No abstract

No abstract

This paper shows, on the basis of a comparison of learner corpus data with written and spoken native corpus data, that learners tend to use spoken features when organising their academic writing. Possible explanations are offered to account for this problem of register confusion, including L1 transfer, L2 instruction and developmental factors. Suggestions are also made to help learners become more aware of register variation.

Lexical bundles (LBs) have been described as the 'building blocks of discourse'; in addition to being highly frequent in writing and reducing processing time for readers and writers, they also perform important functions in language. LB choice, however, can vary according to genre, discipline, and different sections of the same text, which poses a challenge for novice L2 writers. This paper explores the use of LBs in a learner corpus of bachelor dissertations written in English by Spanish L1 students in linguistics and medicine, and compares it with published research articles in the same disciplines. By focusing on the introduction and conclusion sections, we identify the most frequent 3-, 4-and 5-word bundles in the corpora, to later study their types, structures, and functions. The results show differences in the use of LBs across disciplines, genres and sections, suggesting pedagogical implications for the inclusion of LBs in the L2 writing curriculum.

No abstract