Incidental and Multimodal High Variability Phonetic Training: Potential, Limits, and Future Directions

Abstract

Scholars have extensively investigated the effectiveness of high variability phonetic training (HVPT), that is, identification and discrimination of second language speech sounds produced by multiple speakers followed by trial-by-trial feedback. Building on the notion of incidental and multimodal learning in cognitive psychology (e.g., Lim & Holt, 2011), we developed a new, HVPT-based videogame paradigm in which participants aimed to shoot clay targets as fast as possible while being guided to learn sound cues as a by-product of planned learning. Focusing on the speech acquisition of 58 Japanese English-as-a-foreign-language learners, the current study set out to test the pedagogical potential and limits of the incidental HVPT approach. According to the results of statistical analyses, the effectiveness of incidental HVPT can be more clearly observed if it focuses on more learnable targets (e.g., acquisition of English [ae]-[ʌ] rather than [r]-[l] contrasts) with gains being more generalizable from trained to new speakers' voices and from perception to production dimensions.We gratefully acknowledge insightful comments from anonymous Language Learning reviewers and Associate Editor Judit Kormos on earlier versions of the manuscript.

A comparison of Lab- and Web-based elicited imitation: Insights from explicit-implicit L2 grammar knowledge and L2 proficiency

“…From recruitment to implementation, various topics of research have been carried out online. In L2 speech perception, for instance, researchers investigated the effectiveness of high variability phonetic training in which both the perception and production data were collected online (Saito et al, 2022). In some studies, researchers crowdsourced listeners through Amazon Mechanical Turk (AMT) and sampled their transcription and speech ratings remotely (Loukina et al, 2015;Nagle, 2019;Nagle & Huensch, 2020).…”

Less precise auditory processing limits instructed L2 speech learning: Communicative focus on phonetic form revisited

“…Overall, communicative focus on phonetic form significantly impacts various dimensions of L2 speech learning (Lee & Lyster, 2016 for perception;Saito & Lyster, 2012;Parlak & Ziegler, 2016 for controlled and spontaneous production; for a comprehensive overview, Saito, 2021). Much scholarly attention has also been directed towards examining how instructional effectiveness can be associated with a range of input-related variables, such as length of instruction (Munoz, 2014), focus of instruction (segmentals vs. prosody; Derwing, Munro, & Wiebe, 1998), type of instruction (form-vs. meaning-oriented;Saito, 2012;intentional vs. incidental;Saito, Hanzawa, et al, 2022), and mode of instruction (face-to-face vs. computer-mediated; Parlak & Ziegler, 2016). At the same time, there is evidence that even when individuals engage in the same type of instruction for the same amount of time, their L2 outcomes often differ, with some achieving advanced L2 proficiency and others demonstrating much difficulty (Saito, 2017).…”

How does having a good ear promote successful second language speech acquisition in adulthood? Introducing Auditory Precision Hypothesis-L2

“…In accordance with the notion of incidental and multimodal auditory categorization learning in the field of cognitive psychology (Lim & Holt, 2011), our team has developed and tested the pedagogical potential of a video game-based target shooting game that aims to support segmental acquisition among Japanese learners of English (Saito et al, in press-b). In this game, participants are told that the faster targets are shot, the more points can be earned.…”