3.

Semantics
Syllabus also curriculum a description of the contents of a course of instruction and the order in which they are to be taught. Language-teaching syllabuses may be based on (a) grammatical items and vocabulary (see STRUCTURAL SYLLABUS) (b) the language needed for different types of situations (see SITUATIONAL METHOD) (c) the meanings and communicative functions which the learner needs to express in the TARGET LANGUAGE (see NOTIONAL SYLLABUS) Notional syllabus also notional-functional syllabus (in language teaching) a SYLLABUS in which the language content is arranged according to the meanings a learner needs to express through language and the functions the learner will use the language for. The term NOTIONAL is taken from NOTIONAL GRAMMAR. A notional syllabus is contrasted with a grammatical syllabus or STRUCTURAL SYLLABUS (one which consists of a sequence of graded language items) or a situational syllabus (one which consists of situations and the relevant language items (see SITUATIONAL METHOD)). A notional syllabus contains: a. the meanings and concepts the learner needs in order to communicate (e.g. time, quantity, duration, location) and the language needed to express them. These concepts and meanings are called notions. b. the language needed to express different functions or SPEECH ACTS (e.g. requesting, suggesting, promising, describing). These notions and functions are then used to develop learning/teaching units in a language course. Functional syllabus (in language teaching) a SYLLABUS in which the language content is arranged in terms of functions or SPEECH ACTS together with the language items needed for them. For example, the functions might be identifying, describing, inviting, offering,

etc. in different types of DISCOURSE (i.e. speech or writing). The language skills involved might be listening, speaking, reading, or writing. The language items needed for these functions are called exponents or realizations. For example:
Type of discourse spoken Skill speaking listening Function asking for directions Vocabulary bank harbour museum Exponents Structures Can you tell me where X is? Where is X?

Often this term is used to refer to a certain type of NOTIONAL SYLLABUS. Componential analysis 1. (in semantics) an approach to the study of meaning which analyses a word into a set of meaning components or semantic features. For example, the meaning of the English word boy may be shown as: [+human] [+male] [-adult] Usually, componential analysis is applied to a group of related words which may differ from one another only by one or two components. This approach was developed in ANTHROPOLOGICAL LINGUISTICS for the study of kinship and other terms in various languages. 2. any approach to linguistics which analyses linguistic units, usually words or sounds, into smaller parts or components. This approach has been used in phonology and semantics. Lexical field also semantic field the organization of related words and expressions (see LEXEME) into a system which shows their relationship to one another. For example, kinship terms such as father, mother, brother, sister, uncle, aunt belong to a lexical field whole relevant features include generation, sex, membership of the fathers or mothers side of the family, etc. The absence of a word in a particular place in a lexical field of a language is called a lexical gap.

For example, in English there is no singular noun that covers both cow and bull as horse covers stallion and mare. Semantic feature also semantic component, semantic properties the basic unit of meaning in a word. The meanings of words may be described as a combination of semantic features. For example, the semantic feature [+male] is part of the meaning of father, and so is the feature [+adult] but other features are needed to give the whole concept or sense of father. The same feature may be part of the meaning of a number of words. For example, [+movement] is part of the meaning of a whole group of verbs and nouns, e.g. run, jump, walk, gallop. Sometimes, semantic features are establishes by contrasts and can be stated in terms of [+] or [-], e.g. child [+human] man boy Base component also phrase structure component (in TRANSFORMATIONAL GENERATIVE GRAMMAR) the part dealing with syntax is divided into two components: the base component and the TRANSFORMATIONAL COMPONENT. The base component generates the basic sentence patterns of a language; the transformational component transforms these into sentences. The base component consists of a set of rules and a vocabulary list (lexicon) which contains morphemes and idioms (see under LEXICAL ENTRY). The main rules are called phrase structure rules or rewrite rules. For example, the rule S NP + VP means that a sentence (S) can be analyzed (rewritten) as consisting of a noun phrase (NP) and a verb phrase (VP). The rule VP V (+NP) [+human] [+human] [-adult] [+adult] [-adult] [+male] [+male]

means that a verb phrase can be further rewritten as simply a verb or as a verb and noun phrase. The lexicon gives information about the class that a word belongs to, e.g. N for nouns, V for verbs, and information about the grammatical structures with which the word may occur. For example, the English verb sleep cannot have an object after it. The simplified table below shows the rules and lexicon which are necessary to form the basic sentence structure for the baby slept. Phrase Structure Rules 1. S NP + VP 2. NP DET(erminer) + N (non) 3. VP T(ense) + V(erb) 4. T(ense) PAST A diagram, called a tree diagram, may show the way the rules are applied and how the words from the lexicon are fitted in for a particular sentence. This simplified diagram shows the basic DEEP STRUCTURE for the sentence The baby slept. S baby: N sleep: V Object the: DET Lexicon

NP DET the N baby T PAST

VP V slept

The rules of the transformational component change the above structure into the sentence The baby slept (surface structure). Generative semantics an approach to linguistic theory which grew as a reaction to Chomskys syntacticbased TRANSFORMATIONAL GENERATIVE GRAMMAR. It considers that all sentences are generated from a semantic structure. This semantic structure is

often expressed in the form of a proposition which is similar to logical propositions in philosophy. Linguists working within this theory have, for instance, suggested that there is a semantic relationship between such sentences as This dog strikes me as being like her master. and This dog reminds me of her master. because they both have the semantic structure of X perceives that Y is similar to Z. Interpretive semantics a theory about the place of meaning in a model of TRANSFORMATIONAL GENERATIVE GRAMMAR. It considers a meaning component, called the semantic component, as part of the grammar. This component contains rules which interpret the meaning of sentences. This theory differs from GENERATIVE SEMANTICS, which insists that the semantic component is the most basic part of a grammar from which all sentences of a language can be generated (see GENERATIVE GRAMMAR, RULE2). In generative semantics, syntactic rules operate on the meaning of a sentence to produce its form. In interpretive semantics, semantic rules operate on the words and syntactic structure to reveal its meaning. Transformational-generative grammar also transformational grammar, TG grammar, generative-transformational grammar, generative transformational theory a theory of grammar which was proposed by the American linguist Chomsky in 1957. It has since been developed by him and many other linguists. Chomsky attempted to provide a model for the description of all languages. A transformational generative grammar tries to show, with a system of rules, the knowledge which a native speaker of a language uses in forming grammatical sentences (see COMPETENCE). Chomsky has changed his theory over the years. The most well-known version was published in his book Aspects of the Theory of Syntax in 1965. It is often referred to as the Aspects Model or Standard Theory. This model consists of four main parts:

a. the BASE COMPONENT, which produces or generates basic syntactic structures called DEEP STRUCTURES. b. the TRANSFORMATIONAL COMPONENT, which changes or transforms these basic structures into sentences called surface structures. c. the phonological component, which gives sentences a phonetic representation so that they can be pronounced (see GENERATIVE PHONOLOGY). d. the semantic component, which deals with the meaning of sentences (see INTERPRETATIVE SEMANTICS). The relationship of the four components to one another can be seen in the simplified diagram below:
semantic component base component Example Ann1 + PAST = injure Ann1

transformational component semantic interpretation phonological component

Ann+injured+herself

[n indd hself]

Chomsky and others later modified the Aspects Model. They felt that not only the base component but also the transformational and phonological components had some effect on the semantic interpretation of a sentence (Extended Standard Theory). Competence (in TRANSFORMATIONAL GENERATIVE GRAMMAR) a persons internalized grammar of a language. This means a persons ability to create and understand sentences, including sentences they have never heard before. It also includes a persons knowledge of what are and what are not sentences of a particular language. For example, a speaker of English would recognize I want to go home as an English sentence but would not accept a sentence such as I want going home even though all the words in it are English words.

Competence often refers to the ideal speaker/hearer, that is an idealized but not a real person who would have a complete knowledge of the whole language. A distinction is made between competence and PERFORMANCE, which is the actual use of the language by individuals in speech and writing. Performance (in TRANSFORMATIONAL GENERATIVE GRAMMAR) a persons actual use of language. A difference is made between a persons knowledge of the language (COMPETENCE) and how a person uses this knowledge in producing and understanding sentences (performance). The difference between linguistic competence and linguistic performance can be seen, for example, in the production of long and complex sentences (see RECURSIVE RULE). People may have the competence to produce an infinitely long sentence but when they actually attempt to use this knowledge (to perform) there are many reasons why they restrict the number of adjectives, adverbs, and clauses in any one sentence. They may run out of breath, or their listeners may get bored or forget what has been said if the sentence is too long. Psycholinguists attempt to describe how competence is used in the actual production and understanding of sentences (performance). In second and foreign language learning, a learners performance in a language may indicate his or her competence (see PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS). There is also a somewhat different way of using the term performance. In using language, people make errors (see SPEECH ERRORS) or false stars. These may be due to performance factors such as fatigue, lack of attention, excitement, nervousness. Their actual use of language on a particular occasion may not reflect their competence. The errors they make are described as examples of performance.

Highlights
A Syllabus is a description of the contents of a course of instruction and the order in which they are to be taught.

A Notional syllabus (in language teaching) is a SYLLABUS in which the language content is arranged according to the meanings a learner needs to express through language and the functions the learner will use the language for. A Functional syllabus (in language teaching) is a SYLLABUS in which language content is arranged in terms of functions or SPEECH ACTS together with the language items needed for them. Componential analysis (in semantics) is an approach to the study of meaning which analyses a word into a set of meaning components or semantic features. The Lexical field (also semantic field) is the organisation of related words and expressions (see LEXEME) into a system which shows their relationship to one another. The Semantic feature (also semantic component, semantic properties) is the basic unit of meaning in a word. Generative semantics considers that all sentences are generated from a semantic structure. Interpretive semantics considers a meaning component, called the semantic component, as part of the grammar. Competence is a persons internalized grammar of a language. Performance is a persons actual use of language.

Questions
1. What can be language-teaching syllabuses based on? 2. What is a notional syllabus contrasted with? 3. What does a notional syllabus contain? 4. What is a lexical gap? 5. What does a base component consist of? 6. What does a tree diagram show? 7. What is the difference between generative semantics and interpretive semantics? 8. Describe Chomskys Aspects Model or Standard Theory. What is the difference between competence and performance?