The path from learner corpus analysis to language pedagogy: some neglected issues
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Abstract
The analysis of learner corpora is often expected to contribute to language pedagogy, but the question of how exactly results from learner corpus studies can be turned into suggestions for language teaching has received practically no attention so far. In this paper, the necessity of discussing this question is pointed out and some directions the discussion could take are outlined. While the typical result of a learner corpus study is the identification of a number of features that are particularly difficult for a certain learner group, it is argued here that suggestions for language teaching should not be based exclusively on the criterion of difficulty and that, moreover, the criterion of difficulty itself needs refining in order to be truly relevant. The discussion of these theoretical issues is based on results from a learner corpus study investigating the use of collocations by advanced learners.