HICPR: Blame it on your Alpha: why some people don't learn pronunciation well

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Blame it on your Alpha: why some people don't learn pronunciation well

Clip art: Clker

According to 2013 research by Dinse from the Neural Plasticity Lab of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum and colleagues, reported in Science Daily, the answer seems to be that " . . . the main problem is not that learning processes are inefficient per se, but that the brain insufficiently processes the information to be learned." Hmmm. Now why could that be? The study is relevant in that subjects were trained to be more touch sensitive and then, using EEG technology, researchers explored why some were better at developing that heightened sensitivity. Exactly why is not clear, but there was a predictably correlation with alpha wave frequency: in an awakened state, higher alpha frequency related to better tactile learning. (Counter to that, lower Alpha in restful, semi-conscious or sleep states has long been related to more effective learning, both conscious and "unconscious" in nature.)

What is interesting is that the main effect, although the researchers relate it to perceptual learning in general, is at the very least touch-related: "The results, therefore, suggest that perception-based learning is highly dependent on how accessible the sensory information is. The alpha activity, as a marker of constantly changing brain states, modulates this accessibility." (Italics, mine.) So how do we make "sensory information" about pronunciation more "accessible?" The implication there is that one way is some kind of direct stimulation and management of alpha that might lead to better learning in that context.

Clip art: Clker

Haptic-integrated clinical pronunciation work, in general, should fundamentally do just that: promote heightened sensual awareness (of physical sensation in the body) and at the same time, more relaxed, less-stressed physical/somatic (body awareness-based) states. The flowing pedagogical movement patterns (PMPs) create a sense of fluidity, rhythm and emotional coherence; simultaneously, the hands touching on stressed syllables in words, phrases and sentences evoke a very much heightened "felt sense" (balanced physical + cognitive processing) and foregrounding of the prominent elements or words in discourse.

Why some don't learn well? They may just be "out of touch!

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What is haptic pronunciation teaching?

Basically, it is using gesture, touch and movement to teach pronunciation of English (or any language). What makes this method unique is that it is based on controlled and systematic use of gesture in doing that. (Often the problem with gesture use in language learning is that it can be "crazy" or random or intimidating or inconsistent, or not well-developed and tied to clear outcomes.)

The earlier "Essential Haptic-integrated English Pronunciation (EHIEP) approach," now KINETIK, does a better job of enhancing presentation, modelling, feedback and correction. The method is simple and easy to follow. Once a 30-minute module is finished, teacher and students have a set of techniques to use in class anytime a pronunciation problem or opportunity comes up!

Haptic Preliminaries

I often begin workshops or papers with the comment that in about 40 years in the field I have had just one idea: that the systematic use of body movement is essential to effective and efficient pronunciation instruction. That has never been more relevant than today, with the general deemphasis on pronunciation and introduction of technology into the field. From both perspectives, the "haptic" perspective approach developed here offers great promise. I can at least promise you a "moving" experience!

What is the KINETIK Method?

KINETIK is the name of the new v6.0 haptic pronunciation teaching system. About six years earlier we were using the acronym, "Haptic Integrated Pronunciation for Other/Extended Circle English Speakers" (HIPOECES)--still there in the url of this blog!

Haptic-integrated clinical pronunciation is:

A different way to learn pronunciation, based in part on Arthur Lessac’s notion of “Training the body first.” It is also based on research in the use of movement and touch in learning and training. It:

Looks somewhat like a combination of aerobics, sign language and Taichi

Provides a basic foundation for continued, self-directed pronunciation learning and classroom instruction

Designed for use by relatively untrained teachers but appropriate for all teachers (and learners) of all levels

Focuses on pronunciation used in conversation (not all words in English)

Is a highly “brain-and-body-friendly” system that promotes efficient learning of integrated tasks in general

Designed to promote integrated classroom pronunciation instruction and enable integration of conscious pronunciation work into spontaneous speaking.

Introduction

This blog was formerly named: HIPoeces (pronounced 'hI-pƏ-cIs), basically an approach to teaching English pronunciation to speakers of "outer and expanding" circle Englishes (including that population commonly termed: non-native speakers) but also compatible with the use of local models other than simply Standard" American" or RP. Using Kachru's "Inner, expanding and outer circles" model to characterize the breadth of Englishes and speakers of those, HIPoeces (now HICP) systems focus on developing haptically-centered pedagogical models and methods which can be adapted for teaching the pronunciation of various Englishes as they are spoken and taught by "owners" of those varieties.

In theory, the underlying principles can be applied to teaching the sound system of any language. Most language instructors intuitively use a great deal of movement and tactile anchoring in the classroom. The essential question is how to use that resource systematically, especially so that those learners who are less "haptic" in nature are also "moved" by the method.

Simply put, the HICP model/method is based on the idea of speaking along with arm and hand movement, not all that different from that used in sign languages. Most movement patterns are taken from either typical classroom pronunciation instruction practice or from related fields, such as psychotherapy or sports.

Most blog posts link to research that relates to the general HICP model, that is studies dealing with the role of gesture, touch, movement, learning modalities, learning in output, use of the visual field in learning, and experiential learning.

DEFINITIONS:

"Haptic" techniques- procedures that involve both movement and touch (Obvious examples include clapping hands, tapping feet, or holding an object and shaking it to the rhythm of a poem.)

"HICP techniques" - procedures that are haptic and also explicitly coordinated with phonological structures and/or discourse prosody (For example, clapping hands on primary stressed syllables in multi-syllable words, or doing a dance step on key words in conversational turns.)

"Haptic integration"- The haptic dimension probably functions as much to anchor visual and auditory material as it does to assist the learner in getting the "felt sense" of the sound or sound process. Lack of integration into spontaneous speech being such a serious potential shortcoming of instruction, haptic engagement seems a promising bridge to more accurate fluency.

"Visual field" - in HICP extensive use is made of the visual field in front of the learner. (For example, a modified version of the IPA vowel chart is anchored haptically in the imagination of the learner, directly in front of the upper body, and used for several purposes throughout the program.)

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Blame it on your Alpha: why some people don't learn pronunciation well

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