Speakers
Description
As English education in Vietnam transitions from treating the language as a foreign subject to a functional second language, learners must move beyond passive theoretical knowledge to achieve active academic fluency. However, a significant "theory-practice gap" remains a primary obstacle. This corpus-based study investigates this gap by examining the usage of four-word lexical bundles in argumentative essays produced by third-year English majors at a Vietnamese pedagogical university. Triangulating corpus data of 50 essays with learner surveys, the findings reveal that despite possessing advanced linguistic knowledge, students struggle to transfer this theory into active writing skills. They exhibit a limited phraseological repertoire, relying heavily on rigid, familiar discourse organizers due to pragmatic uncertainty, a tendency potentially shaped by form-focused learning practices. To reposition English as a living second language, this study advocates for a methodological shift in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) instruction. It provides attendees with practical insights into implementing Data-Driven Learning (DDL) and context-based instruction. By moving away from static vocabulary lists and engaging learners with authentic corpora, educators can empower students to independently resolve pragmatic uncertainties, bridge the theory-practice gap, and develop the flexible phraseological competence characteristic of an expert academic register.
Biography
Ngoc Diep and Quynh Chi are sophomore English majors at Hanoi National University of Education. Their research interests include Corpus Linguistics, English for Academic Purposes (EAP), and phraseological competence. They are passionate about integrating authentic data-driven methodologies into Vietnamese EFL classrooms to enhance learners' academic writing proficiency.
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