Discourse Markers in Sri Lankan English: A Corpus Analysis

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Autore principale: MA Zumla
Natura: Recurso digital
Lingua:Antico inglese
Pubblicazione: Zenodo 2026
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author MA Zumla
author_facet MA Zumla
contents <p>Objective: The objective of the study is to examine the frequency, distribution and communicative functions of discourse markers in Sri Lankan English (SLE) media discourse as well as their pedagogical relevance from TESOL (Teaching English to the Speakers of Other Languages) practitioners’ perspectives. Sri Lankan English (SLE) has evolved into a distinct variety of English due to local linguistic, cultural and socio-political influences. The main focus of study on SLE based on phonological, lexical and syntactic characteristics, pragmatic aspects, particularly the use of discourse markers in spoken interaction remain comparatively underexplored. Methodology: The study uses a mixed-method approach, combining a quantitative corpus-based analysis of 20 episodes of News 1st Newsline interviews hosted by Faraz Shauketaly with qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews with 10 TESOL practitioners currently employed in Sri Lanka. LancsBox was used to analyze the spoken corpus to identify frequently used discourse markers and their functional patterns by using frequency counts, range analysis and concordance analysis. Findings: The qualitative insights show that TESOL practitioners acknowledge the value of discourse markers for spoken fluency development while they are also concerned about learners’ overuse and lack of pragmatic control. Further, practitioners emphasized the use of local discourse markers such as “aneh” and “noh” which reflect the sociolinguistic distinctiveness of SLE. Implication: In conclusion, this study emphasizes the importance of adopting a balanced pedagogical approach which promotes pragmatic awareness through interactive speaking activities and emphasizes the role of discourse markers in maintaining the coherence and authenticity in spoken SLE.</p>
format Recurso digital
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institution Zenodo
language ang
publishDate 2026
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spellingShingle Discourse Markers in Sri Lankan English: A Corpus Analysis
MA Zumla
Discourse markers, Corpus-based analysis, Spoken media discourse, Sri Lankan English, TESOL pedagogy.
<p>Objective: The objective of the study is to examine the frequency, distribution and communicative functions of discourse markers in Sri Lankan English (SLE) media discourse as well as their pedagogical relevance from TESOL (Teaching English to the Speakers of Other Languages) practitioners’ perspectives. Sri Lankan English (SLE) has evolved into a distinct variety of English due to local linguistic, cultural and socio-political influences. The main focus of study on SLE based on phonological, lexical and syntactic characteristics, pragmatic aspects, particularly the use of discourse markers in spoken interaction remain comparatively underexplored. Methodology: The study uses a mixed-method approach, combining a quantitative corpus-based analysis of 20 episodes of News 1st Newsline interviews hosted by Faraz Shauketaly with qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews with 10 TESOL practitioners currently employed in Sri Lanka. LancsBox was used to analyze the spoken corpus to identify frequently used discourse markers and their functional patterns by using frequency counts, range analysis and concordance analysis. Findings: The qualitative insights show that TESOL practitioners acknowledge the value of discourse markers for spoken fluency development while they are also concerned about learners’ overuse and lack of pragmatic control. Further, practitioners emphasized the use of local discourse markers such as “aneh” and “noh” which reflect the sociolinguistic distinctiveness of SLE. Implication: In conclusion, this study emphasizes the importance of adopting a balanced pedagogical approach which promotes pragmatic awareness through interactive speaking activities and emphasizes the role of discourse markers in maintaining the coherence and authenticity in spoken SLE.</p>
title Discourse Markers in Sri Lankan English: A Corpus Analysis
topic Discourse markers, Corpus-based analysis, Spoken media discourse, Sri Lankan English, TESOL pedagogy.
url https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20392067