Hul’q’umi’num’ listening quizzes

Despite the well-attested importance of prosody in second language (L2) learning and the development of widely accessible software packages that can be used for analysing the prosodic aspects of speech, the teaching of L2 prosody is usually neglected in classroom settings. This article reviews important findings from L2 speech perception and production research that can be of use to teachers and practitioners involved in language pedagogy. What these findings demonstrate is that (a) L2 speech learning in general, as well as L2 intonation learning in particular, is feasible even in adulthood and (b) computer-assisted training with highly-variable auditory feedback and visual feedback in the form of pitch tracks can facilitate learning. Freely available acoustic analysis programs developed by the research community that can be used for teaching L2 intonation will also be discussed.

This study aims to establish a connection between L2 speech production and perception by contrasting the findings garnered from English word and nonword naming tasks performed by 156 Brazilian students of English with their scores at the listening section of TOIEC (Test of English for International Communication). The production-perception relationship is approached in an original fashion in this investigation, since data gathered from L2 production in word and nonword naming tasks is compared to the participants’ performance in listening comprehension tasks of longer excerpts of native speech – rather than perceptual tests of phones or words only. First, we investigated the rate of use of nine grapho-phonic-phonological transfer processes among 156 adult Brazilian ESL students according to their level of proficiency during word and nonword naming sessions. The findings showed a steep and significant decrease in the rate of use of processes of transfer as the level during ESL word production as the participants’ level of proficiency increased. However, when reading nonwords, the students’ performance worsened a great deal, that is, the rate of use of most transfer processes increased regardless of the subjects’ levels of proficiency. Second, in order to assert whether there could be connections between the production results and L2 speech perception. We found inverse and significant correlations.

Adult L2 learners have difficulties in perceiving and producing L2 speech sounds. In analyzing learners’ L2 speech learning problems, this study provides research data from a series of studies on L2 speech perception, production, and training. Section 1 investigates how the L1 sound system influences L2 speech perception. A recent study shows that phonetic differences and distances between English and Mandarin consonants predicted the perceptual problems of Mandarin consonants by native English learners of Chinese. Section 2 explores the relationship between L2 speech perception and production and reports a subsequent study on Mandarin consonants that shows English learners of Chinese performed better in perception than production on Mandarin retroflex sounds but vice versa on palatal sounds. The lack of alignment between perception and production suggests the relationship between L2 speech perception and production is not straightforward. In Section 3, two training experiments are reported and compared to explore the effects of phonetic training on the learning of English vowel and Mandarin tone contrasts.

English vowels may be difficult to discriminate for many learners of English (L2 learners). Research in L2 speech perception has shown that the use of visual cues improves speech perception, at least for visually-salient contrasts. This study investigated the use of visual cues in the perception of English vowels by L2 Advanced learners (Spanish native speakers) and English native speakers (ENS). 37 L2 learners and 20 ENS were given a vowel test that presented real CVC words in audio (A), audiovisual (AV) and video-alone (V) mode. The A and AV conditions were presented in noise (-10 dB SNR) to ENS and in quiet to L2 learners. For ENS, identification rates were significantly higher in AV than in A condition, suggesting there were visual cues to vowel identity. For L2 learners, A scores were significantly lower than for ENS, and AV scores did not differ significantly from results in A mode. This suggests low sensitivity to visual cues to vowel identification, though L2 learners achieved better than chance s...

English vowels may be difficult to discriminate for many learners of English (L2 learners). Research in L2 speech perception has shown that the use of visual cues improves speech perception, at least for visually-salient contrasts. This study investigated the use of visual cues in the perception of English vowels by L2 Advanced learners (Spanish native speakers) and English native speakers (ENS). 37 L2 learners and 20 ENS were given a vowel test that presented real CVC words in audio (A), audiovisual (AV) and video-alone (V) mode. The A and AV conditions were presented in noise (-10 dB SNR) to ENS and in quiet to L2 learners. For ENS, identification rates were significantly higher in AV than in A condition, suggesting there were visual cues to vowel identity. For L2 learners, A scores were significantly lower than for ENS, and AV scores did not differ significantly from results in A mode. This suggests low sensitivity to visual cues to vowel identification, though L2 learners achieved better than chance scores when forced to attend to visual information in the V mode. These results support previous findings of relatively poor sensitivity to visual cues to phoneme identity in L2 learners.

While the relationship between first language (L1) speech perception and production is well described in the literature, relatively little research has investigated the relationship between second language (L2) speech perception and production. This chapter provides an overview of what we know about this complex topic. It considers ways in which L2 speech perception and production follow a similar path to that observed in L1 acquisition, and ways in which it is fundamentally different. The chapter details the most common behavioural methods for collecting L2 perception and production data, along with quantitative acoustic measures of speech production. It emphasizes how choices in research design may explain contradictory findings, especially when incommensurate measures are used to compare speech perception with speech production. The chapter discusses evidence for a relationship between L2 speech perception and production from studies that have specifically examined the question, both at fixed points in time, and in the context of instructional interventions. In addition to offering suggestions for classroom application, the chapter describes how future research might approach the question to expand our understanding of this topic, which is fundamental to higher order language learning.

1.Introduction .- Theoretical approaches to the teaching of Prosody 2. Issues in the acoustic measurement of rhythm .- 3. Prosody and second language teaching: Lessons from L2 speech perception and production research .- 4. Factors affecting the perception and production of L2 prosody: Research results and their implications for the teaching of foreign languages .- 5. Function vs. form in speech prosody - Lessons from experimental research and potential implications for teaching .- 6. Prosodic adaptation in language learning .- Pragmatics, Prosody and communication 7. Prosody and meaning: Theory and practice .- 8. Prosody and feedback in native and non-native speakers of English .- 9. Early prosodic production: Pragmatic and acoustic analyses for L2 language learners .- 10. Prosody in conversation: Implications for teaching English pronunciation .- Pedagogical implications for English Language Teaching 11. Same but different: The pragmatic potential of native vs. non-native teachers' intonation in the EFL classroom .- 12. The pragmatic function of intonation: Cueing agreement and disagreement in spoken English discourse and implications for ELT .- 13. Trouble spots in the learning of English intonation by Spanish speakers. Tonality and tonicity .- 14. Teaching prosody with a pragmatic orientation: A synthesis .- Name Index .- Subject Index.

Although extensive research has focused on the perceptual abilities of second language (L2) learners, a significant gap persists in understanding how cognitive functions like phonological short-term memory (PSTM) and nonverbal intelligence (IQ) impact L2 speech perception. This study sets out to investigate the discrimination of L2 English monophthongal vowel contrasts and to assess the effect of PSTM and nonverbal IQ on L2 speech perception. The participants consisted of adult monolingually-raised Greek speakers, who completed an AX discrimination test, a digit span test, and a nonverbal intelligence test. A control group of English speakers also completed the AX test. Data were analyzed using Bayesian regression models. The results revealed that Greek speakers exhibited below chance discrimination for the majority of L2 vowel contrasts, consistently underperforming in comparison to the control group. Intriguingly, the study did not provide substantial evidence in favor of more accurate discrimination of L2 contrasts by Greek participants with high PSTM compared to those with low PSTM. However, the study yielded compelling evidence indicating that Greek participants with higher IQ demonstrated superior accuracy in discriminating most L2 contrasts compared to their lower IQ counterparts. The limited influence of PSTM on speech perception suggests the need for further exploration, considering the potential impact of test methodologies and the intricate interplay of other confounding factors. Furthermore, the study uncovers a noteworthy relationship between nonverbal IQ and L2 speech perception, likely linked with the association of high IQ with enhanced attentional capacities, information processing abilities, and learning skills—all of which are pivotal for accurate speech perception.

This article discusses the perception and production of English speech sounds by Cantonese ESL learners in Hong Kong and examines the validity of the claims of the Speech Learning Model for explaining second language speech production by Hong Kong Cantonese ESL learners. Forty university English majors participated in the study, which included two L2 speech perception tasks, two L1 L2 speech perception tasks, and three L2 speech production tasks. It is found that although the perceived similarity between the L1 and the L2 is inversely related to L2 speech perception, such an inverse relationship between perceived L1 L2 similarity and L2 speech production is not so straightforward and is often mediated by other widespread phonological phenomena such as final obstruent devoicing and final lateral vocalization. Speech perception and speech production, thus, do not bear a strict one-to-one relation, and correct discernment of a target sound does not necessarily lead to correct production. The predictions of the SLM regarding speech production do not seem to be entirely borne out. Further research is needed to investigate the perceptual and production abilities of ESL learners of other linguistic backgrounds.

During the COVID‐19 epidemic, the effect of mask wearing on communication has been questioned and explored. However, the study on the impact of face mask wearing on L2 speech is still limited. The main goal of the present study was to explore the extent to which face masks affect interlocutors’ L2 speech perception. Factors that varied were face mask (no mask, transparent mask, and disposable face mask), presentation mode (audio only vs. audiovisual), and speaking style (conversational vs. clear). The relationship between these three variables on the L2 processing was also investigated. Fifty‐three Thai undergraduates who were L2 learners of English participated in an Internet‐based perceptual task. They listened to 60 English sentences and typed the sentences they heard over an online form. The results showed that the participants did well when the L2 communication was in clear speech regardless of type of face mask and presentation mode. The improvement of the L2 perception of clear speech occurred even when the speaker produced sentences with disposable face mask as opposed to conversational speech suggesting that clear speech could enhance intelligibility in communication. As expected, the perceptual score was the lowest when the speech was in audio‐only mode with conversational style and disposable face mask. These results suggest that in L2 classroom contexts, speaking clearly could lessen the negative effects of the face mask and unavailability of visual information of the speaker.

Adult second language (L2) learners often experience difficulty producing and perceiving nonnative phonological contrasts. Even relatively advanced learners, who have been exposed to an L2 for long periods of time, struggle with difficult contrasts, such as /ɹ/–/l/ for Japanese learners of English. To account for the relative ease or difficulty with which L2 learners perceive and acquire nonnative contrasts, theories of L2 speech perception and phonology often appeal to notions of ‘similarity’, but how is ‘similarity’ best captured? In this article, we review two prominent approaches to similarity in L2 speech perception and phonology and present the findings from two experiments that investigated the role of phonological features in the perception and lexical representation of two vowel contrasts that exist in English, but not in Spanish. In particular, we explored whether L1 phonological features can be reused to represent nonnative contrasts in the second language (Brown, 1998, 2000), as well as to what extent new phonological structure might be acquired by advanced late-learners. We show that second language acquisition of phonology is not constrained by the phonological features made available by the learner’s native language grammar, nor is the use of particular phonological features in the native language grammar sufficient to trigger redeployment. These findings suggest that feature availability is neither a necessary, nor a sufficient, condition to predict the observed learning outcomes. These results are discussed in the context of current theories of nonnative and L2 speech perception and phonological development.

To what extent do second language (L2) learners benefit from instruction that includes corrective feedback (CF) on L2 speech perception? This article addresses this question by reporting the results of a classroom-based experimental study conducted with 32 young adult Korean learners of English. An instruction-only group and an instruction + CF group were exposed to five 1-hr form-focused lessons that drew learners’ attention to the nonnative phonemic contrast /i/-/ɪ/, but only the instruction + CF group was given relevant feedback. Forced-choice identification tasks were completed by participants in a pretest, an immediate posttest, and a delayed posttest. The two groups showed similar accuracy on the pretest; however, the instruction + CF group outperformed the instruction-only group on the immediate and delayed posttests as well as on unfamiliar words. The significant predictors for these differences turned out to be perceptual accuracy vis-à-vis /ɪ/-natural and /ɪ/-synthesized sounds. These findings are discussed in terms of the pivotal role played by CF in developing accuracy in L2 speech perception.

Effects of L1 phonotactic constraints on L2 speech perception and production were analyzed during the course of audio-visual perceptual training for Japanese adult learners of English by observing articulation of words containing /l/, /r/, and /w/. The speech identification score drastically improved during the training. The improvement in non-native word-initial rl distinction was clearly associated with the changes in the perceptual, articulatory, and neuronal spaces, which represent dissimilarities between the non-native and native phonemes in each domain assessed through perceptual, palatographic, and neuromagnetic measurements. Significant difficulty in identification of consonant-rl clusters, however, remained for some trainees even after one year of training. Analyses of palato-lingual contact patterns during word articulation suggested that more articulatory errors tend to occur in consonant-rl clusters than in other phonotactic contexts in such a way that both /l/ and /r/ are substituted with Japanese /r/ sometimes associated with a vowel inserted. Results suggested that the L2 phonological system can be acquired through a multimodal training, although it is strongly interfered with by L1 phonotactic constraints.

Logistic regression analysis has, for some time, been successfully applied to L1 speech perception data, but has not been widely applied in L2 speech perception research. This chapter is a tutorial which makes use of simple data sets to introduce logistic regression analysis as applied to categorical response data from L1 and L2 speech perception experiments. Data are taken from an experiment on L1 Spanish vowel perception by Alvarez Gonzalez, and experiments on L1 and L2 English vowel perception by Escudero & Boersma, and Morrison. Model fitting is demonstrated as a technique to determine which acoustic cues are attended to by listeners. Logistic regression coefficients are used to quantify how listeners use those acoustic cues, to produce graphical representations of their use of acoustic cues, and as statistics in secondary analyses used to determine whether there are significant differences in the perception of stimuli by L1 versus L2 groups of listeners.

It is well established that some individual factors (i.e., age, amount of input, motivation, etc.) play a considerable role in second language (L2) speech perceptual learning (Akahane-Yamada, 1995; Flege et al., 1997; Flege & Liu, 2001; inter alia). However, other factors, like personality type, have received less attention. This study therefore investigates the role of personality in L2 speech perception by examining how factors assessed in the Big 5 Inventory (Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Neuroticism, and Openness; John et al., 1991) and the Autism Spectrum Quotient (social skill, attention-switching, attention to detail, communication, and imagination; Baron-Cohen et al., 2001) affect French nasal vowel identification by intermediate/advanced American learners of French (n = 32). Preliminary results (n = 25) analyzed with a mixed effects binomial logistic regression revealed that learners with higher scores in Extroversion and Neuroticism were significantly more likely to select the correct nasal vowel. The analysis also demonstrated that L2 learners who were more careful, attentive, and diligent (represented by high scores in Conscientiousness and/or Attention to Detail) were significantly less target-like in their perception. In addition to presenting results from the full data set, this presentation will also discuss implications for L2 learning and L2 speech perception more broadly.