AR-Supported Mind Palace for L2 Vocabulary Recall

Authors

  • Alexia Larchen Costuchen Universitat Politècnica de València, Camí de Vera, s/n, 46022 València
  • José María Font Fernández Malmö University, Nordenskiöldsgatan 1, 211 19 Malmö, Sweden
  • Minos Stavroulakis Malmö University, Nordenskiöldsgatan 1, 211 19 Malmö, Sweden

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i13.25073

Keywords:

augmented reality, mnemonics, visuospatial bootstrapping, second-language learning, vocabulary retention

Abstract


MnemoRoom4U is an AR (Augmented Reality) tool that uses a memory-palace strategy for foreign-language training. A memory palace helps information recall with the aid of object association in visualizations of familiar spatial surroundings. In MnemoRoom4U, paper or digital flashcards are re-placed with virtual notes containing L1 words and their L2 translations that are placed on top of real physical objects inside a familiar environment, such as one’s room, home, office space, etc. The AR-supported notes aid associative memory by establishing a relationship between the physical objects in the user’s mind and the virtual lexis to be retained in L2. Learners first set up a path through their familiar environment, attaching virtual sticky notes—each containing a target word to be memorized together with its corresponding source-language translation—to real-life objects (e.g. furniture in their homes or offices). They then take the same path again, reviewing all the words, and finally carry out a retention test. MnemoRoom4U is a technological artifact designed for specific didactic purposes in the Unity game engine with the ARCore augmented-reality plug-in for Android. This work takes a Design-Science approach with phenomenological, exploratory underpinnings tracking back to the efficiency of spatial mnemonics previously reported quantitatively and combines it with AR technology to effect L2 vocabulary recall.

Author Biographies

Alexia Larchen Costuchen, Universitat Politècnica de València, Camí de Vera, s/n, 46022 València

Alexia Larchen Costuchen is a Ph.D. candidate at the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain. She was invited as a visiting researcher to Malmö University to co-supervise the development of a mnemonic technological artifact in collaboration with José María Font Fernández. Her current research interests include cognitive linguistics and innovations in second-language teaching. She is a member of the GIEL research group (GIUV2013-081) at the University of Valencia, Spain, and is currently participating in gamification and game-design projects in Ireland and Spain.

José María Font Fernández, Malmö University, Nordenskiöldsgatan 1, 211 19 Malmö, Sweden

José María Font Fernández is a senior lecturer in Computer Science and Media Technology at Malmö University and a member of the Egocentric Interaction research group. He focuses on artificial intelligence and computational intelligence in games, exploring the ways in which AI can contribute productively and creatively to the video-game development process, as in procedural content generation or as a mixed-initiative creative tool. He is also active in gamification, e-learning, and purposeful games.

Minos Stavroulakis, Malmö University, Nordenskiöldsgatan 1, 211 19 Malmö, Sweden

Minos Stavroukalis is the developer of the MnemoRoom4U application via the Unity game engine and Google ARCore. The application formed part of his Bachelor´s degree thesis at the Computer Science and Media Technology department at Malmö University, Sweden.

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Published

2022-07-11

How to Cite

Larchen Costuchen, A., Font Fernández, J. M., & Stavroulakis, M. (2022). AR-Supported Mind Palace for L2 Vocabulary Recall. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (iJET), 17(13), pp. 47–63. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i13.25073

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Section

Papers