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The Department of Second Language Studies at the University
of Hawai'i at Mānoa (UHM) offers graduate programs leading
to the MA and PhD in second language studies, and the advanced
graduate certificate in second language studies. The programs
train students for professional careers in second-/foreign-language
education, which includes teaching, teacher training, materials
preparation, curriculum/syllabus design, language assessment,
and research. Through course work and independent research,
students acquire a broad knowledge base and familiarity with
the conduct of research, as well as a sense of professionalism
in second-language studies.
The graduate faculty of the program is interdisciplinary
— drawn not only from the department but also from faculty
in the Departments of East Asian Languages and Literatures,
Educational Psychology, Hawaiian and Indo-Pacific Languages,
and Linguistics. The department is affiliated with (institutional member of)
the American Association for Applied Linguistics and the Teachers
of English to Speakers of Other Languages. The department's
faculty members (recently, C. Chaudron, L. Ortega, and R.
Schmidt) have served on the executive boards of these organizations.
The department, whose MA program dates back to 1961, is frequently
referred to as the best such program in the world. It includes
a wide range of general and specialized courses. It has the
largest faculty with specialization in second-language studies
of any institution in the world. Its faculty members are well
respected nationally and internationally through their involvement
in scholarly research and publishing projects, including editorship
of books or editorial advisory status on major journals, as
well as extensive authorship of journal articles and books.
The department enjoys advanced technical support facilities
and excellent library resources. It attracts top-quality students
and maintains a variety of services and activities that stimulate
a high level of student satisfaction and collaboration, including
post-graduation employment advice and assistance.
The main goal of the MA program is to serve the needs of
prospective and practicing teachers, administrators, and researchers
in the area of teaching English to speakers of other languages.
Attention is given to the areas of second- and foreign-language
acquisition, applied psycholinguistics, second-language use,
second-language classroom research, bilingual education, curriculum
development, and teacher education.
The MA program emphasizes theory as well as practice. In addition
to the courses dealing with approaches to language teaching,
materials, and testing, core courses are concerned with the
linguistic, psychological, and sociological aspects of language.
These latter courses, which are primarily theoretical, are
designed to provide an essential foundation on which the more
practically oriented ones can build. The emphasis on theory
in certain core courses should be kept in mind by potential
applicants. The MA degree does not result in a teaching credential. Contact
the College of Education for more information regarding State
of Hawai'i teacher certification.
The PhD program offers four areas of specialization:
Second Language Analysis — structural
analysis of learners' language development; comparison of
native and nonnative languages; second-language varieties;
differences arising from social and geographical contexts;
phonological, grammatical, and discoursal properties; typological
factors; putative universals.
Second Language Learning — studies
of the biological, psychological, social, and cultural factors
in the language-learning process; the role of universals;
interlanguages; the processes of comprehension and production.
Second Language Use — studies of
the social functions of second and foreign languages; pidgins,
Creoles, and dialect variation; roles of social and geographical
contexts; pragmatics; discourse analysis; cross-cultural
and inter-ethnic communication; sociopolitical factors.
Second Language Pedagogy — research
into language-learner needs (including immigrant needs),
formulation of needs-based curriculum objectives and syllabi,
computer-aided instruction, program administration, evaluation
and language assessment.
The department is associated with the Center
for Second Language Research (CSLR) and the National
Foreign Language Resource Center (NFLRC). The CSLR has
undertaken a wide variety of research projects and publications
on the topics of classroom research, pragmatics, language
socialization, propagation of Hawaiian language, and community
based language teaching. The NFLRC serves as one of a small
number of resource centers established to improve and enrich
foreign language education nationwide. The center engages
in research and materials development projects and conducts
summer institutes for language professionals. The center's
publications division distributes teaching materials, as well
as a series of technical and research reports. Students in
the department's graduate programs often work as research
assistants in the center.
Employment opportunities in this field have been expanding
rapidly, both nationally and internationally, in all types
of educational and occupational institutions (e.g., elementary,
secondary, and tertiary levels; publishing; test development
for international agencies; language-training programs for
businesses).
Financial Support
The department strives to provide financial support for the
best qualified doctoral students throughout their course of
studies, by means of research and teaching assistantships.
Contact the department for additional information. Financial
support for certificate students is not available.
The PhD program in SLA participates in the Western Regional
Graduate Program administered by the Western Interstate Commission
for Higher Education (WICHE). The program enables legal residents
of WICHE member states to enroll in selected out-of-state
professional or graduate programs at reduced tuition rates.
For more information, see Financial
Matters < WICHE Program.
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