Rediscovering the Sound of Language inLanguage Educa5on

Anna Maria C. Hata
The University of Tokyo1. Background• Pronuncia=on teaching• Methodology→ MARIA Method(Mimic And Repeat, Instruct And mimic……..)
ü Correctness
ü Instruc=ons
ü Prac=ce

FAQ• ‘Correct’ English?
• Na=ve-like pronuncia=on?
• Which English?
• Global language• Iden=ty?

1.2. Purpose of this presenta=on
The SOUND of language→ Current trend of pronuncia=on teaching→ “Sound” of language in language educa=on→ Problems and solu=ons

2. 1. The sound of languageTone, pitch, rhythm, volume, meter, intensity,pace, mood, voice, texture, structure, quality,
soZness, hardness, thinness, temperature,sweetness, sonority, punctua=on and more andmore…

Thomas: “I love you.”
Meredith: “No.”Thomas: “Will you marry me?”
Meredith: “Yes!”2.2 Inner Soundv Phonological ac=va=on(Ehrich, 2006; Abramson & Goldinger, 1997; Beggs &Howarth, 1985;
McCutchen & Perfetti, 1982).
v Phonological loop
(Baddeley, 1986)v Subvocal rehearsal(Craik and Watkins, 1973)v Speech coding / Subvocalization(Daneman & Newson, 1992)Ehrich(2006)“[…] adults will ‘hear’ the phonological components inside.”
Sokolov (1972)
Albarracin et. al. (2015)

L1

produc5on

inner soundouter soundinternal sound(sound stock)external soundinput

3.1. Current situa=on(Pronuncia=on)• Communica=ve Approach(Celce-Murcia, et.al.,2010)• Pair-prac=ce / (more) meaningful and interac=ve(Grant, 2014)• Suprasegmental features(Celce-Murcia, et.al.,2010)pEﬀec=ve
pPrac=cal
pCommunica=on• Intelligibility and comprehensibility(Derwin & Munro, 2011)• More realis=c and achievable goal se`ng(Grant, 2014)• Smooth communica=on→ Lingua Franca/
World Englishes(Jenkins, 2002)• U=litarian demands(Cook, 2000)• TOEIC and TOEFL, etc.

“Communica=on”• Fun oral interac=ons• Grope work
• TOEIC• TOEFL• (2020 Summer Olympics)

3.2. Summary (Pronuncia=on)
A prac=cal tool for:• learners’ communica=on• group ac=vi=es• gaining communica=ve skills• achieving u=litarian goals
Target pronuncia=on:
learners’ intelligibility

4. Problems(1) Lack of input(2) Lack of internal sound(3) Lack of inner sound(4) Too much emphasis on produc=on

L2

pronuncia5on②
outer sound ②

produc5on②

inner soundproduc5on①

Training ,instruc5ons

outer sound ①

internal sound(sound stock)external soundinput

pronuncia5on①

5. Nega=ve eﬀects(1) Communica=on
crack / crap
joke / yolk
(2) Skills
ü Speaking
ü Listening

× Reading (?) →✔️× Wri=ng (?) →✔️

6. Language Educa=on• Nursery rhymes• Song lyrics• Jokes• Puns : Why is camping intense?
→ Pronuncia5on prac5ce→ Inner sound trainingl Poetry
Apprecia=ng play on words and sound in puns, jokes andpoetry would play an important role in language learningand acquisi=on(Cook, 2000; Widdowson, 1992; and Hall, 2005).

6. Language Educa=on• Nursery rhymes• Song lyrics• Jokes• Puns : Why is camping intense?
→ Pronuncia5on prac5ce→ Inner sound trainingl Poetry
Apprecia=ng play on words and sound in puns, jokes andpoetry would play an important role in language learningand acquisi=on(Cook, 2000; Widdowson, 1992; and Hall, 2005).

7. Conclusion• Sound : not just produc=on• Foreign language teaching → Intelligibility (?)• Ac=vate learners inner sound• Pronuncia=on teaching• Language educa=on →² teacher’s role
² goal se`ng

References
Abramson, M., & Goldinger, S.D. (1997) What the reader’s eye tells the mind’s ear: Silent reading ac=vates
inner speech. Percep&on and Psychophysics, 59.
Albarracín, D. (Ed.) Anderson-Dayl, B., and Fernyhough,(2015) Inner Speech: Development, Cogni=ve
Func=ons, Phenomenology, and Neurobiology. 2015 Sep; 141(5): 931–965.Published online 2015 May 25
Baddeley, A.D. (1986) Working Memory. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Beggs, W.D.A., & Howarth, P.N.(1985) Inner speech as a learned skill. Journal of Experimental Child
Psychology, 39.
Celce-Murcia, M., Brinton, D. M., Goodwin, J. M. with Griner, B. (2010) Teaching Pronuncia=on: A Course Bookand Reference guide. Cambridge University Press.
Cook, G. (2000) Language Play, Language Learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Craik, F.I.M., & Watkins, M. J. (1973) The role of rehearsal in short-term memory. Journal of Verbal Larningand Verbal Behavior.12,Daneman, M. and Newson, M.(1992) Assessing the importance if subvocaliza=on during normal silent reading,Reading and Wri&ng: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Vol. 4.

References
Derwing, T. M. (2008) ‘Curriculum issues in teaching pronuncia=on to second language learners.’ in Hansen
Edwards, J.G. & Zampini, M.L. (eds) Phonology and Second Language Acquisi&on. John Benjamins Publishing
Company.
Ehrich, J.F. (2006). “Vygotskian inner speech and the reading process,” Australian Journal of Educa=onal andDevelopment Psychology, vol. 6Grant, L. (2014) Pronuncia&on Myths. Applying Second Language Research to Classroom Teaching. Michigan
Hall, G. (2005) Literature in Language Educa&on. Houndmills: Palgrave Macmillan.
Jenkins, J. (2002) A sociolinguis=cally-based, empirically-researchedInterna=onal Language. Applied Linguis&cs 23: 83-103

pronuncia=on syllabus for English as an

McCutchen, D., & Perfe`, C. (1982) The visual tongue-twister eﬀect: Phonological ac&va&on in silent reading.
Journal of verbal Learning and Behavior, 21.
Vygotsky, L.S. (1986). Thought and Language. A. Kozulin(Ed.), Cambridge, Massachuseus: The MIT Press
Widdowson, H. G. (1992). Prac&cal Stylis&cs: An Approach to Poetry. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Thank you.

annamaria.hata726@gmail.com