Kohn 2013 Pedagogic corpora: from real language to relevant language learning activities, TESOL...
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Pedagogic Corpora From real language to relevant language learning activities Kurt Kohn University of Tübingen (DE) Steinbeis Transfer Center (DE) [email protected] Language Learning Media http://projects.ael.uni-tuebingen.de www.sprachlernmedien.de Twitter: @kurtkohn – LinkedIn - Facebook Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
description
In this presentation, I first give a brief overview of descriptive corpus linguistics and the exploitation of descriptive corpora for pedagogic purposes within the framework of data-driven learning. Following a critical evaluation from a cognitive discourse perspective, I then argue for a pedagogic corpus approach in which corpus conceptualization and design are vitally shaped by the pedagogic orientation itself. This concerns in particular pedagogic motivation of corpus content development, including corpus annotation with pedagogically relevant thematic and linguistic categories, content enrichment to facilitate authentication, as well as online searches beyond the familiar concordances. The approch is illustrated with reference to copora available from the EU project “BACKBONE – Corpora for Content and Language Integrated Learning”. The BACKBONE corpora contain video interviews in English, German, French, Polish, Spanish and Turkish as well as in European manifestations of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF); they are freely available for non-commercial educational use. Moodle-based pilot courses are deployed to demonstrate how BACKBONE search results can be used to facilitate individual and collaborative learning activities in blended learning settings.
Transcript of Kohn 2013 Pedagogic corpora: from real language to relevant language learning activities, TESOL...
Pedagogic Corpora From real language to relevant
language learning activities
Kurt Kohn
University of Tübingen (DE) Steinbeis Transfer Center (DE) [email protected] Language Learning Media http://projects.ael.uni-tuebingen.de www.sprachlernmedien.de
Twitter: @kurtkohn – LinkedIn - Facebook
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Corpora – horses for courses
One of the tenets of CLT is AUTHENTICITY > access to REAL language
Reference and research corpora of written and spoken texts
Representativeness for description purposes
POS tagging, frequency lists, KWIC concordances
Written and spoken English native speaker corpora, e.g. Brown (1 mio), BNC (100 mio), Bank of English (650 mio), COCA (450 mio), ICE (1 mio each)
Small genre and topic-specific “do-it-yourself” corpora
Learner corpora (e.g. ICLE, Lindsei)
English as a lingua franca corpora (> VOICE, ELFA)
→ Corpus-based reference dictionaries and grammars
COBUILD Dictionary (1987)
COBUILD Grammar (1990)
Longman Grammar of Spoken & Written English (1999)
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013 2
Example of a KWIC concordance
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013 3
Corpus-driven vs. corpus-based analysis & description [Tognini-Bonelli 2001]
Data-driven language learning (DDL) [Boulton 2009, Johns & King 1991, Krishnamurthy 2001, Repper 2010]
Corpora as collections of authentic written and spoken texts and representative of “real language” from genuine communicative situations
Activities & exercises based on concordance output to enable students to notice & explore regularities of patterning in the target language usage to work out rules for themselves
The “real language” misunderstanding → real language data = decontextualized texts
[=> Widdowson’s (2004) text/discourse distinction]
→ Focus is on form (based on concordances = keywords in “context”) [=> the co-text/context distinction]
→ learners as “researchers”: observe > hypothesize > experiment
The driving force of learning is the corpus
Pedagogical application of descriptive corpora
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013 4
A flaw in modern descriptive-linguistic thinking: the dissociation of grammatical knowledge and grammar learning from communication
Language learning aims at communication, and it is (only) possible through communication
Communication comes before meaning and meaning comes before form
Meaning and communication reach out beyond form
Our ability to communicate and our ability to understand each other have the same cognitive, emotional and behavioral basis
Learning a language involves the cognitive, emotional and behavioral
creative construction of one’s own version of it
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Language learning and communication
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Communicative/constructivist concepts & principles
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) Dimensions of communicative competence: „grammatical“,
„socio-linguistic“, „discourse“, „strategic“ [Canale 1983]
Communication as learning objective and learning method
Authenticity ‘genuine’ vs. ‘authentic’ & ‘authentication’
[Widdowson 2003]
Learner autonomy Guided Autonomy Learner autonomy needs to be
developed (⇒ ‘life-long learning’ )
Task-based / Project-based Learning
Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL/EMILE)
Collaborative learning
Communication IS collaboration!
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013 6
The social constructivist justification
From descriptive corpora to pedagogic corpora
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Backdrop: communicative & constructivist principles of LL&T
Pedagogical mediation of descriptive corpora [Widdowson 2003] More than pedagogically mediating sth that exists before mediation
Corpora specifically designed and developed for PEDAGOGIC purposes Pedagogically relevant genres and topics
Pedagogical annotation
Pedagogically relevant enrichment resources, e.g. audio/video files, concordances, ready-made language learning tasks
Pedagogically motivated search functions
Focus on form within a communicative approach: discourse authentication through communicative & collaborative blended learning activities (Moodle)
ELISA : the mother of (our) pedagogical corpora [Braun 2006] video-recorded spoken interviews with American, British, Irish and Australian
speakers of English from different walks of life
The driving force of learning is the learner
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BACKBONE Pedagogic corpora for Content & Language Integrated Learning
The EU LLP project BACKBONE (2009-2011) (http://projects.ael.uni-tuebingen.de/backbone )
8 partners 7 European countries: France, Germ., Ireland, Poland, Spain, Turkey, UK
Focus on authentic language support for CLIL settings lesser taught languages (Polish, Turkish) regional & socio-cultural varieties of more frequently taught languages (English,
French, German, Spanish) European non-native speaker manifestations of English as a lingua franca
7 language subcorpora (video-recorded interviews & presentations) topics: cultural, social, economic & political issues, regional perspectives pedagogical annotation and enrichment (language learning materials)
BACKBONE pedagogical corpus tools Tools for transcription, annotation & enrichment, corpus management, and search
Pedagogical piloting was carried out in Moodle-enhanced CLIL settings secondary, higher and vocational education.
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013 8
Pedagogically relevant (interview) topics
Corpus search [http:purl.org/backbone/searchtool]
Browse, Section search, Co-occurrences, Concordances, Lexical lists
Enrichment resources: video/sound, exercises, learning instructions
Pedagogical application: from corpus search to Moodle courses
Tools for “do it yourself” corpus creation
Corpus enrichment: Virtual Resource Pool (VRP)
Pedagogical transcription, annotation & management
Development teams:
University of Tübingen (Germany): Kohn, Widmann, Vacarius, Wetzel, Ziai
University of Murcia (Spain): Pérez-Paredes, Alcaraz Calero
BACKBONE Pedagogical design, use and creation
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Kohn 2012
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Pilot courses and evaluation results
24 pilot courses: 6 target languages (English, French, German, Polish, Spanish, Turkish) – CLIL orientation – Moodle/ blended learning
Typical pilot course design: video-based awareness – forum discussion – comprehension checks (TELOS) – collaborative thematic/linguistic corpus explorations – spoken interaction in class – summary writing (forum, assignment)
Teacher training and support area (Moodle): information, instructions, hands-on practice => pedagogy, BACKBONE, Moodle – demo course networking & collaboration
E-learning integration: still marginal – need for teacher training and support – technological problems and challenges
Overall positive feedback: thematic vocabulary explorations – writing and speaking – comprehension practice (diversity of voices & regional accents, ELF) – focus on form in thematic contexts – self-study potential – exploration & communication – high level of perceived success – positive ratings by teacher
E-learning activities: significantly foster key principles of communicative and constructivist learning (autonomy, authenticity, collaboration) – computer lab NOT the most suitable solution, RATHER data projection and internet access in class combined with individual & collaborative learning outside class
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Boulton, A. (2009). Testing the limits of data-driven learning: language proficiency and training. ReCALL, 21: 37-54
Braun, S., Kohn, K. & Mukherjee, J. (eds.) (2006). Corpus Technology and Language Pedagogy: New Resources, New Tools, New Methods. Peter Lang.
Braun, S. (2006). ELISA: a pedagogically enriched corpus for language learning purposes. In Braun, Kohn & Mukherjee (eds.). Corpus Technology and Language Pedagogy. Peter Lang, 25-47.
Canale, M. (1983). From communicative competence to communicative language pedagogy. In Richards & Schmidt (eds.). Language and Communication. Longman, 2-27.
Johns, T. & P. King (eds.) (1991). Classroom Concordancing. University of Birmingham: Centre for English Language Studies .
Kohn, K. (2009). Computer assisted foreign language learning. In Knapp & Seidlhofer (eds.). Foreign Language Communication and Learning. Handbooks of Applied Linguistics, vol. 6. Mouton de Gruyter. [download]
Kohn, K. (2012). The BACKBONE project: pedagogic corpora for content and language integrated learning. Objectives, methodological approach and outcomes. Eurocall Review 20/2. [download]
Krishnamurthy, R. (2001). Learning and teaching through context - A data-driven approach. TESOL Spain Newsletter 24. [download]
Repper, R. (2010). Using Corpora in the Language Classroom. Cambridge UP. Tognini-Bonelli, E. (2001). Corpus Linguistics at Work. Benjamins. Widdowson, H.G. (2003). Defining Issues in English Language Teaching. Oxford UP. Widdowson, H.G. (2004). Text, Context, Pretext: Critical Issues in Discourse Analysis. Blackwell.
References
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013 11
Over to you
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Now think of what you would like to do with BACKBONE
Do you find the concept of pedagogical corpus design pedagogically appealing?
Does this kind of corpus/blended learning integration fit in with your language learning and teaching objectives and purposes?
Which topics and communication genres would you be interested in?
Would you like to develop your own BACKBONE corpora?
What about networking and collaboration?
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Thank you
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Cultural issues customs/traditions - arts – sports - new technologies
Economic issues fishing & agriculture, automotive industry, world of labour, trade unions
Urban and rural life
Social issues minorities and fringe groups, immigration multicultural society
Health & social security national health system, hospitals, health professions, welfare and social benefits
Education educational system & institutions, vocational education, educational mobility
The environment climate change, traffic & pollution, renewable energies, environmental policy
Government & politics political system, institutions & parties, mayor, city council, local government
BACKBONE Interview Topics
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Search – “Browse” function
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Search – „Section Search“ function
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Search – „Section Search“ results
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Search - Access to Learning Resources
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Learning modules for listening comprehension and focus on form and vocabulary
Instructions for exploratory and communicative activities
BACKBONE Learning Resources: Telos exercises Listening comprehension
and focus on form
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Learning Resources: instructions for exploratory and communicative activities
Collaboration (Wiki)
Forum discussions
Exploring interviews
Internet research
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Search – „Co-occurrence“
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Search – „Concordance“
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
Users can enter up to 3 key words and restrict their search to selected thematic domains
BACKBONE Search – „Lexical lists“
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
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Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Virtual Resource Pool (VRP)
Enrichment resources in a Virtual Resource Pool Links to video + audio files Links to learning modules (e.g. TLP packages)
and blended learning patterns
accessible via resource sheets
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Learning Resources: Telos exercises Listening comprehension
and focus on form
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Learning Resources: instructions for exploratory and communicative activities
Collaboration (Wiki)
Forum discussions
Exploring interviews
Internet research
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
The BACKBONE Transcriptor Tool
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
BACKBONE Annotation
Annotation
Annotation at section level
Annotation categories customized to capture, e.g. topics, grammatical, lexical, textual characteristics, and CEF level
Drag & drop annotation
Collaborative annotation
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
The BACKBONE Annotator Tool
Kurt Kohn, “Pedagogic Corpora: From real language to relevant language learning activities”, TESOL Arabia, 16 March 2013
