I teach pronunciation so I’m always interested in how speech and language develops in L1 and L2 (first languages and second languages). I just watched a wonderful video by Dr. Deb Roy, an MIT researcher, who studied his baby’s first words, and created 3-D “wordscapes” that show the connection between the baby’s words and his environment. Dr. Roy discovered that there is a tight feedback loop and a kind of scaffolding that takes place just before his son formed his word coherently.
What does this mean for pronunciation teachers? Instruction works best when students are allowed to experiment making new sounds and get immediate feedback on their successes and failures. After all, how can they know if their sound is meaningful or not without feedback from a listener! And scaffolding means breaking the goal down into smaller segments, so students can recognize them, work on them, and achieve them, step by step.
We have a lot to learn from babies! Enjoy the video!
Peggy Tharpe teaches, coaches, and publishes about English pronunciation and intonation. She believes that if you understand why something is happening, you're better able to address it and change it. She teaches the "why" of pronunciation as well as the "what" and "how".
