PhD Handbook: Language, Literacy & Culture
Language, Literacy and Culture (LLC) is an area of emphasis within the Education Ph.D. at UC Davis. It is also the intellectual home of a diverse faculty and group of students who participate in a rich array of research, teaching and service programs.
Faculty Areas of Interest
LLC faculty members have research and teaching interests that address a diverse range of topics, including: instructional approaches to teach reading, writing and literature; second language/biliteracy development; early/emergent literacy; academic literacy in multiple subject areas; social and cultural contexts of literacy; cognitive processes in literacy development; psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic studies of literacy development; assessment of language and literacy; literacy challenges of work, the professions, and everyday life; teacher preparation in language and literacy; cognition and socialization of teachers of language and literacy; critical perspectives on literacy curricula; home/school bridges in literacy development; literacy interventions for underachieving children and youth; language variation and dialect in literacy development; multi-modal discourse in schools, families, communities, and peer groups; technologies of teaching, learning and language development; and critical and cross-cultural perspectives on literacy, curricula, technology, and assessment.
LLC Requirements
All students are required to complete at least 32 units of emphasis area course work. Each student and his or her faculty adviser proceed within the framework of one of hte emphases listed below to select 32 units of emphasis area course work and complete other degree requirements. Alternatively, students with interests across two or more of these emphasis areas may work with their faculty advisers to select an appropriate combination of course work that draws from more than one emphasis.
Students with the LLC emphasis are required to take 32 LLC units. Of these 32 units, a core of the following must be satisfied:
* 1 course in reading or response to literature
* 1 course in writing
* 1 course in second language acquisition
- LLC Graduate Course Offerings in Education
205A - Ethnographic Research in Schools I: Current Theory and Practice (4) (M) - 205B - Ethnographic Research in Schools II: Field-Based Research Projects (4) (M)
- 206B - Inquiry in Teaching Practice: Intervention & Data Collection (4) (M)
- 229 - Language Policy (4)
- 235 - Critical Pedagogy (4)
- 242 - Research on Text Comprehension (4)
- 243 - Research on the Teaching and Learning of Writing (4)
- 244 - Topical Seminar in Language, Literacy, and Culture (4)
- 245 - Theory and Research in Early Literacy (4)
- 246 - Sociocultural Perspectives on Reading (4)
- 247 - Research on Response to Culturally Diverse Literature, K-12 (4)
- 249 - Discourse Analysis in Educational Settings (4) (M)
- 251 - Research in Bilingual and Second Language Education (3)
- 252 - Multicultural Teaching and Curriculum (3)
- 253 - Language and Literacy in Linguistic Minorities (3)
(M) denotes Research Methods class with strong language and/or culture emphasis, often more suited for students in at least second year (consult advisor). For LLC emphasis area students, these methods courses can count toward either required advanced methods coursework or required LLC emphasis units (not both).
Sample LLC Graduate Courses in Other UCD Departments
Some linguistics courses are listed; others from anthropology, psychology, cultural studies, American Studies, English, etc. can count as LLC emphasis courses as approved by advisor.
Courses in Linguistics
- 264* - Linguistic Issues in Language and Gender (4)
- 280 - Second Language Acquisition Theory (4)
- 281 - Research Methods in Second Language Acquisition and Development (4) (M)
- 302 - Current Research in TESOL (4)
Strongly Recommended Courses in Learning Theory and Research Writing
- 208 - Presenting Educational Research in Written Reports (4)
- 210 - The Psychology of School Learning (4)
- 211 - Social & Situative Perspectives on Learning & Cognition (4)
LLC Faculty Advisers
Primary faculty advisers for students in the LLC emphasis area are Steven Athanases, Barbara Merino, Sandra Murphy, Jon Wagner, Karen Watson-Gegeo, and Yuuko Uchikoshi (School of Education), Cecelia Colombi (Spanish), Suad Joseph (Anthropology), Julia Menard-Warwick (Linguistics), Jay Mechling (American Studies), and Stephano Varese (Native American Studies). Clinical teacher education faculty involved with LLC related work include Michele Leonard Fortes, Joanne Galli-Banducci, Pauline Holmes, and Anna Kato.
Dual emphases
Students can design a program of study that combines the LLC emphasis with other designated emphasis areas such as Second Language Acquisition, Critical Theory, Cultural Studies, Women's Studies, Native American Studies, Performance Studies, etc. Such a designated emphasis may have particular requirements, including the writing of one qualifying exam paper in that area.
* Any course marked with an asterisk is a proposed course with a tentative course number. Proposed courses are offered as sections of EDU 292, Special Topics in Education, until they have completed the approval process.