29.2028, Diss: English; Applied Linguistics; Language Acquisition; Phonology; Psycholinguistics: Burcu Gokgoz Kurt: ''Attention Control and the Effects of Online Training in Improving Connected Speech Perception by Learners of English as a Second Language''

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LINGUIST List: Vol-29-2028. Fri May 11 2018. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 29.2028, Diss: English; Applied Linguistics; Language Acquisition; Phonology; Psycholinguistics: Burcu Gokgoz Kurt: ''Attention Control and the Effects of Online Training in Improving Connected Speech Perception by Learners of English as a Second Language''

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Date: Fri, 11 May 2018 11:29:48
From: Burcu Gokgoz-Kurt [burcugokgoz at gmail.com]
Subject: Attention Control and the Effects of Online Training in Improving Connected Speech Perception by Learners of English as a Second Language

 
Institution: University of South Carolina 
Program: Linguistics Program 
Dissertation Status: Completed 
Degree Date: 2016 

Author: Burcu Gokgoz Kurt

Dissertation Title: Attention Control and the Effects of Online Training in
Improving Connected Speech Perception by Learners of
English as a Second Language 

Dissertation URL:  https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4576&context=etd

Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics
                     Language Acquisition
                     Phonology
                     Psycholinguistics

Subject Language(s): English (eng)


Dissertation Director(s):
D. Eric Holt
Mila Tasseva-Kurktchieva

Dissertation Abstract:

One of the aspects of L2 English phonology which poses a challenge for L2
learners is learning how to decode the language, especially as spoken by
native speakers. This difficulty may be due to the way the native speakers
speak by ‘draw[ing] [the sounds] together’ (Clarey & Dixson, 1963), which
results in realization of consonants and vowels differently than when uttered
in isolation. This process is referred to as connected speech (e.g.,
pronouncing ‘want to’ as [wɑnə], and ‘going to’ as [ɡʌnə]). The challenge in
teaching and learning these forms is that they lack perceptual saliency,
requiring extra attentional resources for learners to be able to recognize
these forms in spoken language. Therefore, a better understanding of the role
of attention in learning these forms is needed. While some studies find a
relationship between attention control as a cognitive ability and L2
phonological processing (Darcy, Mora & Daidone, 2014; Safronova & Mora,
2012a), other studies have failed to confirm the existence of such a
relationship (Darcy, Park & Yang, 2015). More importantly, to date, no study
has examined attention control as it relates to L2 phonological gains,
especially in learning a phonological aspect of L2 English other than
individual segments as the target linguistic item. Therefore, the present
study aimed to explore the effects of training in improving the connected
speech perception of L2 learners as well as the relationship between attention
control and learners’ improvement in connected speech perception. To do this,
English as a Second Language learners, who were assigned to an experimental (n
= 33) or a control group (n = 25), took a two-option forced-choice, pre- and
post-test. The experimental group received online training on word-boundary
palatalization as a connected speech phenomenon for three weeks while the
control group did not. Word-boundary palatalization occurs in the
transformation of [toʊld ju]~ [toʊldʒʊ] ‘told you’ or [want ju]~[wantʃʊ] ‘want
you’. To measure attention control, all students were given a Speech-Based
Attention Switching Task (Darcy, Mora & Daidone, 2014; Darcy & Mora, in press;
Mora and Darcy, in press) and an Attention Network Test (ANT) (Fan,
McCandliss, Sommer, Raz & Posner, 2002). The findings reveal that learners
both in the control and experimental groups improved their scores on the
post-test; however, the improvement in the scores of the experimental group
was significantly higher than those of the control group (p =.007).
Furthermore, correlation analyses showed a significant negative correlation
between the post-test scores and attention control, and the gain scores and
attention control as measured by the Speech-Based Attention Control Task (p
=.002 and p =.008, respectively) and the conflict effect of the Attention
Network Test (p =.004 and p =.032, respectively). Additionally, overlapping
results between the two attention control tasks were also found as revealed by
the significant correlation between the shift-cost and conflict effect
measures (p =.009). Overall, the results indicated that L2 learners benefit
from online training in improving performance scores on a perception test of
word-boundary palatalization, which is promising for further studies of
connected speech teaching and learning. The findings also reveal a significant
relationship between learners’ attention control and phonological learning,
which shows the crucial role attention control plays in learning connected
speech.




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