A corpus-based analysis: The types of transition markers in the MA theses of native speakers of English and Turkish speakers of English

Abstract

This study has been conducted to evaluate transition marker (TM) types in the MA theses written by the native speakers (NSs) of English and Turkish speakers (TSs) of English. The purpose is to compare the most salient transition types of the NSs and TSs randomly selected theses introduction, results and discussion, and conclusion sections in the field of ELT between 2010 and 2014. The Keyword in Concordance (KWIC) was used to analyze the data. TM types were analyzed in terms of percentages, frequencies per 1,000 words and they were interpreted by calculating the log-likelihood (LL) value if there was a significant difference in their usage. The results illustrated that the frequencies, and frequencies per 1,000 words of the most salient transition type usage in the sections were different.