Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Contemporary Means and Methods in ELT and Applied Linguistics, Cem Can; Paschalia Patsala; Zoi Tatsioka, Editör, Lychnos-Printhouse, Tallinn, ss.51-77, 2019
A Learner Corpus-Based Study on the Use of English Prepositional Verbs of Turkish EFL Learners
As learner corpora have presently
become readily accessible, it is now practicable to examine interlanguage
errors and carry out error analysis (EA) on learner-generated texts. The data
available in a learner corpus enable researchers to investigate authentic
learner errors and their respective frequencies in terms of types and tokens as
well as contexts in which they regularly occur. The need to consider these
authentic learner errors in the design of useful language learning programs and
remedial teaching materials has been widely emphasized by many researchers (see
e.g., Juozulynas, 1994; Mitton, 1996; Cowan, Choi, & Kim, 2003; Ndiaye
& Vandeventer Faltin, 2003; Allerton et al., 2004). This study aims at
analyzing the errors pertaining to the use prepositional verbs by Turkish EFL
learners across six distinct proficiency levels, A1-A2; B1-B2; C1-C2, as
defined by Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (henceforth
CEFR) (Council of Europe, 2001).
Prepositional verbs (PVs) are
classified under the category of lexical items called multiword items (MWIs),
or multiword expressions (MWEs) according to Baldwin (2005). These lexical
items include idioms, phrasal verbs, prepositional verbs, stock phrases,
prefabrications, and formulaic sequences. They are built with two or more words
in the mental lexicon enabling learners to sound more native-like claimed by
Gardner & Davies (2007). The literature in this area highlights the
importance of prepositional verbs in L2 learning (Tetreault & Chodorow,
2008; Hong, Rahim, Hua, and Salehuddin, 2011); however, there is a lack of
empirical studies of these verbs in ESL and EAP writing. The corpus to be used
in this particular study is the Cambridge Learner Corpus (CLC), the largest annotated
test performance corpora which enables the investigation of the linguistic and
rhetorical features of the learner performances in CEFR proficiency bands.
Approach of this study uses the techniques of computer corpus linguistics and
has its roots in the Error Analysis framework as proposed by Corder (1973):
identification, description, classification and explanation of errors.
Keywords:
Learner Corpus, Error Analysis, English as a Foreign Language, Prepositionals