The Impact of Computer-Assisted Language Learning Applications on Incidental Vocabulary Recall and Retention

This study reports on an investigation into the effect of Computer Assisted Vocabulary Learning (CAVL) on fostering the incidental vocabulary gain of 62 pre-intermediate teenage learners of English studying in a languageinstitute in Iran. These participants were randomly assigned to CAVL and traditional teacher-led groups. Additionally,the two groups’ perceptions towards Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) and Computer-Assisted Learning(CAL) were surveyed and compared. A multimedia application integrating contextual cues, frequency of occurrence,dictionary definitions, and textual and audio annotations, was developed uniquely for the purposes of this experimental research. In order to measure and compare the vocabulary recall and retention of the two groups, a pretest-posttestresearch design was utilized. The results of the immediate posttest demonstrated that the students in the CAVL groupsignificantly outperformed those of the non-CAVL group, confirming superior recall of the new words. Although thelatter groups’ scores on the delayed posttest were also higher than the former groups’ scores, in comparison to theimmediate posttest, a considerable decrease in the CAVL groups’ vocabulary retention was observed. Moreover, even though both groups perceived CAL as an effective method of learning, the perceptions of the participants in the CAVL group were more positive toward CALL

Keywords:

Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) , Computer Assisted Vocabulary Learning (CAVL) , incidental vocabulary learning , vocabulary recall , vocabulary retention