Digesting pronunciation change: Bob's 9-step

Clipart: Clker

Clipart: Clker

"It'll take me a while to digest that . . . " That comment from a student after having been given the recommended "haptic-integrated" homework, got me thinking. Digestion is not a bad metaphor for the process of integrating pronunciation change, in fact. As always, when faced with a question like that, we turn to Science Bob for an answer! In teaching, I often use similar heuristics in examining pedagogical processes. (Semiotically speaking, process integration is process integration, regardless of where in our experience it occurs.) When I walked through it, I was surprised how it forced explicit consideration of some transitions  So, strap on your analogical transponder and consider the parallel to Bob's 9-Step:

Clipart: Clker

1. Teeth " . . . small enough pieces so that it can fit down our throats . . . "[Conceptual, explicit focus on form, generally initiated by the  appearance of a problematic pronunciation target during "regular" speaking or listening instruction] 
2. Saliva " . . . soften . . . in the mouth so that it is easier to swallow . . . break down . . . into simpler forms . . "[Basic presentation of "target" to learner and practice plan introduced in class] 
3. Tongue " . . . works  . . .  to form a "ball" that can be swallowed . . . helps us tell the difference between . . .sour . . . sweet . . . "[Embodiment and sensory, felt sense, haptic-integrated focus, using standard EHIEP protocol] 
4. Esophagus " . . . a transportation tube from the mouth . . .closing a trap door in our throat . . . moves . . .  using muscles not gravity . . . '[Integrated, directed execution and practice of sound, sound-in-word or phrase in class and in homework] 
5. Stomach " . . . moved around . . . .mixed . . .  for . . .  hours. When it is done . . . now . . . called chyme . . ."[Occurring in the next few days: haptic-integrated integration of sound-felt sense-meaning complex in memory] 
6. Liver/gall bladder " . . . breaking down . . . . fat  . . . supply . . . energy later . . . " [Regular, focused practice of sound and sound in words, generally in personal word lists] 
7. Pancreas " . . . adds . . . as the food leaves  . . . breaking down . . . carbohydrates" [Regular, context-based, integrated practice in conversationally relevant language, typically for a week or more] 
8. Small intestine " . . . the real hero . . .  where the real digestion takes place . . .  put to use by the body . . . thousands of tiny fingers called villi . . .  absorb . . . and send them off . . . "[Appearance in conversation in various forms, both in production and reception; noted after the fact] 
9. Large Intestine " . . . Whatever the body cannot put to use . . .  cannot be digested . . .necessary up until now . . . no longer needed . . ."[Change is fully integrated in conversation; pedagogical heuristics fade out and are discarded] 

The secret to sticking 3-second pronunciation anchoring: timing

Clip art: Clker

Clip art: Clker

A favorite quote from another of my heroes, Robert Reed, former forward for the Houston Rockets pro basketball team: "There are 3 secrets to success in basketball: Timing, timing and timing." In a comment to the previous post on visual anchoring, Smith points to the critical role of timing in multiple-modality instruction. To get the perfect picture of timing, leave it to a pro--like Reed! What could be a better source than a 1.25 minute Youtube training video on learning how to "stick" a free throw? (If due to lack of experiential grounding on the court your mirror neurons don't instantly get the analogy, try reliving an intricate, "Wowee!" Texas 2-step move with your BFF, effortlessly driving a ball 10 yards further than ever previously off the first tee, or sliding an absolutely perfect omelet into the middle a romantic breakfast made in heaven . . . ) Timing. Notice the principles laid out in the video: (a) "physical mechanics, mental mechanics, rhythm and timing" (b) minimizing movement--which minimizes the chance of error, and (c) timing to maximize consistency. Next, the steps: (a) Complete pre-shot routine, (b) Take a deep breath, (c) Do the shot in 3-seconds (See blogpost before last!), which involves three distinct movements (elbow positioning, knee bend and follow through.) That basic framework "works" for almost any HICP pedagogical movement pattern as well: Focus (mental and eye fixation)--Breathe in--Hand positioning--Breathe out and Move one hand across the visual field--and Touch and follow through, in 3 seconds! Put that on your Swish! list!

"Fontastic" anchoring of sound!

Clip art: Clker

Credit: Science/AAAS

Taken a close look at a learner pronunciation book lately? (I have some insider information here . . . ) The assumption is that, other than the usual selection of boldface, italics and underlining, the character of the visual display presented in working with sound is essentially no different than any other subject matter. The best analogy might be teenage middle school social science texts--the book making one last effort to mimic the web. Even if the text has brilliant color, artistic images and other text manipulation as a few do, to paraphrase a recent pop song far too often: What happens in student books . . . stays in student books! INTEGRATED pronunciation instruction? Now that is another matter. Sorry, that's about all the special effects blogger will allow: boldface, italics, underlining, all caps, font color and background color. The research on those text features in marketing and advertising is extensive, all of which seem to come to the same conclusion: Try to hold the eyes hostage for a bit. A recent study (using fMRI, of course) summarized by ScienceShots looked at the relationship between font size and emotional response " . . . emotional signals [in the brain] elicited by the larger font size lasted a total of 180 milliseconds longer. The results are similar to emotional responses to large and small versions of pictures with fearful, disgusting, or sex-related content. Pictures hold biological relevance for people, since a big photo of a predator probably signals proximity to you." And then comes a classic "Well . . . Duh . . . ": "Similar emotional effects on font sizes probably reflect the importance language holds in our society, the authors speculate. " (Italics, mine.) So what is the bottom line here in creating classroom-visual materials in haptic-integrated anchoring of pronunciation change, especially in terms of prominence? More and more teacher-based publishers are going to e-Materials, where you can adjust font and visual display characteristics yourself. For the time being, however, --after the Pedagogical MOVEment Pattern is anchored, of course--stick on a few extra milliseconds of visual processing whenever you can--anyway you can. And may your FONTs be with you! 

3-second hugs and pronunciation practice!

Talk about short attention span. Turns out that most everything we do as humans (and the same applies to animals) is processed at some level in 3 second chunks--even hugs. Research in language development and use confirms the same principle: relatively short chunks of speech or text are fundamental to understanding. What is fascinating about that study and others like it is what it may tell us about how to best present and work with language, especially pronunciation. In other words, if we want something to be "absorbed" or anchored well, there is an optimal packaging, rhythm or even visual configuration. There is in fact, as shown by studies of learning and training in various disciplines. As elaborated in several earlier blogposts, HICP is based on the idea of using "pedagogical movement patterns (PMPs)," hands moving through the visual field with one touching the other on prominent syllables. None of the PMPs are 3 seconds in duration but the time interval occupied by one such action, including the "silence" preceding and following certainly fits within that model. A sentence or phrase may be longer than 3-seconds, of course, although for conversational interaction, at moderate speaking pace, that can be pretty demanding for beginning and intermediate learners, but it will typically still consist of two or more PMPs when practiced--reflecting basic conversational rhythm. Just imagine--in some other less interpersonal touch-averse culture and time--a typical "hug-as-haptic-anchor" used in the classroom with the "peak" squeeze occurring on the prominent syllable of a utterance being articulated such as "How wonderful to have interACTed with you in class today, Joe!"

How to create great, moving, memorable (movie) lines

In this study by Danescu-Niculescu-Mizil et al of Cornell University, summarized by ScienceDaily, the secret of coming up with great movie lines was discovered. They should have " . . . familiar sentence structure but incorporating distinctive words or phrases, and  . . . make general statements that could apply elsewhere." and contain " . . . more sounds made in the front of the mouth (italics, mine), words with more syllables and fewer coordinating conjunctions." If you were attempting to characterize the ideal type of conversational language or phrases in which to anchor pronunciation change, that would not be a bad framework to use either. Note the finding relating to the vowel quality evident in those "memorable" lines: in the front of the mouth. Several earlier posts have cited research in the phonaesthetics of vowel quality, confirming the more vivid and engaging nature of front vowels--the vowels positioned in the similarly more vivid and engaging area of the right visual field (as established in other studies) in the EHIEP system. (Conversely, those same vowels are traditionally located in the left visual field in the standard IPA vowel chart or ESL/EFL pronunciation teaching models or frameworks.) Add to those features of the optimally memorable conversational expression a haptic-integrated anchor (a pedagogical movement pattern terminating in touch--usually of both hands or one hand to the upper torso) and you, indeed, have a potentially memorable line. In fact, it is just the ticket!

Pronunciation mnemonics that stick!

Clip art: Clker

Clip art: Clker

Mnemonics have great potential in enabling memory and learning--and even pronunciation. Such strategies often involve very complex (and engaging) created visual and auditory mini-narratives to anchor vocabulary, etc. For example, in learning Japanese (Chinese) characters, I found one such method very useful. Linked here is a clever, highly visual-auditory (and Western pop culture centered!) system posted on the blog, CountryoftheBlind, for learning Chinese pronunciation and characters. Here is the concluding sentence to that very long and detailed post: "The lobby (2nd tone) of the Keio Plaza hotel (-ao) has inexplicably been converted into a rice field (田). Strange seedlings sprout and rapidly grow to a great height, developing large flowers (艹). Each flower blooms to reveal a figure of Marilyn Monroe (mi-). It's important to visualize this, like a movie, rather than just read the words. This image will stick with you, and it contains all the basic facts about 苗." What fun! Notice the penultimate metaphor. The visual-spatial-movement-textural set of predicates there (verbs), framed as a video-like narrative, might indeed help the pronunciation . . . stick!

Haptic anchors and mnemonic "pegs"

There have been several posts aimed at defining a "haptic anchor" as used in HICP. Among other features it must involve use of both hands connecting in the visual field (related to the effect of bilateral stimulation and focus) and coordinated vocalization and body engagement. In this 2010 article, Samuels comes up with a good term to identify other types of anchoring: pronunciation pegs. (The article has some clever examples of such linkages.) "Pegs" are mnemonic devices, some involving movement and touch, such as touching a part of the face to remind learners about a sound or pronunciation feature. She mentions others, such as rubber bands to reinforce the idea of vowel lengthening, etc.

The human brain is wonderfully adaptive in creating and using such pegs. Much of hypnosis is based on that idea, associating a state with some kind of action or image. Pegs are, by nature, throw aways, something to be used in the learning process and quickly discarded. Haptic anchors have much more complex and integrative functions. Not to recommend that you immediately toss your favorites and switch to haptic anchors--or attempt to knock your favorite mnemonic pronunciation pegs down a peg or two--or suggest that you don't have a leg to stand on in using them . . .