Introduction
The mission of the Linguistics Beyond the Classroom (LBC) program is to introduce students to current empirical research in Linguistics, Second Language Studies, and language-related fields, and to create a pool of participants for relevant research projects at UHM. Having a large participant pool is critical for members of our community involved in human subjects research (mostly graduate students from Linguistics and SLS). As an instructor, you may contribute to LBC’s continued success by signing up the course(s) you are teaching this semester so that your students can receive course credit for participating in a research project.
Quick links
LBC Instructor Sign-Up Form
Project Participation Questionnaire Responses
How does LBC work?
Each semester, instructors will fill out the Instructor Sign-Up Form to indicate that they wish to provide their students with an opportunity to receive course credit (as a required assignment or as extra credit) for participating in LBC. Students then sign up as a research participant in a research project that is currently running, reflect on how their participation related to the topics they are learning in a class, and are rewarded with course credit. All of the coordination and communication between students, researchers, and instructors happens through the LBC website.
Some examples of research projects that students have participated in include: Recording words and sentences in various languages; providing acceptability judgments on grammatical and ungrammatical sentences; participating in a sociolinguistic interview; having their gaze and eye movements tracked while reading or watching language-related videos. Research projects are approved as they come in, and the list of research projects is updated throughout the semester.
All LBC activities contain a clear educational component appropriate for undergraduate students. The LBC committee reviews research projects to ensure they meet our requirements as well as those of UH’s Human Research Protection Program (HRPP). Research projects that may expose students to social or emotional risk (e.g., by identifying the student to their instructor as a member of a protected class or stigmatized group) will not be approved. Researchers are required to adhere to HRPP guidelines, as well as to provide students and instructors with a one-page educational summary of their project, written in layperson-friendly language. Thus, LBC participation is safe, easy, and can be fitted to instructors’ course learning objectives.
Am I required to sign up my courses for LBC?
No. In the past, all sections of LING 102 (Introduction to the Study of Language) were required to included LBC participation as a graded component of the course. (For example, successful participation is worth 5% of the grade; students cannot fail the course because they do not participate in LBC, but not participating means losing 5%.) This is still a recommendation, but no longer a requirement; it is currently at the discretion of each instructor. Most instructors currently offer LBC as an option to earn 2-5% extra credit in a course, not as part of a required “participation grade”.
Which students can participate in LBC?
Generally speaking, any student of any LING, SLS, or ELI course (and even other courses) can participate. We encourage instructors to allow students to participate in any available project, even if the topic of research is not related to your course content. Taking part in projects outside the scope of the class topic (e.g., LING 150 students participating in a study on English or Japanese) gives students the opportunity to broaden their knowledge of language research. Students should be encouraged to consider how the studies might be applied to the concepts covered in class and what the implications might be, even if they appear unrelated (e.g., how a phonetic experiment with L1 speakers might be applied in an L2 context, or how research on Korean addresses questions that also arise in Austronesian languages).
However, the following restrictions may apply:
- For LING 102 courses, instructors are required to allow their students to participate in any of the available projects for credit.
- For ELI courses, instructors are required to restrict their students to only English-language projects.
- Some researchers will not allow participants who are students of 400-level courses (and above.) This is because students enrolled in higher-level courses tend to have more knowledge of linguistics and language research, and this knowledge sometimes affects their behavior and/or responses to surveys and experiments. Instructors of 400-level and above courses should know that there may be fewer projects that their students are eligible for, although we strive to maintain at least one project per semester that is eligible to students in 400-level and above courses.
- Some researchers will require that participants speak a certain language or have a specific language background in order to be eligible.
- Finally, a student cannot participate in one LBC project and use that to earn course credit for more than one course. In other words, if a student is enrolled in two courses that award LBC credit, they must participate in two different LBC research projects to earn both credits.
What if students cannot participate in a research project?
Students have two options for participating in LBC. Option 1 is participation in a research project, as previously described. Option 2, the Media Response, is available as an alternative to project participation. LBC requires instructors to provide students with this alternative, as a means of ensuring equity and accessibility (some students may not have the time or ability to come to campus; some students may not wish to have their personal data used in research; etc.) and abiding by research ethics protocols (we cannot coerce students into participating in research by providing an academic incentive without non-research-related alternatives).
For Option 2, the Media Response, students write a 500-word summary and personal response to educational media (e.g., a documentary or a podcast episode). As LBC is designed as an educational opportunity for students, Option 2 still meets the educational goal of introducing students to language-related research and current issues. Option 2 is still coordinated through the LBC website, just like Option 1.
In past semesters, the majority of students choose Option 1. Thus, the LBC Committee strives to ensure that at least one research project each semester is open to all students.
Some instructors provide a third option (i.e., a different alternative to Option 1) for course credit, including attending an ELI social hour or event, attending a Linguistics- or SLS-sponsored event, contributing to Multiʻōlelo, or completing an additional unit or quiz (for Unit Mastery courses). NOTE: In the age of generative artificial intelligence, instructors may consider moving away from using short essays, which can be easily generated from basic prompts using online AI tools (a form of academic dishonesty), for course credit, though alternative options must still be accessible and equitable to all students.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Thanks for signing up your course(s)! First, fill out the Instructor Sign-Up Form so that you are in our records. (We add instructors manually each semester, so contact us if you notice any discrepancies.)
- Decide whether the standard Approved Media Response Resources list is okay for your course. Instructors are free to curate it (add or remove certain items) to tailor it more closely to their course content. Please email your curated list to the LBC Committee for verification prior to the last day to add classes. All approved media must be part of the regular or reserve holdings of the school library, or otherwise readily available free of charge to UH students.
- Add a blurb about LBC to your course syllabus, including what kind of credit (regular or extra) and how much will be offered (2-5%) for LBC participation.
- Below is an example of what you would need to include in your syllabus if you decide to participate. Remember: if you offer credit through LBC, you must also offer students an alternative method of earning credit that is not through LBC, for ethical and accessibility reasons. (Feel free to copy-paste this example into your own syllabus, with minimal changes as applicable.)
- Extra credit (3%): You may participate in the Linguistics Beyond the Classroom (LBC) program for an extra 3% credit towards your final course grade. The purpose of this program is for students to get first-hand experience of language research by participating in an on-going research project conducted here at UH. For more information, visit http://ling.hawaii.edu/sites/lbc/. You may complete either Option 1 (research participation) or Option 2 (500-word summary of Linguistics-related media such as a movie or podcast), as outlined on the LBC website. I must receive your completed questionnaire (option 1) or media summary (option 2) by [DATE] for you to receive this credit.
- Introduce your students to LBC when you go over your syllabus by showing them the LBC website, specifically the “Information for Students” page.
- Remind students to sign up early in the semester if they choose to take part in a project. Participation slots are limited and studies are often only open for a limited time, so students may not get to take part in a project if they wait too long.
- Once students participate successfully in LBC, they will either submit a Project Participation Questionnaire (Option 1) or a Media Response Form (Option 2). LBC will automatically send their questionnaire/form to you via email. (The LBC Committee and researcher will also receive copies, which are archived on the LBC website.)
- You are responsible for keeping track of student submissions that you receive via email and grading them for course credit. We recommend using a credit/no credit system for scoring LBC participation.
Questions and Problems
If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions about LBC, please contact the LBC committee. Our contact info can be found on the sidebar at the right (at the bottom on mobile).
If you have questions about the use of human subjects in research, please contact the UH Office of Research Compliance.