Syllabus

Linguistics 112 -- Syntax I				Fall Quarter 2020

MWF 10:40-11:45 https://ucsc.zoom.us/j/97584041565?pwd=bFVIRm01dkJXa21PSmxGeUhmMmJKdz09


Course website: http://babel.ucsc.edu/~hank/112.html

Jorge Hankamer	
	Office: 264 Stevenson College		Office hours
	email:  hank@ucsc.edu			W 12:30-1:30	Th 1:30-2:30
						
Dan Brodkin		ddbrodki@ucsc.edu	Office hour	T 9-10
Andrew Hedding		ahedding@ucsc.edu	Office hour	F 12-1

Sections:
		M     1:20-2:25	(Jorge)
		T     3:20-4:25	(Andrew)
		W     8-9:05    (Dan)

This course is an introduction to the study of syntax (i.e. sentence construction)
in natural languages.  For practical reasons, the language on which the study will
be based will be English, but the principles of theory and analysis should extend
to the study of the syntax of other languages.

There is no textbook.  The course is based on a sequence of homework problems,
which will be assigned at the end of each class and due at the end of the next
class.  These problems constitute the main work of the course, and performance on
the problems is the main basis for the grade.  There will also be two take-home
exams: a midterm and a final.  Each will take about a week.

There are no in-class exams, though there may be some (unannounced) quizzes.
You will have to pass all of these quizzes to pass the course.

You are encouraged to work together on homework problems and the take-home exams.
Some of the assignments will be quite strenuous, and designed to be too hard for
a person to do alone.  For this reason it is a good idea to form study groups and
get into the habit of collaboration.  We only require that you write up your work
independently, so that what you hand in really is your own work.  Write the names
of the people you worked with at the top of your paper.

Homeworks will generally be somewhat open-ended.  There will not always be a
particular right answer, and the important thing will be how well you present and
support the proposal you come up with.  So two equally good papers might have
different and indeed incompatible solutions.  We can fight about that in class.

Form: use 8 1/2 x 11 paper (lined or unlined) and write on only one side.  Leave
at least one inch margins so that we will have some space to write comments.
Almost all assignments will require more than one page to answer; when there is
more than one page, staple the pages together.  It is not required that you type
or word-process your papers, but they should be neat and legible.

To do well in this course, here are the things you need to do:

	ATTEND CLASS
	ATTEND SECTION
	TURN IN ALL ASSIGNMENTS
	DO THE ASSIGNMENTS CAREFULLY AND WELL

Here are the things we look for in written work:  a written assignment should be

	NEAT
	CLEAR
	CAREFUL
	THOROUGH

Neatness should be self-explanatory; clarity is mainly about the quality of your
writing, but in this course will also concern the relation between what you write
and certain formal representations which we will adopt, as well as argument and
reasoning; in the next few weeks we will point out things that you need to be
careful and thorough about.

Homeworks will be scored on a scale of 1-5 on the basis of these criteria.  The
final grade will be based on an average of the homework and exam scores, with the
midterm and final exams counting about three homeworks each.  We will usually not
write your score on homework papers, but from the written comments you should get
some idea of how you are doing grade-wise.  If you are concerned about your
probable grade, you can come in for an estimate.

Some course policies:

	Attendance is expected.  We will not formally take attendance,
	but we will surely notice any absences.  Absences will have a
	negative effect on the grade.  Particularly if you miss a quiz.

	Sections are mandatory.  You must sign up for and regularly attend
	a section.  New material will be introduced in sections, and you
	will be responsible for it.

	All homework assignments must be turned in.  Failure to turn in a
	homework results in a zero in the record, and (since the homework
	is the most important component of the course) just a few zeroes
	will result in failing the course.  There will be no way to
	make this up.

	Homework turned in late will be accepted; but it will not receive
	the scrutiny and feedback that on-time homework receives.  And it
	will get a score of 1 in the record.  An average score of 2 or better
	will be required to pass.  Late homework will be accepted not later than
	the next class after the homework was due.

We realize that in most courses the syllabus gives you an outline of the course,
with topics and reading assignments and all that.  But in this course there are no
reading assignments, and the topics are mostly a surprise, so you won't get that
here.  What you get is a promise that at the end of the course you will know a lot
about the syntax of English, a bit about the nature of language in general, and
something about how to investigate and argue in an area that is very human, very
formal, and at the same time very empirical.  This can be a lot of work, but it can
also be a lot of fun.