Underuse of English verb–particle constructions in an L2 learner corpus: Focus on structural patterns and one-word preference

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min-Chang Sung
Keyword(s):  
Structural Type ◽  
Strong Preference ◽  
Structural Patterns ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Linguistic Analyses ◽  
Verb Particle Constructions ◽  
Argumentative Essays ◽  
English Verb ◽  
Quantitative Approaches

AbstractThis study analyzes English verb–particle constructions (VPC) in a learner and a native corpus of argumentative essays, focusing on two important factors: structural patterns of VPCs and preference for one-word verbs (e. g.,delayvs.put off). The results showed that while every structural type of VPC was significantly underused by L2 learners, greater underuse was observed with discontinuous transitive VPCs (e. g.,bring it back). In addition, the frequency of the most underused VPCs in the learner corpus was significantly lower than that of their one-word synonyms, indicating the learners’ strong preference for one-word verbs. Identifying these specific areas of difficulty when learning VPCs, the author explores how contrastive linguistic analyses and corpus-based quantitative approaches can collaboratively contribute to the investigation of complex interlanguage systems.

Querying a Static and Dynamic Learner Corpus

2018 ◽  
pp. 494-511
Author(s):  
Trude Heift ◽  
Catherine Caws
Keyword(s):  
Language Learners ◽  
Data Driven ◽  
User Group ◽  
Proficiency Levels ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Call System ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Activity Types ◽  
Cyclical Process

This chapter discusses the cyclical process of collecting and recycling learner data within the E-Tutor CALL system and presents a study on student usage of its data-driven learning (DDL) tool. E-Tutor consists of a static and dynamic learner corpus for L2 learners of German. The static learner corpus has been constructed from approximately 5000 learners who used the system over a period of five years. These learners provided millions of submissions from a variety of activity types. In addition, all concurrent E-Tutor users contribute data to a dynamic corpus, which allows them to compare and examine their ongoing system submissions to those contained in the static corpus. The authors conducted a study with 84 learners and recorded their interaction with the DDL tool of E-Tutor over one semester. Study results on student usage suggest that investigating sample input of a large, unknown user group might be less informative and of less interest to language learners than their own data. For the DDL tool to be useful for all proficiency levels, training and scaffolding must also be provided.

Use of signalling nouns in a learner corpus

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Flowerdew
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Frequency Data ◽  
Abstract Noun ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
Cohesive Properties ◽  
Intuitive Idea ◽  
Argumentative Essays ◽  
The One ◽  
Error Types

Signalling nouns are nouns which have cohesive properties across and within clauses. A signalling noun is potentially any abstract noun the full meaning of which can only be made specific by reference to its context. Examples of nouns which can function as signalling nouns are attitude, assistance, difficulty, endurance, process, reason, result etc. Signalling nouns in discourse are closely associated with nominalisation and are problematic for learners. Based on a corpus of argumentative essays written by Cantonese L1 learners of English, this paper presents a taxonomy of error types and frequency data of the different error types in the use of signalling nouns. The paper then compares the average number of signalling nouns used per essay with grades awarded to the essays, on the one hand, and the numbers of signalling noun errors according to grades, on the other. In both cases there is a significant correlation. The findings confirm the intuitive idea that the use of signalling nouns adds to the overall coherence of a text.

Three forms of English verb particle constructions

Lingua ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 135 ◽  
pp. 155-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Punske
Keyword(s):  
Verb Particle Constructions ◽  
English Verb

scholarly journals FRAME MARKERS AND COHERENCE IN L2 ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAYS

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 46-71
Author(s):  
Višnja Pavičić Takač ◽  
Sanja Vakanjac Ivezić
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Academic Literacy ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Language Knowledge ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Argumentative Essays ◽  
The Relationship

Academic literacy includes the learners’ ability to use their language knowledge to form articulate texts. In communicative competence models this ability is subsumed under the notion of discourse competence which includes the concepts of cohesion and coherence. Starting from the premise that constructing a coherent text entails efficient use of metadiscourse (i.e. means of explicit text organisation) this study focuses on elements referring to discourse acts, text sequences or stages called frame markers, i.e. items providing framing information about elements of the discourse and functioning to sequence, label, predict and shift arguments, making the discourse clear to readers or listeners (Hyland 2005). It analyses patterns of L2 learners’ use of frame markers, compares them to English native speakers’, and explores the relationship between frame markers and coherence. The corpus includes 80 argumentative essays written by early undergraduate Croatian L2 learners of English at B2 level. The results indicate that foreign language learners’ argumentative essays are characterized by an overuse of a limited set of frame markers. Finally, implications are drawn for teaching and further research.

The interphonology of contemporary English corpus (IPCE-IPAC)

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 275-289
Author(s):  
Nadine Herry-Bénit ◽  
Stéphanie Lopez ◽  
Takeki Kamiyama ◽  
Jeff Tennant
Keyword(s):  
Learner Corpus ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Ongoing Project

Abstract This article presents the IPCE-IPAC corpus, an ongoing project, which has been collected in France, Italy, Spain and China since 2014. The data is collected to investigate the acquisition of segmental and suprasegmental phenomena by L2 learners of English, with a focus on phonemes. The article discusses the methods for the compilation of this original spoken learner corpus, designed to study L2 “interphonology” (Detey, Racine, Kawaguchi, & Zay, 2016), or interlanguage phonology.

scholarly journals Formulaic sequences in native and non-native argumentative writing in German

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 500-525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvia Jaworska ◽  
Cedric Krummes ◽  
Astrid Ensslin
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Argumentative Writing ◽  
Formulaic Language ◽  
Formulaic Sequences ◽  
Advanced Learners ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
Argumentative Essays

The aim of this paper is to contribute to learner corpus research into formulaic language in native and non-native German. To this effect, a corpus of argumentative essays written by advanced British students of German (WHiG) was compared with a corpus of argumentative essays written by German native speakers (Falko-L1). A corpus-driven analysis reveals a larger number of 3-grams in WHiG than in Falko-L1, which suggests that British advanced learners of German are more likely to use formulaic language in argumentative writing than their native-speaker counterparts. Secondly, by classifying the formulaic sequences according to their functions, this study finds that native speakers of German prefer discourse-structuring devices to stance expressions, whilst British advanced learners display the opposite preferences. Thirdly, the results show that learners of German make greater use of macro-discourse-structuring devices and cautious language, whereas native speakers favour micro-discourse structuring devices and tend to use more direct language.

scholarly journals A parametric approach to the acquisition of syntax

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
William SNYDER
Keyword(s):  
Target Language ◽  
Prepositional Phrases ◽  
Commission Errors ◽  
Syntactic Knowledge ◽  
The Third ◽  
Total Absence ◽  
Verb Particle Constructions ◽  
Noun Compounds ◽  
English Verb

Abstract Three case-studies, using longitudinal records of children's spontaneous speech, illustrate what happens when a child's syntax changes. The first, examining acquisition of English verb-particle constructions, shows a near-total absence of commission errors. The second, examining acquisition of prepositional questions in English or Spanish, shows that children (i) may go as long as 9 months producing both direct-object questions and declaratives with prepositional phrases, before first attempting a prepositional question; and (ii) at some point, abrubtly begin producing prepositional questions that are correctly formed for the target language. The third case study shows that in children acquiring English, the onset of verb-particle constructions occurs almost exactly when that child begins using novel noun-noun compounds. After a discussion of the implications for the nature of syntactic knowledge, and for the mechanisms by which it is acquired, two examples are presented of as-yet untested acquisitional predictions of parametric proposals in the syntax literature.

scholarly journals The Use of Linking Adverbials in Malaysian Students’ Argumentative Essays

2020 ◽  
Vol 03 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ummul K. Ahmad ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Language Teachers ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
Southern States ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Small Set ◽  
Argumentative Essays ◽  
Writing Instructors ◽  
Esl Learners ◽  
Malaysian Students ◽  
Integrate Teaching

Many English as a Second Language (ESL) learners’ essays are deemed incoherent as they failed to signpost and facilitate readers’ understanding of their line of arguments—a task that can chiefly be accomplished through the use of appropriate and efficient use of linking devices. This study investigates the use of linking adverbials (LAs) as connective devices in argumentative essays written by pre-university students from Malaysian matriculation colleges. The learner corpus of this study comprises 95241 words from 209 argumentative essays written by students from three matriculation colleges in southern states of Malaysia. About 2465 occurrences of LAs were extracted and then coded according to Liu’s (2008) four-way categorization framework. Similar corpus of 110737 words was also extracted from BAWE corpus as reference. Malaysian learner writers overly relied on a small set of LAs and their essays largely offered one sided argumentation. Students tend to overuse ADDITIVE adverbials (e.g. furthermore) and SEQUENTIAL (e.g. next), mainly to enlist key points and rarely used the more semantically complex ADVERSATIVES (e.g. however). The corpus also revealed that certain LAs were used inappropriately. The findings offer insights for language teachers specifically writing instructors on helping students to prepare for more sophisticated writing tasks that require complex propositions and how to integrate teaching specific linguistics features such as Linking Adverbials.

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