Although their objects of study largely overlap, second language acquisition studies and learner corpus research also present some major differences. In my introduction I will compare the two approaches and identify the features that uniquely distinguish learner corpus research from previous studies of learner language. I will describe some of the new insights provided by the careful analysis of learner corpora, focusing primarily on the use of the passive for grammar and of phraseological units (in particular, collocations and lexical bundles) for lexis. Based on an analysis of the two phenomena in some recent pedagogical grammars and textbooks, I will suggest changes that could be implemented to bring teaching tools closer to learners’ corpus-attested needs.