Incorporating sustainability into
the (clinical) phonetics classroom
Jessica A Barlow
AASHE 2011, Pittsburg
What is phonetics?
• Core area of linguistic
study focusing on human
speech sounds
• Emphasis on the physical
properties of speech
production, e.g.:
– articulatory
– acoustic
– auditory/perceptual
Applied phonetics
•
•
•
•
Acting
Espionage
Foreign language teaching
Speech-language pathology
– clinical phonetics
– critical ‘knowledge and skills’ area for
understanding, evaluating, diagnosing, and
treating individuals with speech disorders
Clinical phonetics
• Speech disorders affect approximately 10% of
US population
– ~80% require intervention
• Within the schools, children with speech
disorders make up ~99% of school SLP
caseloads
– many co-occur with other impairments
(NIDCD, 1994)
American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association (ASHA)
• Accrediting body for certification of speechlanguage pathologists (SLPs)
• All accredited programs must satisfy specific
standards related to Knowledge and Skills
Acquisition (KASA Standards)
• Many of these standards are included in the
upper-division undergraduate curriculum
Losing sight of the bigger picture
• Undergraduate education is about educating
the whole person, the future citizens of the
planet
• Because of obligations to accreditation
standards, many speech-language-hearing
programs neglect this critically important
component of their undergraduate curricula
The change
• Connecting to place, people, and community
• Asking a new set of questions
– What happened?
– Why? How?
– What does this mean?
Some ways to create a sustainabilityrelated (phonetics) course
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•
•
•
•
Hidden curriculum
New readings
New assignments
New (or revamped) units or modules
New student projects
(adapted from Barlett & Chase, p.c.)
Learning unit:
Learning the
International Phonetic
Alphabet (IPA)
Extension:
Learning something
extra about
sustainability practices
on campus
Connecting with place using hidden curriculum:
IPA Scavenger Hunt
1. zɪpkɑr loʊkeɪʃən
2. ɛl i i di plætɪnəm
æztɛk studənt junjən
3. ɛs di ɛs ju fɑrmɚz
mɑrkət
4. baɪk leɪnz
5. trænzɪt steɪʃən
6. ɛs di ɛs ju risaɪklɪŋ
sɛntɚ
Revamped modules:
Language, dialect, and social identity
• Learning unit: understanding dialect variation
• A connection to place: Regional dialects
– A common way of talking to refer to a shared
place
• A connection to people: Socio-cultural dialects
– A common way of talking to refer to shared
experiences
Connecting with people using a new assignment:
Language, dialect, and social identity
• Linguistic biography of a classmate and
linguistic autobiography
• Aim: get students thinking about language use
• Extension: help students recognize the
different experiences and viewpoints about
language among their classmates
Language, dialect, and social identity:
Do You Speak American? (PBS series)
http://www.pbs.org/speak/
Part 1: “Up North”
Part 2: “Down South”
Part 3: “Out West”
My motto
You sound funny to
someone, somewhere.
Connecting with the community:
SDSU’s Common Experience
• 2011-12 theme: “Science, Ethics, and Moral
Courage”
• Common reading: The Immortal Life of
Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot
• Book features excellent examples of African
American English Vernacular (Ebonics)
http://CommonExperience.sdsu.edu
Connecting with place using a new assignment:
Comparison of Spanish and English
• Learning unit: Transcribing and comparing
pronunciations in English and (Mex.) Spanish
– Ex:
San Diego
Tijuana
tecolote
[sæn dijeɪgoʊ] vs. [san djeɣo]
[tʰiəwɑnə] vs. [tixwana]
[tʰɛkəloʊɾi] vs. [tekolote]
Connecting with place using a new assignment:
Comparison of Spanish and English
• Extensions: Spanish and English in the US
– Where did these names come from?
– Why are there so many Spanish names?
– How long has Spanish been spoken in the US?
– Is the English language threatened?
New unit:
Language death and linguistic diversity
• Films, podcasts, videos, discussions, and readings
on dead and dying languages and the associated
consequences
• Learning unit: Sounds of the world’s languages
(e.g., clicks and other exotic sounds)
• Extension: The importance of linguistic diversity
and the consequences of language death
– Where did they go? Why? What happens when a
language dies?
Language death and linguistic diversity:
The Linguists (film)
http://www.pbs.org/thelinguists/
Connecting with place using a new student project:
Language death and linguistic diversity
• Research a dying language in the US
– Learning unit: Sounds of the world’s languages
– Extension: Learn about a specific example of an
endangered language
and its speakers
(location, number of
speakers, revitalization
efforts)
http://www.unesco.org
The results?
• Currently in the second year since course
change
• Observations of student learning:
– Subjective: More meaningful connections with the
material, emotionally and intellectually
– Objective: Performance is as good as or better on
the core areas of phonetics
Challenges
• Defining (and measuring) specific outcomes
that relate to sustainability
• Wanting to do too much at once
Thank you!
QUESTIONS?
Contact: jessica.barlow@sdsu.edu
Relevant KASA Standards
• Standard III-B: The applicant must demonstrate knowledge of basic
human communication and swallowing processes, including their
biological, neurological, acoustic, psychological, developmental, and
linguistic and cultural bases.
• Standard III-C: The applicant must demonstrate knowledge of the nature
of speech, language, hearing, and communication disorders and
differences and swallowing disorders, including the etiologies,
characteristics, anatomical/physiological, acoustic, psychological,
developmental, and linguistic and cultural correlates. Specific knowledge
must be demonstrated in the following areas: articulation, …
2005 Standards and Implementation Procedures for the Certificate of Clinical Competence in
Speech-Language Pathology, Revised 2009
Nine core areas of SLP
scope of practice
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
articulation
fluency
voice and resonance, including respiration and phonation
receptive and expressive language (phonology, morphology, syntax,
semantics, and pragmatics) in speaking, listening, reading, writing, and
manual modalities
hearing, including the impact on speech and language
swallowing (oral, pharyngeal, esophageal, and related functions,
including oral function for feeding; orofacial myofunction)
cognitive aspects of communication (attention, memory, sequencing,
problem-solving, executive functioning)
social aspects of communication (including challenging behavior,
ineffective social skills, lack of communication opportunities)
communication modalities (including oral, manual, augmentative, and
alternative communication techniques and assistive technologies)
2005 Standards and Implementation Procedures for the Certificate of Clinical Competence in
Speech-Language Pathology, Revised 2009
Side note:
Why the IPA is better than spelling
• English ‘e’ is ‘i’ in most other languages, while
‘a’ is ‘e’
• Compare: to, too, two, through, threw, clue,
shoe
• Compare: food, foot
• Compare: ether and either, or thigh and thy