The English Profile project, described in the last issue of Cambridge First is now moving ahead with its research programme, led by Cambridge University’s Research Centre in English and Applied Linguistics and the University of Bedfordshire in close collaboration with Cambridge ESOL and the other members of the English Profile group.
The aim of the project is to provide a set of ‘reference level’ descriptions of English at each of the six levels of the Common European Framework – from A1 to C2. These descriptions will give a picture of each level in terms of specific lexical and grammatical features of the language, based on an empirical analysis of the language skills of tens of thousands of language learners from all over the world, comparing these with the way the language is used by native speakers.
The fundamental tool for this research is the Cambridge Learner Corpus – a huge body of material assembled over several years by Cambridge ESOL and Cambridge University Press, drawn from the texts produced by candidates taking the Cambridge ESOL exams. The Corpus gives researchers unprecedented access to information on what learners at each level know, and how this differs according to age, nationality, etc.
The outcome of the research will be a toolkit of multimedia resources which will be useful to everyone involved in the teaching and learning of English, from academics and coursebook authors to teachers and examination candidates.
A key feature of the project is that it will be based on collaboration not just between the members of the English Profile group but also with professionals throughout the world of English language teaching. To find out more about the project and how you can get involved, visit www.EnglishProfile.org