A Workshop on Corpus Linguistics

Corpus linguistics explores aspects and features of language based on huge textual corpora that draw on an array of tools it has at hand. In this workshop, we will introduce a widely-used term extraction software: WordSmith Tools. This software can be used both for research purposes (e.g., vocabulary research) and for pedagogical ends (e.g., teaching writing). The tool can produce a list of all the words or word-clusters in a text, set out in alphabetical or frequency order. The concordancer, Concord, provides a chance to view any word or phrase in the context in which it appears. With KeyWords, of course, one can find the pivotal words in a text. In the classroom, teachers, for example, can compile a corpus of their students’ writing throughout a term and use this software to monitor their writing ability, providing insight into the most common (or the missing) grammatical patterns or lexical items, in a way that is exclusive to that particular group of students. Such procedure can lend itself to a bottom-up qualitative approach resulting in a better local understanding, which, in a sense, can hardly be found in descriptive grammar. In general, the computer-mediated analysis of huge corpora provided by the software permits an unprecedented evidence-based analysis of a variety of language features, describing not only patterns of form, but also how form and meaning are inseparable. In sum, the software can creatively be used to explore textual patterns or/and to enhance educational methods.