Skip to main content

Language and Society

Language and Society

This satellite highlights the interplay between language and society. Focusing on language in its social conext, our research examines the ways in which identities and relations are produced in language practice, the role of language in social life (including its relationships to power, national identity, ideology, and institutional inequalities), and the dynamics of language within globalisation and intercultural contact.

The satellite brings together researchers from:

  • the School of Education: James Simpson, Mike Baynham, Lou Harvey
  • the School of English: Julia Snell (Convenor), Tony Crowley, Kate Spowage, Mel Evans
  • the School of Languages, Cultures and Societies: Bethan Davies, Gisela Tomé Lourido, Rasha Soliman, James Wilson
  • the Language Centre: Yolanda Cerdá

If you are interested in joining the group, please contact Julia Snell (j.snell@leeds.ac.uk).

We address a broad range of research questions, such as: What are the processes through which linguistic features and styles come to be associated with social meanings? Why do regional dialects persist in the face of overt stigmatisation? What kinds of classroom talk are best for children’s learning? How is language involved in the replication of educational inequalities? How do people communicate across different languages and cultures in diverse urban centres? How are class, gender and ethnic identities constructed through language use? How are language-related issues represented in and by the media?

To address these questions, we draw upon a range of research methodologies and perspectives, including, quantitative variationist sociolinguistics, interactional sociolinguistics, linguistic ethnography, and discourse analysis.

News

Language@Leeds Triennial Showcase: Call for Posters

All researchers and scholars working on language at the University of Leeds are invited to present a poster (or several posters) about their research and scholarship projects. This year, the showcase will be open to internal and external audiences and is entitled: "Language research to address regional and global challenges". It will be an in-person...

Tackling accent bias could improve students’ sense of belonging in HE

Tackling accent bias at universities could improve students’ wellbeing and sense of belonging, according to new research exploring accent discrimination in higher education institutions. Accent discrimination is reported to be widespread at UK Russell Group Universities, and 41% of university students from the North of England express concern that their accent may affect their future success. New research by Gisela...

Policy, Pedagogy and the Policing of “nonstandard” English

To what extent does children’s spoken dialect influence their writing? Does correcting pupils’ speech improve their writing? What consequences might overt correction have for pupil participation and learning? Research by Julia Snell (School of English) and her colleague Ian Cushing (Edgehill University) set out to addresses these questions through investigation of primary school children’s writing,...

View all News

Events

Using Language Analysis in Your Career. Talk by Clare Anderson.

Clare Anderson will speak about the possibilities that exist for using language analysis in the wider world, including building non-academic...

Student Success Forum: Linguistic Diversity and Inequalities in Higher Education

  The Student Success Forums run every other month and provide an opportunity for staff and students to discuss, reflect...

Language and Society: "World Englishes, Capitalism, and Colonialism"

Please join us for two events centred on World Englishes, Capitalism, and Colonialism! Both events are free. You are welcome to...

View all Events