ERIC Number: EJ1296398
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 27
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0958-8221
EISSN: N/A
Using Collocation Clusters to Detect and Correct English L2 Learners' Collocation Errors
Computer Assisted Language Learning, v34 n3 p270-296 2021
In this article, we describe an online English collocation explorer developed to help English L2 learners produce correct and appropriate collocations. Our tool, which is able to visually represent relevant correct/incorrect collocations on a single webpage, was designed based on the notions of collocation clusters and intercollocability proposed by Cowie and Howarth. As they pointed out, in a collocation cluster L2 learners generally cannot distinguish true collocations (e.g., "tell truth," "state truth," and "state fact") from impossible combinations (e.g., *"say fact" and *"say truth"). Accordingly, our tool applies natural language processing techniques to construct collocation clusters to enable learners to easily differentiate between correct and incorrect pairs. Relying on data from a reference corpus, our system instantaneously processes the collocability of users' target combination (verb-noun or adj-noun) and all other relevant words and presents true/false collocations that L2 learners should master/avoid. To assess our tool, we investigated its performance in detecting and correcting learners' V-N and A-N errors, with results comparable to those of most previous studies. Piloted using a sample of 13 intermediate- or upper-intermediate level English as a foreign language learners, our tool was found to help them self-correct their collocation errors effectively. Compared with similar tools or approaches, our tool requires much less data resources, but still demonstrates a remarkable capability to detect/correct errors and generate useful collocational knowledge in English.
Descriptors: Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, English (Second Language), Error Correction, Phrase Structure, Computer Software, Natural Language Processing, Computational Linguistics, Nouns, Verbs, Teaching Methods
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A