corpus-enhanced language learning. - · pdf filedemo courses on the backbone moodle website...

CALICO ’09 - Arizona State University, March 10-14, 2009

Corpus-enhanced Language Learning. From corpus data to communication & interaction

Petra Hoffstaedter Steinbeis Transfer Center Language Learning Media (DE) [email protected] www.sprachlernmedien.de

Language Learning Media

Kurt Kohn Applied English Linguistics University of Tübingen (DE) [email protected] www.ael.uni-tuebingen.de

Hoffstaedter & Kohn - CALICO ’09 - Arizona State University - March 10-14, 2009

The “real language” challenge

The pedagogic corpus approach

From corpus search to language learning activities

Insights from pilot studies

Our topics


Language learning is for real life communication! Key principles: authenticity – collaboration – (guided) autonomy Activities: communication – content – tutorial guidance Potential of educational ICT: web 2 – Moodle - ICALL Descriptive corpus linguistics: promises of authenticity & “real” language

From real language to real language pedagogy KWICs, collocations, frequencies Small DIY corpora (Tribble)

Beyond descriptive corpus linguistics Text versus discourse (Widdowson) Pedagogic mediation (Widdowson, Braun, Hoffstaedter/Kohn)

The need for pedagogically motivated corpora & corpus tools!

The “real language” challenge


Pedagogic motivation of corpus compilation & tool development Pedagogically relevant topics ( CLIL), annotation & search tools & enrichment

resources

ELISA: English native speaker interviews (US, UK, Irish, Scottish, Australian) Topics: jobs & professions from different walks of life Conceptual & functional design development

SACODEYL: interviews with English, French, German, Italian, Lithuanian, Romanian and Spanish pupils (13-18 years) Topics: home & family, living routines, hobbies & interests, holidays, school &

education, job experiences, plans for the future, controversial issues Tool development: annotation, browse & search, virtual resource pool & resource

sheets

Backbone: interviews with speakers of pedagogically neglected languages & varieties (PL, TR, ES, DE, EN, ELF) Topics: cultural, social, economic & political issues (regional perspective) Tool development: consolidation & extension

The pedagogic corpus approach


Search is driven by pedagogic demand, e.g.

Content and language integrated learning (CLIL)

Content & grammar

Vocabulary: concordances and co-occurrences

Communicative functions

CEF levels, regional varieties, etc. [http://www.um.es/sacodeyl]

Embedding learning activities in Moodle

Demo courses on the Backbone Moodle website [http://projects.ael.uni-tuebingen.de/backbone]

From corpus search to language learning activities


Feedback from students and teachers

High motivational potential of the authentic interviews

Well suited for practicing listening comprehension, written communication, and vocabulary work

Offers interesting opportunities for autonomous and collaborative learning

Problems

Technical problems with internet access (proxy server and firewall restrictions)

Not enough time and support for the implementation of new methods or approaches

Need for teacher training

Stage 1: use prefabricated Moodle courses based on the Backbone corpora

Stage 2: adapt prefabricated Moodle courses

Stage 3: create new Moodle courses using the Backbone corpora and enrichment resources

Insights from pilot studies


Braun, S., Kohn, K. & Mukherjee, J. (eds.) (2006). Corpus Technology and Language Pedagogy: New Resources, New Tools, New Methods. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.

Hoffstaedter, P. & K. Kohn (2009). “Real language and relevant language learning activities: insights from the SACODEYL project”. In: In: A. Kirchhofer & J. Schwarzkopf (eds.) (2009). The Workings of the Anglosphere. Contributions to the Study of British and US-American Cultures. Trier: WVT.

Kohn, K. (2009). “Computer assisted foreign language learning”. In: K. Knapp & B. Seidlhofer (eds.). Foreign Language Communication and Learning. Handbooks of Applied Linguistics, vol. 6. Mouton de Gruyter.

Kohn, K. (2008) “Telos Language Partner: DIY authoring for content-based language learning”. In: A. Gimeno (ed.) (2008). Computer Assisted Language Learning: Authoring Tools for Web-Based CALL. Valencia: Universidad Politécnica de Valencia.

Widdowson, H.G. (2003). Defining Issues in English Language Teaching. Oxford UP.

Widmann, J., Kohn, K. & Ziai, R. (2008). “The SACODEYL search tool: exploiting corpora for language learning purposes”. TALC Proceedings 2008.

http://www.uni-tuebingen.de/elisa/ - http://www.um.es/sacodeyl/

http://projects.ael.uni-tuebingen.de/backbone

References


thank you for your attention


large native speaker reference corpora of written & spoken English lexicography and grammar

analysis & evaluation of ELT textbooks & grammars

construction of learning tasks based on “real” language and autonomous explorations (“data-driven learning”)

small genre and topic-specific “do-it-yourself” corpora

non-native speaker reference corpora of written and spoken learner English (ICLE, LINDSEI)

non-native speaker corpora of English as a lingua franca (VOICE)

pedagogic exploitation of corpora


orientation and yardstick: communicative & constructivist principles of language learning and teaching autonomy, authentication, collaboration

a serious drawback: the text/discourse discrepancy (cf. Widdowson 2003)

the ELISA approach (cf. Braun 2006: www.uni-tuebingen.de/elisa) video-recorded spoken interviews with American, British, Irish and Australian

speakers of English from different walks of life

pedagogical adaptation

section-based topic annotation

pedagogically relevant enrichment resources, e.g. audio/video files, concordances, ready-made language learning tasks (Telos Language Partner)

corpus search and discourse authentication

small pedagogic corpora


European Minerva project Sacodeyl (www.um.es/sacodeyl)

7 corpora of 20-25 video interviews (10 min. each) with British, French, German, Italian, Lithuanian, Rumanian and Spanish pupils between 13 and 18

interview topics include home & family, present & past living routines, hobbies & interests, holidays, school & education, job experiences, plans for the future and open discussion topics

orthographic transcripts organized in (thematic) sections

pedagogical annotation by interview section annotation categories include e.g. topic, grammar, lexis, cohesion, register, CEF

level (with appropriate subcategories) sections are annotated according to pedagogic saliency

enrichment resources by interview section video files and Telos learning packages instructions for explorative & communicative learning activities in BLL scenarios

(moodle/classroom)

the Sacodeyl interview corpora


emphasis is on corpus tools that support a “do-it-yourself” approach

a transcriptor (desktop) for producing orthographic transcripts (.txt) with sections and metadata (e.g. id, speaker, video name)

an annotator (desktop) for producing annotated & enriched XML files teachers can define their own annotation categories annotation categories are linked to sections in a drag & drop fashion enrichment resources are attached to sections via “resource sheets”

containing web links to video files and learning materials

a web-based virtual resource pool for managing resource addresses and resource sheets

the browse & search web interface with a flexible combination of options browsing the entire corpus and running concordance analyses searching for words, word combinations and co-occurrences in different search

spans from sentence to section to interview searching for sections according to thematic, linguistic a/o CEF features displaying links to available enrichment resources (via resource sheets)

Sacodeyl corpus tools


Telos architecture


Telos task formats


moodle connection


Sacodeyl annotation


Sacodeyl virtual resource pool


Sacodeyl corpus search


content based search: content & grammar

Learning activity


learning activity on prepositions


lexical search - co-occurences

Learning activity


lexical activity - co-occurences


lexical search - concordances

Learning activity


lexical activity - concordances


communicative functions

Giving opinions

corpus-enhanced language learning. - · pdf filedemo courses on the backbone moodle website...

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