Teachers’ perceptions of incorporation of corpus-based approach in English language teaching classrooms in Karachi, Pakistan

Abstract

The objective of the study is to understand language teachers’ perceptions regarding incorporating a corpus-based approach, i.e., corpus-based teaching methodology in English Language Teaching (ELT) classroom contexts. The design of the study is qualitative. The sample is taken from 19 English language teachers who are currently enrolled as students of Master of Applied Linguistics at NED University, Karachi, Pakistan. The instrument of the study is an open-ended questionnaire and also a focus groups based on semi-structured interviews. A thematic analysis of the interviews is conducted, as a result of which different themes emerged that conform to the benefits of incorporating corpus-based materials and activities in ELT classrooms. The findings show that use of a corpus-based teaching methodology in ELT classrooms is accepted as a new strategy for teaching different aspects and skills of English language such as vocabulary, grammar, reading, and writing. The pedagogical implications are found to be significant for curriculum designers, ELT teachers, and administrators at educational institutes where they want to enhance their students' interest and motivation levels. Material designers, corpus-based tools researchers, and teachers are suggested to collaborate for designing effective corpus-based materials for teaching as it increases the reliability of the teaching material.