The impact of visual cues and lexical knowledge on the perception of a non-native consonant contrast for Colombian adults

The study investigates the impact of visual cues and lexical knowledge on the identification of a nonnative phonemic contrast. Twenty native Colombians were tested on an identification task involving 16 minimal pairs of English words, produced by four English speakers, contrasting in the presence of /b/ or /v/ in initial or medial position. The test was run in three conditions: audiovisual (AV), audio only (A) or visual only (V). Prior to the identification task, their knowledge of the lexical items was evaluated; they were also recorded while reading the words. Mean identification scores were higher for the AV than the A condition, but V and AV scores not differ. Relative to previous /b/-/v/ studies with Peninsular Spanish speakers, Colombians relied more heavily on visual cues in their identification of /b/-/v/. Although there was a trend for identification scores to be higher for known lexical items, this effect was not statistically significant. Finally, production accuracy for the /b/-/v/ contrast was not correlated with perception accuracy, but production tended to be more accurate in speakers with better lexical knowledge. The visual weighting results suggest that the degree of visual bias in speech perception may be ‘culture-specific’ rather than merely ‘language-specific’

Individual variability in the perceptual learning of L2 speech sounds and its cognitive correlates

This study explored which cognitive processes are related to individual variability in the learning of novel phonemic contrasts in a second language. 25 English participants were trained to perceive a Korean stop voicing contrast which is novel for English speakers. They were also presented with a large battery of tests which investigated different aspects of their perceptual and cognitive abilities, as well as pre- and posttraining tests of their ability to discriminate this novel consonant contrast. The battery included: adaptive psychoacoustic tasks to determine frequency limens, a paired-association task looking at the ability to memorise the pairing of two items, a backward digit span task measuring working memory span, a sentence perception in noise task that quantifies the effect of top-down information as well as signal detection ability, a sorting task investigating the attentional filtering of the key acoustic features. The general measures that were the most often correlated with the ability to learn the novel phonetic contrast were measures of attentional switching (i.e. the ability to reallocate attention), the ability to sort stimuli according to a particular dimension, which is also somewhat linked to allocation of attention, frequency acuity and the ability to associate two unrelated events

Learning of second language sound contrasts: Effects of training on the perception and production of second language vowel and consonant duration

Listen-and-repeat training has been shown to be an effective tool for the learning of non-native phoneme contrasts. The aim of this thesis was to examine the learning of non-native duration contrasts using short-term listen-and-repeat training with adult learners. Learning results were examined with event-related potentials, behavioral discrimination and identification tasks, and production tasks. In addition, the learning of non-native vowel duration in a classroom setting was investigated. Study I focused on listen-and-repeat training with articulation instructions in the learning of a non-native vowel quality contrast. The results showed that the participants were able to adjust their production of the contrast after only one training session. In Studies II and III, participants underwent two days of training with a nonnative vowel duration contrast, and their performance was measured on trained, untrained and non-linguistic duration contrasts. Study II used behavioral discrimination and production tasks, and Study III additionally used the electric event-related potentials MMN and N1. Study II showed tentative training-related improvements in the discrimination and production of the trained contrast. Study III found increased MMN amplitudes, decreased N1 latencies and improved behavioral discrimination performance for the trained stimuli. Changes to general detection of acoustic duration contrasts were also seen in the elicitation of an N1 response for the untrained contrast. No training-related changes in production were observed. Study IV used a two-day training paradigm on stop and sibilant duration contrasts, measuring learning results with MMN, behavioral discrimination and a production task. No training-related improvement was observed, but a clear difference emerged between the consonant types, with sibilants proving less difficult for the participants than stops. Study V examined the learning of non-native vowel duration contrasts on an intensive language course. Similarly to the listen-and-repeat studies, perceptual identification performance improved, but no improvement was observed in production. Overall, these results suggested that perception of non-native vowel duration contrasts can be improved fairly quickly, and they are learned more easily than production. More research is needed regarding the learning of consonant duration.Vieraan kielen äänne-erojen oppiminen: Harjoittelun vaikutus vieraan kielen vokaali- ja konsonanttikestoerojen havaitsemiseen ja tuottoon Kuuntele ja toista –harjoittelun on osoitettu olevan tehokasta vieraan kielen äänneerojen oppimisessa. Tämän opinnäytetyön tavoitteena oli tutkia vieraan kielen kestoerojen oppimista aikuisilla oppijoilla lyhyen kuuntele ja toista –harjoittelun avulla. Oppimistuloksia mitattiin herätevasteilla, behavioraalisilla erottelu- ja identifikaatiokokeilla, sekä tuottokokeilla. Lisäksi tutkittiin vieraan kielen vokaalikestoerojen oppimista luokkahuoneessa. Osatutkimus I tutki artikulaatio-ohjeilla tuettua kuuntele ja toista –harjoittelua vieraan kielen vokaalilaatueron oppimisessa. Tulokset osoittivat, että osallistujat pystyivät muokkaamaan tuottoaan jo yhden harjoituskerran jälkeen. Osatutkimuksissa II ja III käytettiin kahden päivän kuuntele ja toista –harjoitusta vieraan kielen vokaalikeston oppimiseen. Oppimista mitattiin harjoitellulla, harjoittelemattomalla ja ei-kielellisellä kestoerolla. Osatutkimuksessa II käytettiin behavioraalista erottelua ja tuottokoetta, ja osatutkimuksessa III lisäksi MMN- ja N1-herätevasteita. Osatutkimuksessa II todettiin alustavia parannuksia harjoitellun eron havaitsemisessa ja tuotossa. Osatutkimuksessa III havaittiin harjoitellulla erolla kasvanut MMN-amplitudi, laskenut N1-vasteen latenssi sekä parantunut behavioraalinen erottelukyky. N1-vasteen elisitoituminen harjoittelemattomalle erolle viittasi myös yleisen akustisen erottelukyvyn paranemiseen. Tuoton suhteen muutoksia ei havaittu. Osatutkimuksessa IV käytettiin kaksipäiväistä harjoittelua vieraan kielen klusiili- ja sibilanttikestoerojen harjoitteluun. Oppimista mitattiin MMN:n, erottelukokeen sekä tuottokokeen avulla. Harjoittelu ei parantanut konsonanttien havaitsemista eikä tuottoa, mutta konsonanttien välillä havaittiin selkeä ero, jonka perusteella sibilantit olivat koehenkilöille helpompia kuin klusiilit. Osatutkimus V tarkasteli vieraan kielen vokaalikestoerojen oppimista intensiivisellä kielikurssilla. Kuten aiemmissa osatutkimuksissa, behavioraalinen havaitseminen kehittyi, mutta tuotossa ei havaittu parannusta. Kokonaisuudessaan tutkimukset viittasivat siihen, että vieraan kielen vokaalikestoerojen havaitsemista voidaan parantaa suhteellisen nopeasti harjoittelulla, ja se kehittyy helpommin kuin kestoerojen tuotto. Konsonanttien keston oppimisen suhteen tarvitaan jatkotutkimusta

The effect of perceptual training on the learning of english vowels by brazilian portuguese speakers

Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Comunicação e Expressão. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras/Inglês e Literatura Correspondente.Pesquisas recentes mostram que o treinamento perceptual é uma ferramenta eficaz para melhorar a habilidade de perceber certos sons não-nativos de aprendizes de uma L2, especialmente quando esse treinamento é feito com a manipulação das pistas acústico-perceptuais. O presente estudo investigou o efeito do treinamento perceptual no aprendizado das vogais do inglês /i/, /I/, /E/, /Q/, /U/ e /u/, cuja percepção deficiente pode causar problemas de compreensão. Os objetivos específicos incluem investigar (i) o efeito do treinamento com estímulo artificial, (ii) a generalização do novo conhecimento para novos contextos e novos falantes, (iii) a transferência da melhora na percepção auditiva para produção oral e (iv) os efeitos de longo prazo. O treinamento das vogais foi ministrado durante o período de três semanas para 29 aprendizes brasileiros distribuídos em dois grupos: 15 treinaram com estímulo natural (grupo NatS) e 14 com estímulo sintetizado (grupo SynS). O estímulo sintetizado consistiu em elocuções com pistas espectrais enfatizadas e sem variação de duração e foram geradas por computador, enquanto que o estímulo natural foi gravado por falantes nativos de inglês americano. Os resultados apontam para uma melhora significativa dos grupos experimentais após o treinamento, sendo que houve uma melhora maior no grupo SynS do que no grupo NatS. Considerando que o treinamento ministrado para o grupo SynS consistiu apenas de estímulos sintetizados e que os testes incluíam apenas estímulos naturais, esse resultado também sugere que houve uma transferência do conhecimento adquirido com estímulo artificial para estímulos produzidos naturalmente. A melhora na performance dos alunos também foi mantida durante um mês após o final do treinamento. Estes resultados mostram que o treinamento perceptual pode servir como uma ferramenta eficaz para professores auxiliarem seus alunos a superar dificuldades perceptuais, evitando possíveis mal entendidos. Recent research has shown perceptual training to be an effective tool for improving L2 learners# ability to perceive certain non-native sounds, especially when done with enhanced acoustic-perceptual cues. This study investigates the effect of perceptual training on the learning of the English vowels /i/, /I/, /E/, /Q/, /U/ and /u/, whose misperception can potentially cause comprehension problems. Secondary objectives include (i) the effect of training with enhanced stimuli, (ii) generalization of the acquired knowledge to new contexts and speakers, (iii) transfer of the perceptual improvement to the production domain, and (iv) long-term effects. The training on these vowels was given over a three-week period to twenty-nine Brazilian EFL learners, who were distributed within two groups: fifteen trained with natural stimuli (NatS group) and fourteen with synthesized stimuli (SynS group). The synthesized stimuli consisted of computer-generated utterances with enhanced spectral cues and no variation in duration, whereas the natural stimuli were recorded normally by native speakers of American English. Results show that the experimental groups improved significantly after training, and there was more improvement in the SynS group than in the NatS group. Considering that the training given the SynS group involved only synthesized stimuli and the tests involved only natural stimuli, this finding suggests also that the knowledge acquired with artificially enhanced stimuli is transferred to stimuli produced naturally. The improvement was also maintained one month after the training was over. These findings support the claim that perceptual training may serve as an effective tool for teachers to help learners overcome potential perceptual difficulties, and thus prevent potential miscomprehension

Perception and production of English /r/-/l/ by adult Japanese speakers

This dissertation examines perception and production of English /r/-/l/ by adult Japanese speakers. This programme of research is organized into three sections, termed Study 1, Study2, and Study 3. The first study examined whether category assimilation between English /r/-/l/ and Japanese /ɾ/ was predictive of /r/-/l/ identification accuracy using an individual difference approach. Japanese speakers were assessed in terms of /r/-/l/ identification and assimilation of English /r/-/l/ into Japanese /ɾ/, /r/-/l/ production, and perceptual best exemplars for /r/, /l/, and /ɾ/. The results demonstrated that, although Japanese speakers strongly assimilated /l/ to /ɾ/, category assimilation was not predictive of English /r/-/l/ identification accuracy, and that only Japanese speaker’s representations for F3 in /r/ and /l/ was predictive of /r/-/l/ identification ability. The second study similarly took an individual difference approach and examined whether there is a relationship between perception and production of /r/-/l/ measuring perception accuracies (i.e., identification, discrimination, and perceptual best exemplars) and production accuracies (i.e., acoustic measurements, and recognition accuracy by English speakers). The results demonstrated that perception and production of /r/-/l/ were moderately related. However, not all aspects of /r/-/l/ perception were incorporated into /r/-/l/ production. The third study examined whether one-to-one pronunciation training leads to improvement in production and perception of English /r/-/l/ using a multipronged approach (i.e., explicit instructions, real-time spectrograms, and feedback with signal-processed versions of their own productions). The results demonstrated that Japanese speakers could be trained to produce native-like English /r/-/l/, improving to the point that they approached a 100% accuracy ceiling in terms of how well native speakers could identify their productions. However, the training did not improve their English /r/-/l/ perception at all

Brazilian efl learners'identification of word-final/m-n/: native/nonnative realizations and effect of visual cues

Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Comunicação e Expressão. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras/Inglês e Literatura Correspondente.As consoantes nasais /m/ e /n/ em posição final de palavra possuem diversos padrões de realização fonética. Em inglês elas são pronunciadas de forma distintiva, enquanto em português brasileiro (PB) elas não são completamente realizadas. Tendo em vista tal diferença, o principal objetivo deste estudo foi investigar a percepção das nasais inglesas /m/ e /n/ em posição final de palavra por brasileiros aprendizes de inglês como língua estrangeira. O estudo objetivou (a) investigar se brasileiros conseguem identificar a pronúncia de /m/ e /n/ em posição final de palavra na realização nativa do inglês; (b) verificar se pistas visuais favorece a identificação das consoantes alvos, e (c) examinar se a vogal antecedente às nasais interfere na identificação das mesmas. Dois testes de percepção foram utilizados: (a) o Teste de Identificação de realização Nativa versus Não-nativa; no qual se contrastou palavras com realização fonética de /m/ e /n/ tanto em inglês quanto em PB e (b) o Teste de Identificação de Três-condições, o qual contrastou a presença e/ou ausência de pistas visuais na identificação das nasais através de três formas de apresentação de estímulos-Áudio-Vídeo, apenas Vídeo, e apenas Áudio. The word-final nasals /m/ and /n/ have different patterns of phonetic realizations across languages, whereas they are distinctively pronounced in English, in Brazilian Portuguese (BP) they are not fully realized. Bearing in mind this phonetic difference, the main objective of this study was to investigate perception of the English word-final nasals /m/ and /n/ by Brazilian learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). More specifically, the present study aimed at (a) investigating whether Brazilian EFL learners were able to identify the native-like realization of English word-final nasals; (b) verifying whether visual cues favored the identification of the target consonants, and (c) whether there was effect of the preceding vowel on the identification of /m/ and /n/. Two perception tests were used: (a) the Native-like versus Nonnative-like Identification Test, which contrasted CVC words produced with both English and BP phonetic /m/ and /n/ realizations, and (b) the Three-condition Identification Test, which contrasted the presence and/or absence of visual cues in the identification of /m/ and /n/ through three types of stimuli presentation-Audio/Video, Video only, and Auditory only

Restructuring multimodal corrective feedback through Augmented Reality (AR)-enabled videoconferencing in L2 pronunciation teaching

The problem of cognitive overload is particularly pertinent in multimedia L2 classroom corrective feedback (CF), which involves rich communicative tools to help the class to notice the mismatch between the target input and learners’ pronunciation. Based on multimedia design principles, this study developed a new multimodal CF model through augmented reality (AR)-enabled videoconferencing to eliminate extraneous cognitive load and guide learners’ attention to the essential material. Using a quasi-experimental design, this study aims to examine the effectiveness of this new CF model in improving Chinese L2 students’ segmental production and identification of the targeted English consonants (dark /ɫ/, /ð/and /θ/), as well as their attitudes towards this application. Results indicated that the online multimodal CF environment equipped with AR annotation and filters played a significant role in improving the participants’ production of the target segments. However, this advantage was not found in the auditory identification tests compared to the offline CF multimedia class. In addition, the learners reported that the new CF model helped to direct their attention to the articulatory gestures of the student being corrected, and enhance the class efficiency. Implications for computer-assisted pronunciation training and the construction of online/offline multimedia learning environments are also discussed

Plasticity in second language (L2) learning: perception of L2 phonemes by native Greek speakers of English

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Understanding the process of language acquisition is a challenge that many researchers spanning different disciplines (e.g. linguistics, psychology, neuroscience) have grappled with for centuries. One which has in recent years attracted a lot of attention has been in the area of non-native phoneme acquisition. Speech sounds that contain multiple phonetic cues are often difficult for foreign-language learners, especially if certain cues are weighted differently in the foreign and native languages. Greek adult and child speakers of English were studied to determine which cues (duration or spectral) they were using to make discrimination and identification judgments for an English vowel contrast pair. To this end, two forms of identification and discrimination tasks were used: natural (unedited) stimuli and another ‘modified’ vowel duration stimuli which were edited so that there were no duration differences between the vowels. Results show the Greek speakers were particularly impaired when they were unable to use the duration cue as compared to the native English speakers. Similar results were also obtained in control experiments where there was no orthographic representation or where the stimuli were cross-spliced to modify the phonetic neighborhood. Further experiments used high-variability training sessions to enhance vowel perception. Following training, performance improved for both Greek adult and child groups as revealed by post training tests. However the improvements were most pronounced for the child Greek speaker group. A further study examined the effect of different orthographic cues that might affect rhyme and homophony judgment. The results of that study showed that Greek speakers were in general more affected by orthography and regularity (particularly of the vowel) in making these judgments. This would suggest that Greek speakers were more sensitive to irrelevant orthographic cues, mirroring the results in the auditory modality where they focused on irrelevant acoustic cues. The results are discussed in terms of current theories of language acquisition, with particular reference to acquisition of non-native phonemes.School of Social Sciences, Brunel Universit

The effect of audiovisual speech training on the phonological skills of children with specific language impairment (SLI)

We developed a computerized audiovisual training programme for school-aged children with specific language impairment (SLI) to improve their phonological skills. The programme included various tasks requiring phonological decisions. Spoken words, pictures, letters and written syllables were used as training material. Spoken words were presented either as audiovisual speech (together with the talking face), or as auditory speech (voice alone). Two groups (10 children/group) trained for six weeks, five days per week: the audiovisual group trained with audiovisual speech, and the other group received analogically the same training but with auditory speech. Before and after training, language skills and other cognitive skills were assessed. The audiovisual group improved in a non-word-repetition test. Such improvement was not observed with auditory training. This result suggests that audiovisual speech may be helpful in the rehabilitation of children with SLI.Peer reviewe