Corpus Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition

Xiaofei Lu is Professor of Applied Linguistics and Asian Studies at The Pennsylvania State University. His research specializations include corpus linguistics, second language acquisition, second language writing, English for Academic Purposes, and computer-assisted language learning. He is the author of Computational Methods for Corpus Annotation and Analysis (2014).

“Corpus linguistics is one of the fastest-growing areas of second language acquisition research. In this timely and compelling overview, Xiaofei Lu shows us why. He illustrates the use of native and learner corpora as objective, sharable evidence of patterns of language uniformity, variation, and growth, and he explains the methods, measures, and tools for analyzing corpus data. An excellent source for researchers and students alike.”Nick Ellis, University of Michigan, USA“This book is a must-read for both beginning and experienced researchers who are interested in corpus-based explorations of second language acquisition. It offers a comprehensive and accessible review and discussion on a wealth of carefully chosen topics that may help unravel the mysteries of second language acquisition.” Lei Lei, Professor of Applied Linguistics, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China“This volume is an excellent resource for those who want to apply corpus methods to the study of second language acquisition. Importantly, the text covers both relevant theoretical constructs (from a range of perspectives) and ways in which these theoretical constructs have and can be operationalized when studying learner language. This book is a must read for SLA researchers, and I look forward to using it in both graduate classes devoted to SLA more generally and those that focus on learner corpus research.”Kristopher Kyle, Assistant Professor of Linguistics, University of Oregon, USA"This book differs from the existing literature in its unified theoretical and practical perspective, which incorporatesrelevant theoretical constructs and ways how the researchers can operationalize the constructs when studying learner language in four core areas of inquiry. It is an excellent resource for corpus-based SLA research. The relationship between SLA and corpus linguistics requires a framework. By describing usage-based approaches and the development of second language constructions, Lu provides valuable and accessible instructions to various learner language corpora and programs available for analyzing these corpora. This includes Lu's own Syntactic Complexity Analyzer. The issues and analytical measures described in the book are essential for researchers to comprehend current and future SLA and task variation research. For second language acquisition researchers and teachers with varying degrees of familiarity with these theories, this is a must-read book."Qiuying Zhao, Associate Professor and Doctoral Candidate, Xi'an International Studies University, China.

• CONTENTSList of TablesSeries Editor’s PrefacePreface1 Introduction Corpus Linguistics Meets Second Language AcquisitionOverview of the BookReferences2 Variation in Second Language UseIntroductionMeasuring Variation in Second Language UseLearner-Related Variables and Variation in Second Language UseTask-Related Variables and Variation in Second Language UseSummaryReferences3 Factors Influencing Second Language Processing and ProductionIntroductionUsage-Based Approaches to Second Language AcquisitionFrequency and ContingencyOther FactorsSummaryReferences4 Second Language Development Trajectories and Influential FactorsIntroductionL2 Development of Complexity, Accuracy, and FluencyL2 Development of Lexical KnowledgeL2 Phraseological DevelopmentL2 Development of Grammatical and Morphosyntactic ConstructionsL2 Development of StanceSummaryReferences5 Variability and Variation in Second Language DevelopmentIntroductionA Complex Dynamic Systems Approach to Second Language AcquisitionInter- and Intra-Learner Variability in Second Language DevelopmentIndividual Variation in Second Language Development SummaryReferences6 ConclusionIntroductionSummary of the BookReflections and Future Research DirectionsReferencesIndex