King Faisal University College of Arts Foreign Languages Dept.

Higher Studies Applied Linguistics Program

Name: Saja Khalaf I.D.Number:212587665 Course Number: 602 12th Feb-2012

Applied Linguistics: A Twenty-First-Century Discipline Critical Synopsis Even if applied linguistics is approximately new discipline, when I say new give or take a hundred years, it made many debates, about its beginning, its job and its resources. William Grabe in his article Applied Linguistics: A Twenty-First-Century Discipline mentioned several of these debates, starting with brief knowledge about applied linguistics history. The first beginning for this field was in the 1948 with the publication of A Journal of Applied Linguistics. Although this start may not the first emerging for applied linguistics but it was the most brilliant one. In the 1950s the term of applied linguistics reflected linguists' insight that could be applieded to second language teaching(L2) and sometimes to first language (L1) literacy. Indeed the term remained working with application of linguistics to language teaching and related language issues. In the 1960s applied linguistics strengthened L2 teaching as applied linguistics and expanded the use of language in other realms. In 1960s applied linguistics appeared as a real language based problems solving enterprise. The role of applied linguistics kept growing in the 1970s, till it became a discipline that addresses real-world language- based problems. In that period applied linguistics focused on language teaching beside other subfields like language assessment.

In the 1980s applied linguistics stepped noticeable steps toward a systematic way beyond language teaching and language learning issues to cover language assessment and language policy. In the 1980s applied linguistics emphasized range of issues addressed and the types of disciplinary resources used. By the beginning of the 1990s, applied linguistics stood in two layers of foundations, applied linguistics appeared as joined many subfields and depending on many disciplines, like education. Actually applied linguistics has developed during the 1990s and 2000s. at the same time, linguistics itself developed and remained a core resource for applied linguistics. Additionally, applied linguistics should depend on knowledge bases of phonics, phonology and other parts of linguistics even if applied linguistics may not depends on it in all cases. Grabe noted seven obvious developments that have emerged over the last twenty years, for example: Applied Linguistics research in language teaching and language learning is now placing considerable emphasis on notions of language awareness and learning. Moreover, because many people bilingual and there is a need to negotiate life situations, and multilingualism deals with issues in bilingual education and migrations of people to new language settings, applied linguistics emphasis in research addresses multilingualism and bilingual interaction in different settings. After all we shouldn't forget that applied linguistics try to solve languagebased problems that people face in the real world. For instance, applied linguistics addresses language policy problems, language contact problems and so many problems which related to language. These problems lead applied linguistics to use knowledge from other fields in order to resolve them, so that some linguists said that applied linguistics interdisciplinary discipline. Fundamentally, the definition of applied linguistics has made many debates. Widdwoson for example, indicated that applied linguistics is not an interdisciplinary discipline but it's make a connection between theoretical plan of linguistics and its application to problems that arise.

After all these debates it's obvious that applied linguistics is a discipline that use other resources from other disciplines to address language problems. With all these arguments linguists agree on several points, one of them that applied linguistics has many of the markings of an academic discipline. From my point of view, collaboratively with other fields will give applied linguistics the opportunity to address language problems effectively.