesFormative and Summative 
Score in quizzes on completion in BlackboardSummative
Additional feedback on written exercises in consultation hours or by appointmentFormative and Summative

 

Recommended reading

Osborne, Lawrence (1999). A Linguistic Big Bang. New York Times Magazine, pp. 83-89.

Petitto, L. A. (1999). The acquisition of natural signed languages. In C. Chamberlain, J. Morford, & R.Mayberry (Eds.), Language acquisition by eye, pp. 41-50.

Terrace, H. S. (1979). How Nim Chimpsky changed my mind. Psychology today, November 1979. p. 65-76.

Martin, Laura. (1986). "Eskimo Words for Snow": A Case Study in the Genesis and Decay of an Anthropological Example. American Anthrolpologist, New Series, 88(2), pp. 418-423.

Tisljár-Szabó, Eszter & Rossu, Renáta & Varga, Veronika & Pléh, Csaba. (2014). The Effect of Alcohol onSpeech Production. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research. 43(6), 737-748.

Sutton-Spence, Rachel and Napoli, Donna Jo (2012). Deaf jokes and sign language humor. Humor 25(3), p.311-337.

Elsabbagh, Mayada and Karmiloff-Smith, Annette (2006). Modularity of Mind and Language. In Brown, K.(ed.) The Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics, SecondEdition. p.218-224.

Palacek, Martin. (2017). Modularity of Mind: Is It Time to Abandon This Ship? Philosophy of the SocialSciences 47(2), p.132-144.

Bellugi, Ursula (1992). Language, Spatial Cognition, and Brain Organization. In Neuropsychology: The Neuronal Basis of Cognitive Function, Vol. 2. Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc., p. 207-222.

Study hours

Scheduled activity hours
Lectures 22
Tutorials 11
Independent study hours
Independent study 167

Teaching staff

Staff member Role
Wendell Kimper Unit coordinator

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