Collocational competence among Indonesian EFL learners: Types of errors, causes, and pedagogical implications (A descriptive library research)

Abstract

This descriptive library research investigates the nature of collocational competence among Indonesian learners of English as a Foreign Language (EFL), with a focus on identifying common error types, exploring their causes, and examining the pedagogical implications for English language teaching in Indonesia. Collocational competence, the ability to produce natural combinations of words, is essential for achieving fluency and idiomaticity in English. However, EFL learners, particularly in Indonesia, often struggle with collocational accuracy due to limited exposure to authentic language use and the influence of their first language (L1). This study synthesizes findings from both local and international sources, drawing on data involving approximately 250 Indonesian EFL students across secondary and tertiary education levels, as reported in previous empirical studies. By synthesizing findings from both local and international studies, this research identifies frequent lexical and grammatical collocation errors, such as make a photo, strong rain, or interested to, which often result from direct L1 transfer, overgeneralization, and insufficient instructional emphasis on collocations. The study highlights the importance of incorporating explicit collocational instruction and contextualized practice into classroom activities. Pedagogical strategies such as consciousness-raising, the use of corpora, guided exposure to authentic input, and collocation-focused exercises are recommended to enhance learners’ competence. This study contributes to the ongoing discourse in EFL vocabulary teaching and calls for a more systematic and intentional approach to collocational instruction in the Indonesian EFL context.