Tracking developmental patterns in learner corpora: Focus on longitudinal studies

The paper first briefly reviews some of the research data and methods used to track development in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) studies. The focus is then narrowed down to data and methods in learner corpus research (LCR) and arguments for the use mixed-method research approaches are presented. The third section consists in a concrete illustration of how such mixed-methods can be implemented through the presentation of a multi-disciplinary project on the acquisition of L2s in immersive and non-immersive settings. The last section includes concluding remarks