Corpus Linguistics - LAN00127M

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Module summary

The aim of this module is to provide students with the skills to carry out quantitative corpus work that can in principle be used for research across a range of languages. The first half of the module will introduce the theory and practice of corpus linguistics. The second half will involve individual project work. The assessment is designed to test students’ skills in designing a research project and using corpus tools. It will test students’ ability to access and understand primary literature, develop research questions and hypotheses, and operationalise these in their corpus study of a chosen language.

Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 1 2024-25

Module aims

The aim of this module is to provide students with the skills to carry out quantitative corpus work that can in principle be used for research across a range of languages. The first half of the module will introduce the theory and practice of corpus linguistics. The second half will involve individual project work. The assessment is designed to test students’ skills in designing a research project and using corpus tools. It will test students’ ability to access and understand primary literature, develop research questions and hypotheses, and operationalise these in their corpus study of a chosen language.

Module learning outcomes

On completion of this module a student should be able to:

• understand and discuss the main issues and methodologies of corpus linguistics

• understand the role of corpus data in linguistic research

• be able to evaluate the quality of corpus-resources for languages that they focus on in their research

• carry out linguistic investigations using a variety of corpora and corpus methodologies

• be able to understand the principles underlying widely-used quantitative methods in corpus-based studies

• perform simple statistical tests

A student will develop competence in the following skills:

• recognising and explaining complex patterns in linguistic data

• forming valid generalisations about language from corpus data

• expressing grammatical concepts clearly and concisely

• designing and carrying out a small research project using corpus data

• summarising and presenting findings in a style appropriate to the norms of the discipline

• understanding and applying basic statistical concepts relevant to linguistic analysis

Module content

Week	Topic	Asynchronous Work	Synchronous / live work	Face to face work	Online alternative to f2f
1	What is corpus linguistics?	- Work on practical sheet - Reading	1 lecture 1 practical	1 lecture 1 practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
2	Corpus design and compilation	- Work on practical sheet - Reading	1 lecture 1 practical	1 lecture 1 practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
3	Corpus annotation	- Work on practical sheet - Reading	1 lecture 1 practical	1 lecture 1 practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
4	Research design in corpus linguistics	- Work on practical sheet - Reading	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Lecture 1 Practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
5	Research questions in corpus linguistics	- Reviewing corpus methodology - Reading	1 Lecture 1 Seminar	1 Lecture 1 Seminar	Lectures: Lecture capture Seminar: open hour via zoom link
6	Variables	- Work on practical sheet	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Lecture 1 Practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
7	Data handling; basic statistics	- Work on practical sheet	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Lecture 1 Practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
8	Significance testing	- Work on practical sheet	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Lecture 1 Practical	Lecture: Lecture capture Practical: practice sheet
9	Your project step by step	- Individual project work	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Practical	Work on summatives
10	Telling your story	- Individual project work	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Practical	Work on summatives
11	The structure of a project report	- Individual project work	1 Lecture 1 Practical	1 Practical	Work on summatives

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Essay/coursework	100

Module feedback

Individual feedback returned within the university-mandated marking frame

Indicative reading

Required and optional readings will be posted on the VLE.