Capturing oral forms of linguistic landscape in the public teaching space

Abstract In sociolinguistics, the concept of linguistic soundscaping is developed to document the formation of social spaces over time as influenced by linguistic actions. Using a multimodal perspective, this enquiry looks into the dynamic and interactive nature of the typical linguistic soundscape, situating the issue in a public teaching-and-learning space at a university in China. The study adopts a method of linguistic sound walks, to capture real-time sensory encounters with the linguistic soundscape and to understand how these auditory elements influence students’ perceptions of their environment. The study focuses on two main perspectives: the objective characterisation of the linguistic soundscape within university public spaces, and the subjective perceptions of students experiencing these soundscapes. The first perspective involves systematically documenting and categorising the types of sound present, providing a comprehensive overview of the auditory environment. The second perspective explores how students interpret and react to these soundscapes, revealing insights into their sensory experiences and evaluations of their learning environment. These perspectives are combined to demonstrate the importance of the auditory dimension in shaping educational experiences and social interactions within university settings. The findings highlight the diversity and complexity of the linguistic soundscape, emphasising its role in fostering a sense of community and influencing students’ emotional and cognitive responses to their surroundings. This study contributes original insights into the multimodal nature of linguistic landscapes and underscores the value of auditory elements in understanding social spaces in educational contexts.