2025 Summer school > General

Summer school: Theories and Data in Linguistic Research

Embark on an immersive exploration of language at the Summer School on Theories and Data in Linguistic Research! This program invites young researchers and students to explore the interface between linguistic theories and empirical methodologies, led by leading experts across diverse fields of linguistics.

Language of instruction

All workshops will be conducted in English. However, participants may ask questions in French to the French-speaking instructors; these will be translated and answered in English.

Aims of the summer school

This summer school offers a unique opportunity for in-depth reflection on two fundamental aspects of linguistic research: building a robust theoretical framework and selecting the most appropriate methodological approaches to guide research work.

The instructors will address these aspects across various linguistic domains:

• Theoretical linguistics and usage-based approaches
• Corpus linguistics
• Cognitive linguistics, multimodality, and language acquisition
• Experimental linguistics

By intersecting these approaches, we aim to provide participants with theoretical and practical tools to enrich and refine their own research within a stimulating and dynamic environment.

Instructors

Bert Cappelle — University of Lille, France

Gaëtanelle Gilquin — UCLouvain, Belgique

Fanny Meunier — CNRS BCL, Nice, France

Cornelia Müller — European University Viadrina, Allemagne

Program highlights

From the expressive world of gestures and languages with Cornelia Müller, you’ll investigate how gestures shape and interact with language(s). Through hands-on analyses and the innovative "Toolbox of Methods for Gesture Analysis," participants will examine the mimetic, spatial, and temporal dynamics of gesture in multimodal communication.

Explore the cognitive architecture of the mental lexicon with Fanny Meunier, unraveling the role of morphology in language processing. This course bridges theory and practice, offering direct experience with experimental techniques like EEG and fMRI, empowering students to interpret neural and behavioral data through interactive experimentation.

Take a guided journey through corpus linguistics with Gaëtanelle Gilquin, discovering how corpora can inform linguistic theory and language pedagogy. From compiling and analyzing corpora to hands-on training with tools like AntConc and Sketch Engine, this course equips participants to harness corpus data to answer complex research questions.

Finally, with Bert Cappelle, you will be introduced to Construction Grammar as an approach that views constructions as form–function pairings organised in a network. While some of its foundational assumptions call for critical scrutiny, the framework nonetheless proves useful—as will become clear through the detailed unpacking of the constructions found in a single sentence.

Each instructor offers three 90-minute sessions blending theory, data analysis, and practical workshops. Whether you're refining your own research, testing hypotheses, or rethinking linguistic paradigms, this Summer School provides a vibrant space to develop cutting-edge insights at the intersection of theory and data.

For more information on the program, click here.

Applications 

The school can accommodate up to 60 participants. We welcome applications from young researchers (e.g., Master students, PhD candidates, postdoctoral researchers).

• Deadline : June 30, 2025.

To apply, you can use this link, in French: https://enquetes.univ-lille.fr/index.php/825395?lang=fr  

Or this one, in English: https://enquetes.univ-lille.fr/index.php/825395?lang=en

Registration fee

• General registration fee: €170 (for researchers, faculty members, and post-docs)
• Student registration fee: €130 (requires proof: a certificate from the doctoral school/administration of your institution or a copy of your valid student card for the current academic year, 2024–2025)

Registration includes access to the summer-school workshops, course materials, refreshments during coffee breaks, and lunches on 4 and 5 September 2025.

Payment Methods – Important Information

For accounting reasons, registration can only be completed via credit card.

Please note that purchase orders and bank transfers are not accepted, and on-site payment will not be possible.

Thank you in advance for your understanding.