Language learning study suggests focusing on foreign sounds beats rote grammar
A language learning study by researchers at UCL and Tohoku University in Japan found that learners who focus on how a foreign language sounds may progress better than those starting with rote vocabulary and grammar.
Language learning study suggests focusing on foreign sounds beats rote grammar
The best-performing learners in the study had one thing in common: their brains treated unfamiliar foreign words not as words at all, but as random noise. According to the research, prioritising how a foreign language sounds may help learners more than beginning with rote vocabulary and grammar drills.
What the study measured
Researchers at UCL and Tohoku University in Japan compared the auditory precision of 67 Japanese learners of English. Auditory precision was assessed through the ability to detect slight changes in pitch, length and tone in non-speech sounds.
The team then used functional MRI scans to observe brain activity:
- Participants distinguished English vowel sounds that do not occur in Japanese
- Scans measured how the brain responded during this task
- The comparison covered all 67 learners
How a good ear changes the brain's work
Learners with higher auditory precision mastered second language pronunciation faster and more accurately, and relied less on the brain's left sensorimotor system, which is involved in language processing. Their brain activity patterns were similar to those seen when the brain processes non-speech sounds. With less interference from the pre-existing patterns of their native language, processing the new sounds became simpler for them.
Learners with lower auditory precision showed the opposite pattern: they leaned more on the left sensorimotor network and used the pronunciation patterns of their native language when handling unfamiliar sounds. This matters because learners normally interpret a new language through the sounds of their mother tongue, and the greater the difference between the two sound systems, the harder the language is to learn.
What the lead author recommends
Prof Kazuya Saito-van Poeteren, lead author and professor of second language education at UCL Institute of Education, said: "I do not think British people are biologically bad at languages". Instead, he pointed to many people receiving too little meaningful exposure, combined with teaching methods that do not necessarily train the auditory skills required.
He explained that when learners only hear and use a language for a small number of hours each week, having a good ear may matter far more. Learners with high auditory precision can make very effective use of relatively sparse input, while others need much more exposure before new sounds take hold.
On that basis, he argued schools should focus on sounds much more than just grammar and vocabulary when teaching modern languages, and that foreign language education should move beyond an approach based on "more practice" towards one that develops learners' ear in line with their auditory characteristics. The findings also challenge stereotypes that Britons are less adept at languages.
An outside view
Prof Padraic Monaghan, professor of cognition at Lancaster University, said: "Traditional language learning relies on structured practice, but our brains are naturally attuned to acquire languages through exposure". The study, he said, confirms how vital listening is to learning, though learners vary in their sound sensitivity at least in the early stages.
