MLAT Memory & Recall of Linguistic Information 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: On the MLAT, the Paired Associates subtest primarily measures your ability to:
- Translate sentences using grammar rules
- Learn and recall word-meaning pairs after a single study period (Correct answer)
- Identify cognates between languages
- Decode phonetic symbols
Correct answer: Learn and recall word-meaning pairs after a single study period
Paired Associates tests how quickly you form and retain arbitrary word-meaning connections, a key component of rote linguistic memory.
Question 2: Which strategy would MOST improve retention of paired vocabulary items on a memory test?
- Reading each pair once very quickly
- Creating a vivid mental image linking the foreign word to its meaning (Correct answer)
- Subvocalizing only the English meaning
- Writing the foreign word without looking at the meaning
Correct answer: Creating a vivid mental image linking the foreign word to its meaning
Elaborative encoding through visual imagery creates stronger memory traces than passive repetition.
Question 3: A test-taker studies 24 word pairs and recalls 18 correctly. Their retention rate is approximately:
- 55%
- 65%
- 75% (Correct answer)
- 85%
Correct answer: 75%
18 divided by 24 equals 0.75, or 75% retention.
Question 4: In the context of linguistic memory, 'interference' refers to:
- Background noise during study
- Previously learned items disrupting recall of new ones (or vice versa) (Correct answer)
- Forgetting due to lack of sleep
- Difficulty pronouncing unfamiliar sounds
Correct answer: Previously learned items disrupting recall of new ones (or vice versa)
Proactive interference (old memories blocking new) and retroactive interference (new memories blocking old) both impair vocabulary retention.
Question 5: Which of the following best describes 'working memory' in the context of language learning?
- Long-term storage of grammar rules
- The temporary mental workspace used to process and hold linguistic information (Correct answer)
- Automatic recall of native language words
- Passive recognition of written text
Correct answer: The temporary mental workspace used to process and hold linguistic information
Working memory temporarily holds and manipulates information, such as keeping a foreign sentence in mind while translating it.
Question 6: On a memory test for linguistic information, 'serial position effect' means that:
- Longer words are harder to recall than shorter ones
- Items at the beginning and end of a list are recalled better than those in the middle (Correct answer)
- Grammar rules learned first are remembered most accurately
- Spelling errors occur more often with unfamiliar alphabets
Correct answer: Items at the beginning and end of a list are recalled better than those in the middle
The primacy effect (strong early encoding) and recency effect (items still in working memory) both benefit list endpoints.
Question 7: When a learner can recognize a foreign word but cannot produce it from memory, this gap is called:
- Encoding failure
- The recognition-recall gap (Correct answer)
- Semantic satiation
- Phonemic blindness
Correct answer: The recognition-recall gap
Recognition requires only identification, while recall requires active retrieval; most learners recognize far more words than they can recall.
MLAT Memory & Recall of Linguistic Information 2
On the MLAT, the Paired Associates subtest primarily measures your ability to: