Corpora and Language Learning with the Sketch Engine and SKELL

THOMAS, James Edward, Adam KILGARIFF, Simon SMITH and Fredrik MARCOWITZ. Corpora and Language Learning with the Sketch Engine and SKELL. Revue Française de Linguistique Appliquée. Paris: Publications linguistiques, 2015, vol. 20, No 1, p. 61-80. ISSN 1386-1204.

Basic information

• Original name: Corpora and Language Learning with the Sketch Engine and SKELL
• Authors: THOMAS, James Edward (36 Australia, belonging to the institution), Adam KILGARIFF (826 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, guarantor), Simon SMITH (826 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) and Fredrik MARCOWITZ (826 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland).
• Edition: Revue Française de Linguistique Appliquée, Paris, Publications linguistiques, 2015, 1386-1204.

Other information

• Original language: English
• Type of outcome: Article in a journal
• Field of Study: 60200 6.2 Languages and Literature
• Country of publisher: France
• Confidentiality degree: is not subject to a state or trade secret
• WWW: Revue Française de Linguistique Appliquée
• Impact factor: Impact factor: 0.031
• RIV identification code: RIV/00216224:14210/15:00085436
• Organization unit: Faculty of Arts
• UT WoS: 000355571100005
• Keywords in English: corpora; language teaching; Sketch Engine; SKELL; learner corpus; data-driven learning
• Tags: mzok, rivok
• Tags: International impact, Reviewed

Abstract

We introduce the idea of using corpora – the linguist's name for "big data" – in language research, and sketch its history, first in linguistics in general, then in language learning and teaching. We then take a careful look at the hazards of using corpora in language learning, and arrive at some maxims for when and how they have a place: firstly, don't scare the students; then, use the corpus when the dictionary does not tell you enough, and moreover, disguise the corpus as a dictionary. We then introduce Sketch Engine, and show how it implements these ideas through SKELL, its language-learner interface. We show how corpora can be used, both in the classroom, and in the background, for syllabus design, where we have used corpora of learner output to identify patterns of overuse and underuse, with implications for what needs teaching.