What is Applied Linguistics?

Dear Students
Welcome to the blog of the Applied Linguistics course.

This blog is aimed to help you go through the different topics we will be dealing in class. Applied Linguistics is surely a wide field, but we will concentrate on the most useful features for your career as a language teacher.

During the first session we will learn about:
The history of Linguistics.
Difference between Linguistics and Applied Linguistics.
The scope of Applied Linguistics.
Main issues of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching and Learning.

The following article will help you understand the aforementioned terms. I encourage you to post your comments and insights about it as well as discussing with your classmates your views on Applied Linguistics.

Defining Applied Linguistics

In order to understand current developments in using the term applied linguistics, it is useful to take a brief look at the past.

Although the roots of applied linguistics can be found long ago, the notion of applied linguistics as known today emerged in the United States in 1941 after the establishment of the English Language Institute at the University of Michigan. Among others, the term was used to label a course applying a so-called “scientific approach” to teaching foreign languages. Those who are associated with the beginning of the field are Charles Fries and Robert Lado. Their initiative resulted in the publication of a new journal Language Learning: A Quarterly Journal of Applied Linguistics in 1948, which, since then, has always had a prominent
position in the development of applied linguistics.

The popularity of the term rapidly grew in the 1950s and 1960s when other new
journals and institutes in many countries emerged with this designation. The journals, along with congresses of the AILA (association internationale de linguistique appliquée), began the process of shaping applied linguistics and promoting its development. “At the pioneering meeting of 1964 the emphasis was highly theoretical; principal themes discussed were automation in linguistics, language teaching, efforts to coordinate research in Europe. The most recurring topic in plenary lectures was translation, and this continued to be a feature at
subsequent congresses in 1972, 1975 and 1984” (Catford 1984: 469). In the early 1970, two new trends in the development of applied linguistics were observed: contrastive linguistics and the psychology of second language learning, both seen from the perspective of educational needs.

There is no doubt that early applied linguistics was largely associated with language
teaching and learning, seeking to bridge the gap between the theoretical achievements of linguistics and the reality of classroom pedagogical practice. Widdowson’s (1979: 1) definition clearly stresses the primacy of language education: “Applied linguistics, as I conceive it, is a spectrum of inquiry which extends from theoretical studies of language to classroom practice.”

The pedagogical preoccupation of applied linguistics gradually gave way to a more
extensive focus by including more aspects of the academic study of language. Since the 1980s, the term has begun to be used to refer to any area of study that is language-related, and the growing diversity of the field may be noted. The trend is well illustrated by Brumfit’s definition (1991: 46): “In addition to what has been traditionally regarded as applied linguistic territory – language education (first, second and foreign language teaching and learning) this definition extends coverage to areas such as clinical and forensic linguistics, lexicography,critical linguistics and translation theory and practice.”

Various interpretations of the term may be seen in recent publications. Lyons, for
example, explains his understanding of the subject matter by claiming that “theoretical linguistics studies language and languages with a view to constructing a theory of their structure and functions and without regard to any practical applications that the investigation of language and languages might have, whereas applied linguistics has as its concerns the application of the concepts and findings of linguistics to a variety of practical tasks, including
language-teaching” (1999: 35).
The same approach may be observed in Crystal (2001: 23)
who defines applied linguistics as “a branch of linguistics where the primary concern is the application of linguistic theories, methods and findings to the elucidation of language problems which have arisen in other areas of experience. The most well-developed branch of applied linguistics is the teaching and learning of foreign languages, and sometimes the term is used as if this were the only field involved”.

This view is also supported by Widdowson (2000: 4) but only in relation to the past. “It all seemed straightforward enough: linguistics decontextualised language from reality, and applied linguistics re-contextualised it, and reconstructed reality in the process. In this respect, linguistics was the science (like physics)
and applied linguistics its technology (like engineering).”
The latest developments in applied linguistics indicate that the term represents up-todate research concentrating on the linguistic analysis of language disorders (clinical linguistics), the use of language in mother-tongue education (educational linguistics), and developments in lexicography, translation and stylistics. It seems that there is an uncertain boundary between applied linguistics and various interdisciplinary branches of linguistics,particularly those which deal with the practical application of “purely” theoretical sciences.

More recently, applied linguistics has been utilised in the study of spoken and written discourse, gender issues in language use, the social stratification of language and language varieties, neurological factors and language dysfunctions, learning strategies, and special learning needs of specific populations. Some applied linguists are concerned with helping planners and policy-makers develop and implement a language policy, or develop programmes for immigrants coming to the United States or other countries.
In addition, there is a specific area that clearly documents the close interaction of
linguistic theory with applied linguistic investigation. It is the area of second language acquisition. SLA is now recognised as a successful independent theoretical area within applied linguistics, with its own international journals and its own international conferences.

CONCLUSION
Applied linguistics is generally perceived as an interdisciplinary field of research for the study of all aspects of language use. Being a non-language-specific field, it primarily deals with mother, foreign and second language acquisition but also examines the relationship between language and such areas as the media, law, or communication. It draws on such well established disciplines as linguistics, social and educational psychology, sociology,anthropology, and education. However, “applied linguistics in this sense must be practised by teachers too if it is to have an effective operational relevance at all” (Widdowson 1991: 6). In contrast to (pure) linguistics, it is driven by real-world problems rather than theoretical
explorations.

Hrehov􀃾ík, Teodor.(2005). What do we teach Applied Linguistics or Language Methodology. University of Prešov, Slovakia.