The terms discourse and discourse analysis carry a range of meanings, often depending on the disciplinary and/or theoretical perspective of the individual using them. There is a cluster of meanings for these terms as they are used within cultural studies and a different (though sometimes overlapping) set of meanings as they are used with linguistics. This course is taught from a social linguistic perspective, so a linguistic approach will predominate, but students will also survey a variety of theoretical and methodical approaches to discourse analysis. It is assumed that students will have some familiarity with the structure of English grammar, but it is not expected for students to have previous studies in linguistics or in discourse analysis. This is an advanced research course. It is designed for learners to acquire the skills necessary to apply discourse analyses methods that focus on discourse in learning contexts, with special attention paid to mediated-learning environments and distance learning. A focus on structural elements does not preclude analyses of power and identity, but this is not the focus of the course. That focus normally falls under critical discourse analysis which is a different sub-genre of DA.