This book presents a corpus-based study of spoken learner language produced by university-level ESL students in the classroom. Using contemporary theories as a guide and employing cutting-edge corpus analysis tools and methods, the authors analyse a variety of learner speech to offer many new insights into the nature and characteristics of the spoken language of college ESL learners. Focusing on types of speech that are rarely examined, this original work makes a significant contribution to the study and understanding of ESL spoken language at university level. It will appeal to students and scholars of applied linguistics, corpus linguistics, second language acquisition and discourse analysis.

Successful Spoken English demonstrates how spoken learner corpora can be used to define and explore the constituents of successful spoken English. Taking the approach that language learners can speak effectively whilst still using some non-standard forms, this book: Examines databases of transcribed speech from learners at each different CEFR level to analyse what makes a successful speaker of English; Discusses features of communicative competence, including the use of linguistic strategies, organisation of extended stretches of speech, and sensitivity to context; Demonstrates quantitative and qualitative data analysis using corpus tools, looking at areas such as word frequency; Helps to reassess the goals of language learners and teachers, and provides recommendations for teaching practice and for further research. Successful Spoken English is key reading for postgraduate students of TESOL and Applied Linguistics, as well as for pre- and in-service English language teachers.

A practical, insightful exploration of natural spoken English based on 20 varied authentic extracts. Exploring Spoken English is a practical guide to the features of natural spoken English, designed for teachers and advanced learners of English for use in groups and for self-study. The material consists of 20 varied extracts of authentic spoken English drawn from the Cambridge University Press and University of Nottingham corpus of spoken English. Each unit contains an activity for the reader and a line-by-line commentary offering new insights into grammar, vocabulary and discourse patterns in the text. Audio CDs to accompany this book, available to purchase separately, contain all the extracts, some re-recorded for the purposes of clarity.

Using Corpora to Explore Linguistic Variation illustrates the ways in which linguistic variation can be explored through corpus-based investigation. Two major kinds of research questions are considered: variation in the use of a particular linguistic feature, and variation across dialects or registers. Part 1: “Exploring variation in the use of linguistic features” focuses on the study of specific words, expressions, or grammatical constructions, to study variation in the use of a particular linguistic feature. Part 2: “Exploring dialect and register variation” describes salient characteristics of dialects or registers and the patterns of variation across varieties. Part 3: “Exploring Historical Variation” applies these same two major perspectives to historical variation. One recurring theme is the extent to which linguistic variation depends on register differences, reflecting the importance of register as a key methodological and thematic concern in current corpus linguistic research.

This book investigates the effects of corpus work on the process of foreign language learning in ESP settings. It suggests that observing learners at work with corpus data can stimulate discussion and re-thinking of the pedagogical implications of both the theoretical and empirical aspects of corpus linguistics. The ideas presented here are developed from the Data-Driven Learning approach introduced by Tim Johns in the early nineties. The experience of watching students perform corpus analysis provides the basis for the two main observations in the book: a) corpus work provides students with a useful source of information about ESP language features, b) the process of "search-and-discovery" implied in the method of corpus analysis may facilitate language learning and promote autonomy in learning language use. The discussion is carried out on the basis of a series of corpus-based "explorations" by students and provides suggestions for developing new tasks and tools for language learners.

The goal of this book is to make the ideas of corpus linguistics accessible to teachers and, most important, provide ideas, instruction, and opportunities for teachers to use the applications of corpus linguistics in their classrooms. Using Corpora in the Language Learning Classroom is intended for graduate students who are studying applied linguistics or TESOL, for teacher-trainers working with language instructors, and for practicing language teachers who want to better understand corpus linguistics and how to incorporate it into their classroom. The book has three sections: (1) a general introduction to corpus linguistics, which contains a brief look at the theory and principles of corpus linguistics; (2) a section that reviews corpus-influenced materials and commonly used corpora; and (3) a set of corpus-designed activities that rely on several tools (MICASE, COCA, TextSTAT, for example) to teach a variety of language skills. This book does not intend to provide a complete theoretical foundation for corpus linguistics, but it does aim to provide its readers with the basic theoretical underpinnings and tools needed to work with corpora in the classroom in such a way that they are able to more effectively and efficiently help students to acquire a second language.