Grammar of a Less Familiar Language
MIT's linguistics field methods course puts students in the position of real fieldworkers, studying a language unfamiliar to them and often to the instructors too. Working with a native speaker consultant in both group and individual sessions, students spend the first three to four weeks mapping the language's basic phonology, morphology, and surface syntax. Each student then picks a specific construction, such as wh-questions, agreement, palatalization, or interrogative intonation, to investigate in depth, guiding group elicitation sessions and gathering data individually. The term ends with a written report on the chosen topic, with the goal of assembling a full volume of grammatical sketches from the class's combined work. Materials include the course syllabus and session structure as published on MIT OpenCourseWare, offered free with no certificate.