Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger

This paper is concerned with the application of technologies developed in other disciplines, in particular with the use of text processing techniques to investigate the problems of second language learner writing in English. The question addressed is whether learner texts produced by L1-Malay lea...

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Main Authors: Roslina Abdul Aziz, Zuraidah Mohd Don
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2019
Online Access:http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14094/1/30438-108026-1-PB.pdf
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author Roslina Abdul Aziz,
Zuraidah Mohd Don,
author_facet Roslina Abdul Aziz,
Zuraidah Mohd Don,
author_sort Roslina Abdul Aziz,
collection UKM
description This paper is concerned with the application of technologies developed in other disciplines, in particular with the use of text processing techniques to investigate the problems of second language learner writing in English. The question addressed is whether learner texts produced by L1-Malay learners at the University of Malaya can usefully be processed using the Constituent Likelihood Automatic Word-tagging System (CLAWS); a part-of-speech (POS) tagger developed for and trained on texts written by native speakers of the language. The study adopts the procedure employed by van Rooy and Schäfer (2002).CLAWS was used to automatically POS tag a subset of the Malaysian Corpus of Learner English (MACLE), and the texts were then analyzed for tagging accuracy.CLAWS was found to perform less well on learner text than on native speaker texts, but still with an accuracy rate of over 90%. The sources of error are traced, and spelling errors are found to be the most common source. Closer inspection indicates that successful tagging is likely to lead to problems downstream in later processing, which suggests that to optimize performance, some modifications will be required in tagger design.
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spelling ukm.eprints-140942020-01-31T22:50:17Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14094/ Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger Roslina Abdul Aziz, Zuraidah Mohd Don, This paper is concerned with the application of technologies developed in other disciplines, in particular with the use of text processing techniques to investigate the problems of second language learner writing in English. The question addressed is whether learner texts produced by L1-Malay learners at the University of Malaya can usefully be processed using the Constituent Likelihood Automatic Word-tagging System (CLAWS); a part-of-speech (POS) tagger developed for and trained on texts written by native speakers of the language. The study adopts the procedure employed by van Rooy and Schäfer (2002).CLAWS was used to automatically POS tag a subset of the Malaysian Corpus of Learner English (MACLE), and the texts were then analyzed for tagging accuracy.CLAWS was found to perform less well on learner text than on native speaker texts, but still with an accuracy rate of over 90%. The sources of error are traced, and spelling errors are found to be the most common source. Closer inspection indicates that successful tagging is likely to lead to problems downstream in later processing, which suggests that to optimize performance, some modifications will be required in tagger design. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2019-08 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14094/1/30438-108026-1-PB.pdf Roslina Abdul Aziz, and Zuraidah Mohd Don, (2019) Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger. GEMA: Online Journal of Language Studies, 19 (3). pp. 140-155. ISSN 1675-8021 http://ejournal.ukm.my/gema/issue/view/1212
spellingShingle Roslina Abdul Aziz,
Zuraidah Mohd Don,
Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger
title Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger
title_full Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger
title_fullStr Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger
title_full_unstemmed Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger
title_short Tagging L2 writing: learner errors and the performance of an automated part-of-speech tagger
title_sort tagging l2 writing learner errors and the performance of an automated part of speech tagger
url http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14094/1/30438-108026-1-PB.pdf
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AT zuraidahmohddon taggingl2writinglearnererrorsandtheperformanceofanautomatedpartofspeechtagger