Word Map

Corpora

What is a Corpus?

A corpus (in plural "corpora") is a collection of texts in a written or spoken form that is accessible through the internet. It shows how language is used in different situations, allowing language specialist to write accurate and precise dictionary entries. This way, dictionaries can be updated by closely tracking and recording all of the latest uses that the language is given by the language speakers, always within their adequate context.

So, let's see two of the corpora in action!

British National Corpus

This is what you find when you look up an expression of your liking. To do the test, I chose "in time".

There are also parallel corpora out there, such as Linguee. This one, in particular, is useful to translate phrases and expressions, because it shows you the expression used in different contexts, both in English and in whichever language interests you (in this case, Spanish). To make an example, I've chosen once again the expression "in time".

Thesaurus

A thesaurus is a special type of dictionary, dedicated to synonyms and antonyms. A good example of an online thesaurus is here. Thesauri are useful tools when you want to avoid overusing the same word, and seek for suitable synonyms, thus helping you write a richer text, with a wider range of lexicon. Similarly, they can help you find an antonym for that word. Even though it is not their specialization, a thesaurus can also give you a brief definition of the word.

For this blog post, I've looked up the word EXAMPLE, because it's a word very often used by teachers and students alike, thus making it an appropriate example (pun intended):

As you can see, there is a list of synonyms underneath the word, all of them colour-coded to indicate the degree of similarity, ranging from the most similar (most saturated colour) to the least (palest colour). There is also a tool which allows you to highlight synonyms by their lenght.

https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/example

Apart from the colour-coded list, this website offers additional resources. Further down on that page there are synonyms of EXAMPLE for particular applications, and those synonyms have in turn their own lists of synonyms.

Comparison of Dictionaries

Comparing several online dictionaries

There are quite a few online dictionaries out there. Some of the most notorious are Oxford Dictionaries, Merriam-Webster and WordReference. Let's compare them! I've looked up the word Ecology in all of them:

Oxford Dictionaries: this dictionary allows you to select your language, Apart from the definition, it gives you examples of sentences, synonyms, and also the etymology and pronunciation. It also gives you the option of thesaurus. Definition of ecology:

1. The branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings.

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/ecology

Merriam-Webster: this dictionary gives you the definition, an option for a thesaurus, examples of usage of the word in recent web publications, the etymology, the date of the first known use of the word and also links to the definition of closely related words. It also gives you the various derivations of the word and their respective pronunciations. Most importantly, it gives you a link to an alternative use of the word in different contexts, and it even gives you alternative definitions, such as the medical definitions and for kids. Ecology:

1. a branch of science concerned with the interrelationship of organisms and their environments.
2. the totality or pattern of relations between organisms and their environment.
3. Human Ecology
4. Environment, Climate
5. also: an often delicate or intricate system or complex (example: "the ecology of language")

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ecology

WordReference: this dictionary mainly focuses on translations. It does have definitions, but those are much shorter and more incomplete than those of the other two dictionaries, and they focus more on example sentences in order to help you understand the meaning. The main purpose of this dictionary is to give translations from one language to another based on the context. Another feature of this dictionary is that it has a forum where people discuss the correct translation of a word based on its context. Ecology:

1. uncountable (science of the environment) ecología
2. untountable (concern for environment) ecología

http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=Ecology

As for my personal preferences, I use the dictionary that suits me most depending on my goals. If I want a monolingual definition of a word, I use Merriam-Webster. For this use, I prefer Merriam-Webster over Oxford most of the time, because from personal experience I've found that M-W tends to have more numerous definitions, and these are more detailed. If however, I want a precise translation of a word from one language to another, WordReference is the way to go. It allows you to find a translation for your word based on the context it's being used in, where you see different examples of sentences of the various uses that the word has. This allows you to find the exact translation that suits you most.

The Learner's Dictionary: this dictionary gives you definitions, examples of the use of each definition, several derivations of the word with an example for each one. All these are accompanied by their respective pronunciations. It's a good first choice dictionary for whenever you find a new word. Let's see our usual example with Ecology:

1. a science that deals with the relationships between groups of living things and their environments.
• She studies plant/marine ecology.
2. the relationships between a group of living things and their environment — usually singular.
• the behaviour and ecology of the great white shark
• the fragile ecology of the desert = the fragile desert ecology

• ecological
• the ecological consequences of water pollution
• ecological awareness
• ecologically
• ecologically sound technologies
• an ecologically stable environment
• ecologist

http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/Ecology

Games and quizzes

Online dictionaries often have games and quizzes where people can test their knowledge of the English language while (hopefully) having fun at the same time. Here's an example of such quiz from Merriam-Webster:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-games/vices-and-virtues

This is a Christmas-themed quiz where you test your knowledge for synonyms of the words "nice" and "naughty". So, have you been good or bad this year?

Students' Needs

Students' Needs

Today, I'm going to talk about the linguistic requirements of for our students in a typical class. For today's assessment, I've chosen the first year of Bachillerato, and the subject will be as usual: Biology. 

During a typical Biology class, students are required to listen to the teacher's lecture, and they often have to read their textbook and also additional materials provided by the teacher (such as articles, newspapers, etc.). Occasionally, the students view a video in class about a topic relevant in class.

In addition to listening, Biology lessons also require students to perform writing tasks, such as compositions and presentations, in order to expose them in front of the class afterwards.

According to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), such activities require the students to have a certain minimal English language skill in order to perform successfully:

1. Lectures: students must follow and understand the lecture, and be able to take notes. CEFR describes B1 as follows: "Can follow a lecture or talk within his/her own field, provided the subject matter is familiar and the presentation straightforward and clearly structured". Therefore, B1 is the minimal suitable level for such tasks.
2. Reading: students are required to be able to read the textbook all by themselves and understand the content. Since textbooks tend to have fairly straightforward texts, the description that best fits is "Can read straightforward factual texts on subjects related to his/her field and interest with a satisfactory level of comprehension", which corresponds to B1. However, besides the textbook, students are also required to read articles and newspapers provided by the teacher, and those may require a higher skill level, such as B2 ("Can read with a large degree of independence, adapting style and speed of reading to different texts and purposes, and using appropriate reference sources selectively. Has a broad active reading vocabulary, but may experience some difficulty with low-frequency idioms.").
3. Watching videos: in order to understand TV reports and documentaries, a minimal level of B2 is required, as described by CEFR: "Can understand documentaries, live interviews, talk shows, plays and the majority of films in standard dialect".
4. Writing and exposition: Bachillerato students are expected to write well-reasoned essays about the relevant topic and be able to argue for and against certain points of view. This description is closest to B2 level: "Can write an essay or report which develops an argument, giving reasons in support of or against a particular point of view and explaining the advantages and disadvantages of various options".

To summarize, 1st-year Bachillerato students are expected to have a language skill level of about B1-B2 in order to make good use of CLIL Biology lessons.

Video: teaching with ICT

Here are a couple of video examples about integrating ICTs into your Science class.

The first video example shows how ICTs and computer programs can be used to enhance the Science teaching experience inside the classroom, by using both internet resources and software. This video is aimed at teachers who teach students ranging from kindergarten to 5th grade:

This video has covered examples of resources such as:

• Televisions: useful to show documentaries in class.
• Video cameras: students can be assigned tasks to make a video about their surrounding environment, usually the playground.
• Digital cameras: students can take pictures of their experiments at home or at school, and share them with the rest of the class.
• Electronic whiteboards: they can be used to draw graphs and charts, which may prove to be easier than drawing them on a computer, with the added advantage that they can be saved. They can also be used to browse the internet and open files, while the students are watching.
• Word processor applications: useful to create assignments, rubrics and handouts. They can also be used to create presentations.
• Software: several software programs, such as Hyperstudio, allow teachers to create their own class material, which can also be handed out to the students to enhance their learning experience. It allows students to perform experiments, introducing all manner of variables, and then record the results with a word processor.
• The internet: probably the most flexible tool of them all, it can be used in class for students to search for information relevant to the lesson, and it gives access to innumerable resources that help teachers plan their lessons.

In addition, I want to share with you an episode of a video series, uploaded to Youtube, which could very well be a good support material for Biology classes at school:

There are quite a few series like this one on Youtube, and they are all good educational materials because they summarise the content of ordinary school lessons and serve as an animated illustration to the mechanisms that allow an organism to function, further enhancing the learning experience.

What is a blog?

Most of us have heard of these "blogs" before, and many of us have visited one at least once. But what are they?

A blog is a website format that allows the owner (referred to as the "blogger") to choose a topic and posts entries related to that topic, which could be information, news, opinions, stories, links to other websites and much more. These entries, commonly referred to as "blog posts", are accessible to anyone with an internet connection, and the blog format allows users to post comments underneath the entries. This also creates an opportunity for the blogger to answer their readers' comments and questions. 

The main difference between a blog and other website formats is that a blog has new entries posted periodically, and these entries are regularly updated. These regular updates are posted in reverse chronological order. Therefore, it could be said that a blog is more dynamic than an ordinary website. This way, we make a distinction between a "blog" and a "static website". To summarize, a blog is basically an online journal, where the blogger posts periodically and shares things with their readers.

Blogs are often used as a support material for another website (static website), which means that another site can have its own blog and use it in order to post regular updates and news about itself. This makes blogs a useful tool to inform and educate their readers. And speaking of education...

Blogs can also be used in the educational field. Following the European Project LTE: Guidelines and Lesson Plans, students can do project work through blogging. The document is about using blogs in language teaching and classifies these blogs as follows:

• Tutor blog: only teachers are able to post new entries, and students can only write comments. These are often used to encourage online and in-class discussions.
• Class blog: a space shared by the whole class, both the teacher and the students can post entries. This one is useful for online discussions on subjects touched upon in class.
• Learner blog: each student has their individual blog, where they write about their own interests and doubts, and they can also post comments on other students' blogs.

Useful links:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog

https://firstsiteguide.com/what-is-blog/

https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/what-is-a-blog-and-how-is-it-different-from-a-website-explained/