I
enjoyed my joint presentation on Zoom with Professor William Acton (Trinity
Western University) and Mr. Hiroyuki Watanabe (Labo Party) in the 34th General
Meeting of the Phonetic Society of Japan on September 26, 2020.
Application of haptic research to instruction in phonetics and classroom pronunciation teaching
http://www.psj.gr.jp/jpn/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/psj2020conf-program.pdf
I thank
them, Coordinator Noriko Yamane (Hiroshima University), and other symposium
members, for providing excellent opportunities to exchange ideas. Below are my
afterthoughts.
***
The
afternoon session (the general lecture and the symposium) offered three
examples of pronunciation learning: the analytical method by ATR (http://www.atr-lt.jp/index.html), the natural and non-instructive approach by Labo Party (https://www.labo-party.jp/), and the eclectic method by Professor Acton, where intentional instructions from the
teacher and intrinsic feelings in the learner converge.
The Acton method is presumably a synthesis of providing programmed instructions (represented
by ATR) and creating a natural learning environment (exemplified by Labo Party.)
However,
it is critical to notice that the analytical/programmed method (ATR) and the
natural or eclectic procedures (Labo Party and the Acton Method) hold different
views on the body and meaning. I argue that while the ATR method assumes a mechanical idea of the body and an objective view of meaning, Labo Party and
the Acton methods recognize the body as self-production and embrace a subjective
notion of meaning.
Below
are the explanations of these contrasting views. Implications for pronunciation
instructions are indicated with arrow marks.
BODY
A
Mechanical View of the Body:
The body
is an anatomical structure that the mind controls.
=>The
mechanical view suggests that pronunciation instructions are about conscious
manipulation of the vocal organ.
A Self-production
View of the Body:
The body
is the source of emotion and meaning from which the mind emerges, thus creating
a self as the integration of the body and the mind.
=>The
self-production view indicates that pronunciation instructions should incite
emotion and meaning in the learner's body.
MEANING
An
Objective View of Meaning:
Meaning
is a cognitive/linguistic idea that the mind recognizes as an object.
=>The
objective view does not generally acknowledge the senses or feelings that one
cannot precisely articulate as legitimate meaning.
A
Subjective View of Meaning:
Meaning
is a complex flow of emotions that directs the mind to a particular
perspective. Meaning thus endows the mind with the capacity as the subject/agent of
the action that the body actualizes.
=>The
subjective view includes non-cognitive/non-linguistic senses or feelings as
genuine meaning because they produce some prospects within the human. According
to this view, the haptic sensations in the Acton method generate meaning in
learners.
To sum
up, the ATR method and other analytical approaches teach learners to control
their vocal organs according to the findings of phonetics. In contrast, Labo
Party focuses on embedding learners in meaningful linguistic experiences,
expecting appropriate pronunciation skills to
emerge gradually. The Acton method, as a sort of blended approach, teaches pronunciation
intentionally by emphasizing the sensation and meaning in learners' body to
integrate the articulation knowledge into their living mind-body.
***
If you
are interested in my presentation slides and proceeding manuscript, visit my
Japanese blog where they are presented in English.
https://yanase-yosuke.blogspot.com/2020/09/20202-34.html
Visit
Professor Acton’s blog.
https://hipoeces.blogspot.com/2020/09/new-v50-haptic-pronunciation-teaching.html
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