Course planning for B.A. in Linguistics with Option in TESOL

Course planning for B.A. in Linguistics with Option in TESOL

When in doubt about the requirements for this (or any) major, check the CSULB Catalog. If there is a conflict between what’s written in the Catalog and elsewhere, the Catalog is what counts.

Required courses:

  • LING 101 Introduction to the World’s Languages (prereq: ENGL 100B or GE Area A2) 
  • LING 170 Introduction to Linguistics (prereq/coreq: GE Foundation course) 
  • LING 300 Professional Development for Linguists
  • LING 325 Modern English Grammar
  • LING 329 Language Acquisition 
  • LING 420 Phonology (prereq: 170)
  • LING 421 Syntax (prereq: 325)

Sociocultural requirement (choose any 1)

  • LING 379 Sociolinguistics (prereq: 170)
  • LING 413 Language and Culture (prereq: 170)
  • LING 477 Language Socialization

TESOL Option-Specific requirements (take these 3 courses)

  • LING 450 – Teaching Second Language Listening and Speaking(3 units)
  • LING 460 – Teaching Second Language Composition(3 units)
  • LING 486 – Second Language Teaching Methods(3 units)

Electives (choose any 4 courses)

  • 301 Introduction to Research Methods (prereq: 170)
  • 310 Morphology of English (prereq: 170) [spring only]
  • 360 The Languages of Africa [spring only]
  • 363 Implications of Human Language (Writing Intensive)
  • 375 Spanish in the US [spring only]
  • 379 Sociolinguistics (prereq: 170) [spring only]
  • 401 Corpus Linguistics (prereq: 170) [fall only]
  • 413 Language and Culture (prereq: 170)
  • 422 Discourse Analysis (coreq: 421) [fall only]
  • 423 Semantics (prereq: 325 or ENGL 320) [fall only]
  • 424 Laboratory Phonetics (prereq: 101 or 170) [fall only] 
  • 425 Education Across Cultures 
  • 426 History of the English Language (prereq: 170) [fall only]
  • 438 Psycholinguistics (prereq: 170) [spring only]
  • 470 Language and Gender in Cross-Cultural Perspective 
  • 472 Language and Social Justice (Writing Intensive)
  • 477 Language Socialization
  • 490 Selected Topics in Linguistics [offered occasionally]
  • 499 Directed Studies in Linguistics 
  • ASLD 306: American Sign Language Linguistics (prereq: 170)
  • EDSS 300A-S – Introduction to Teaching (specifically EDSS 300F and EDSS 300G) (3 units)  

Language requirement: fourth semester level in one language, or second semester level in two languages of which one is not Indo-European.

What order should I take the courses in?

Take the required courses at the earliest opportunity. If you leave a required course until the last semester, you might have to delay graduation if you can’t fit the course in. Also, plan ahead how you will finish your language requirement. 

First priority: LING 101, LING 170, LING 300, and LING 325. Of these, 170 is higher priority, because it is the prerequisite for many other courses.

Second priority: LING 329,  LING 420, LING 421, and Sociocultural Requirement

Third priority: TESOL Option-specific courses (LING 450, 460, and 486)

Fourth priority:  Elective courses. Among these, prioritize those that are offered Fall only or Spring only.