Do Explicit Instruction and High Variability Phonetic Training Improve Nonnative Speakers’ Mandarin Tone Productions?

Abstract

This study examines the putative benefits of explicit phonetic instruction, high variability phonetic training, and their effects on adult nonnative speakers’ Mandarin tone productions. Monolingual first language (L1) English speakers (n = 80), intermediate second language (L2) Mandarin learners (n = 40), and L1 Mandarin speakers (n = 40) took part in a multiday Mandarin‐like artificial language learning task. Participants were asked to repeat a syllable–tone combination immediately after hearing it. Half of all participants were exposed to speech from 1 talker (low variability) while the other half heard speech from 4 talkers (high variability). Half of the L1 English participants were given daily explicit instruction on Mandarin tone contours, while the other half were not. Tone accuracy was measured by L1 Mandarin raters (n = 104) who classified productions according to their perceived tonal category. Explicit instruction of tone contours facilitated L1 English participants’ production of rising and falling tone contours. High variability input alone had no main effect on participants’ productions but interacted with explicit instruction to improve participants’ productions of high‐level tone contours. These results motivate an L2 tone production training approach that consists of explicit tone instruction followed by gradual exposure to more variable speech.

Pedagogical content knowledge: A systematic review of Chinese language pronunciation teaching in the CFL context

“…This applies to pronunciation instruction in Chinese as a foreign language (CFL), too. Even though a growing number of studies have claimed the effectiveness of specific IPS in the CFL field (Dong et al, 2019; Mok et al, 2018; Wiener et al, 2020), more detailed and specific content with regard to pronunciation instructions is yet to be discovered. This includes the questions of what activities are being conducted before and in pronunciation teaching classes, and how language teaching theories, models, and strategies are being integrated as pedagogical tools in CFL pronunciation instruction.…”

Multi-Talker Speech Promotes Greater Knowledge-Based Spoken Mandarin Word Recognition in First and Second Language Listeners

“…It is likely that our time window between the two tests was too short to see robust changes in learning. It is not uncommon for L1 English-L2 Mandarin learners to demonstrate an extended L2 tone learning plateau, which we may have captured in the present study (Wang et al, 1999;Hao, 2012Hao, , 2018Wiener et al, 2020).…”

The Effects of Talker Variability and Frequency of Exposure on the Acquisition of Spoken Word Knowledge

“…In contrast, Kartushina and Martin (2019) found that Spanish speakers with no experience with French improved production accuracy of the French mid-open and mid-close front unrounded vowels to a greater degree when they listened to the target sounds produced by five talkers than by a single talker. Wiener et al (2020) confirmed the superiority of high-variability training (four talkers) over low-variability training (single talker) for beginner-level L1 English learners studying L1 Mandarin tones after they had received explicit instruction and perception training sessions over four consecutive days. In summary, listening to multiple talkers appears more effective in improving perception accuracy than listening to a single talker, but the degree to which a high-variability advantage extends to production accuracy remains unclear.…”

“…However, recent studies looking in greater depth into the effects of talker variability suggest mixed findings regarding the extent to which high-variability training brings about larger learning gains in production accuracy compared to low-variability training (Brosseau-Lapré et al, 2013; Kartushina & Martin, 2019; Wiener et al, 2020). Brosseau-Lapré et al (2013) investigated whether English speakers with limited knowledge of French improve in their production of the French unrounded and rounded mid-vowels.…”