Error-tagged Learner Corpora and CALL
A Promising Synergy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/cj.v20i3.465-480Keywords:
Learner Corpus, Corpus Annotation, Error Tagging, Concordance, CALLAbstract
Learner corpora--electronic collections of foreign or second language learner data--constitute a new resource for second language acquisition (SLA) and foreign language teaching (FLT) specialists. They are especially useful when they are error-tagged, that is, when all errors in the corpus have been annotated with the help of a standardized system of error tags. This article describes the three-tiered error annotation system designed to annotate the French Interlanguage Database (FRIDA) corpus. The research took place within the framework of the FreeText project which aims to produce a learner corpus-informed CALL program for French as a Foreign Language. Once annotated, the FRIDA corpus was put through standard text retrieval software to extract detailed error statistics and to carry out concordance-based analyses of specific error types. The results were used to focus the CALL exercises on learners' attested difficulties and to improve the error diagnosis system integrated in the CALL program.
References
Dagneaux, E., Denness, S., & Granger, S. (1998). Computer-Aided Error Analysis. System, 26 (2), 163-174.
Dulay, H., Burt, M., & Krashen, S. (1982). Language Two. New York: Oxford University Press.
Ellis, R. (1994). The Study of Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Granger, S. (Ed.). (1998). Learner English on computer. London & New York: Addison Wesley Longman.
Granger, S., Meunier, F., & Watrin, P. (Forthcoming). Correction automatique du français langue étrangère : rêve ou réalité ? Analyse comparative de trois logiciels.
Granger, S., Vandeventer, A., & Hamel, M.-J. (2001). Analyse des corpus d’apprenants pour l’ELAO basé sur le TAL. Traitement automatique des langues, 42 (2), 609-621.
James, C. (1998). Errors in language learning and use. Exploring error analysis. London & New York: Longman.
Milton, J., & Chowdhury, N. (1994). Tagging the interlanguage of Chinese learners of English. In L. Flowerdew & A. K. Tong (Eds.), Entering text (pp. 127-143). Hong Kong: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Ringbom, H. (1987). The role of the first language in foreign language learning. Clevedon & Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters.
Scott, M. (1996). WordSmith Tools. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Wehrli, E. (1997). L’analyse syntaxique des langues naturelles: Problèmes et méthodes. Paris: Masson.