Presentation Technique Feature Analysis - Remastered: Developing an instrument for designing effective digital game-based vocabulary learning activities more

Learning vocabulary incidentally (IVL) can increase lexicon more qualitatively than quantitatively; therefore, many techniques have been proposed to enhance quantitative gains. Among them, technique feature analysis (TFA), and digital game-based vocabulary learning (DGBVL) are the focus of this study. However, the TFA checklist precision was found to be random owing to factors that cause cognitive overload, especially, in DGBVL activities. This study tried to improve TFA by examining the effect of cognitive loads on DGBVL activites. 140 Omani Arabic speakers (18 to 19 year-old) with CEFR A2-level proficiency in English were randomly assigned to three experimental groups, and a control group. A specific DGBVL activity was designed for each experimental group to control a source of cognitive load. Target words were 10 infrequent names of inanimate objects which were replaced with pseudowords. Participants completed their DGBVL activities individually and were tested immediately and three weeks later on 8 aspects of word knowledge. The results showed that controlling sources of cognitive load in DGBVL activities led to a) more effective IVL gains, b) especially in receptive knowledge of orthography and productive and receptive knowledge of meaning recognition, and many more which will be discussed beside introducing the remastered version of TFA.