Trial and error on trial: The case of lexical phrases

Language courses have begun to recognize the importance of lexical units larger than single words (e.g., idiomatic expressions). However, the way in which these phrases are introduced is not necessarily optimal. For example, students are often required to choose between correct and incorrect word combinations, despite the confusion this may cause. It is also striking how often the instructional materials rely on trial-and-error procedures, following the popular belief that we learn from mistakes. But do we? In this talk, I will present findings from recent studies that put these practices to the test.