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Article In: ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics: Online-First Articles

Making alliterative collocations memorable

Does vocalisation help?

ORCiD logo with link | Okayama University | University of Birmingham
 | Okayama University
 | Victoria University of Wellington
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
Collocations are a key component of second language (L2) mastery. Yet, their acquisition poses major challenges to L2 learners. One potential solution to this difficulty is employing the mnemonic effect of alliteration (e.g., professional practice). In the present study, 230 Japanese EFL university students learnt alliterative and non-alliterative collocations (e.g., primary purpose vs. primary care) under vocalised and non-vocalised conditions in a within-subject design. Vocalisation frequencies were operationalised (none, once, three, and five times) over four weeks to examine potential differences across repetition frequencies. Immediate and delayed productive recall post-test assessed collocational uptake. Results showed that alliterative collocations yielded greater gains than non-alliterative ones when vocalisation was involved, suggesting a conditional benefit of vocalisation in combination with phonological salience. A modest advantage was observed in the three-times vocalisation condition in the immediate post-test; however, it was not reliably maintained at the delayed post-test.
Article outline
  • Introduction
    • Alliteration and its role in collocation learning
    • The potential of vocalisation for the learning of alliterative collocations
    • The role of repetition frequency for the learning of alliterative collocations
  • The present study
  • Method
    • Participants
    • Materials
    • Procedure
    • Post-tests
    • Scoring and data analysis
  • Results
  • General discussion
    • Limitations
  • Concluding remarks
  • Declaration of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process
  • Note
  • References
References (99)
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