ERIC Number: ED394286
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1996-Mar
Pages: 7
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Teaching the Vocabulary of Academic English via Concordances.
Thurstun, Jennifer
A project using a computerized concordancing program in combination with a computerized corpus of academic texts to teach academic English is described. It is intended for native speakers and learners of English, and focuses on frequently-used words common to all academic fields. The vocabulary was selected from an academic word list, and consisted of about 250 items used for various functions of academic writing: stating topic; referring to the literature; expressing opinions tentatively; explaining processes used; reporting research of others; linking ideas correctly; and drawing conclusions. The concordancing program was then used to determine frequency of the terms' use. Resulting lists present students with multiple examples of academic vocabulary items in context. Questions concerning word use accompany the lists. Initial student response to the materials indicates that because the mode of presentation is new, some guidelines for use are needed; students should be instructed to: (1) look at the words surrounding the key term, thinking of meaning; (2) familiarize themselves with patterns of language surrounding the term to answer the questions; (3) practice key terms without referring to the concordance; and (4) create their own writing using the terms to fulfill a particular writing function. Contains 11 references. (MSE)
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Teachers; Practitioners
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (30th, Chicago, IL, March 1996).