The Potential of Corpus-informed L2 Pedagogy

Corpus linguistic methods have led to many revelations about the nature of language use and language learning which are otherwise untenable. To date, however, these findings have not had major impact on L2 (second and foreign language) teaching, except in a few areas like L2 for specialized purposes. This may be due to a number of reasons, including issues of theoretical commensurability and the nature of ‘teaching revolutions’. Still, corpus continues to influence SLA researchers, and pedagogical innovators continue to design, implement and evaluate corpus-informed L2 curricula. The future of corpus in L2 pedagogy depends on the extent to which this research and innovation can impact professional L2 instructor education and the design of commercial L2 teaching materials, as well as the continuing development of corpora and corpus-informed resources that are accessible, diverse, and adaptable.