Instructor: Professor Vesna Mildner, Ph.D.
Course title: Research into speech perception
Language: English
Duration/Hours: 1 semester/total per semester: 30; per week: 2
ECTS credits: 5
Terms offered: Fall
Prerequisites: 7th semester of study or later
Maximum number of students per term: 10
Status: Elective
Target audience: Primarily students of phonetics, linguistics, various languages including
Croatian.
Course description: This is a research-oriented course. Each student is expected to choose a
topic for independent study by the 7th week at the latest. About one third of course work (4
weeks) is devoted to the theoretical background (fundamentals of speech perception including
(neuro)physiological basis: basic anatomy and physiology of hearing, theories and models of
speech perception, research methods), and about two thirds (8 weeks) to in-class discussions
about relevant reading and students’ research. The last week of classes will be organized as a
symposium at which students will present their work.
• Week 1 Basic anatomy and physiology of hearing
• Week 2 Neurophysiological basis of hearing and speech perception
• Week 3 Theories and models of speech perception
• Week 4 Experimental methods
• Week 5 Short quiz covering theoretical background; discussion about the results
• Week 6 In-class discussion about possible/selected topics; instructions for writing
study proposals, analysis of sample proposals
• Week 7 Study proposals with initial references due; In-class discussion
• Week 8 Individual progress reports – report on literature relevant for each study
• Week 9 Individual progress reports – methodological issues and expected results
• Week 10 Free for conducting experiments and one-on-one consultations with instructor
• Week 11 Progress reports and in-class discussions
• Week 12 Progress reports – preliminary results
• Week 13 Progress reports – (preliminary) results and implications
• Week 14 Free for final preparations, writing up final reports and one-on-one
consultation with instructor
• Week 15 Symposium (presentations); first drafts of final papers due
Students who successfully complete the course will be familiar with the basic mechanisms of
hearing and speech perception, they will be able to find relevant literature for a particular
problem/topic, master terminology and scientific discourse in the area of speech perception,
and above all gain skills in planning, conducting and reporting their own research. Authors of
outstanding papers will be encouraged to submit their work to appropriate journals.
Form of instruction: seminar combined with e-learning; lecture notes and student
presentations will be available on-line
Grading: The final grade will be calculated on the basis of attendance and class activity
(10%), symposium presentation (40%) and final paper (50%).
Quality control: Student questionnaire
Mildner, V.: Research into speech perception
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Reading
1. Hardcastle, W., Laver, W. and Gibbon, F. E. (eds.)(2010). The handbook of phonetic
sciences. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.
2. Mildner, V. (2007). The Cognitive Neuroscience of Human Communication. LEA
(Psychology Press).
3. Moore, G., Tyler, L. and Marslen-Wilson (2010). The Perception of Speech: from sound
to meaning. Oxford University Press (USA).
4. Pinel, J. P. J. (2008). Biopsychology. Pearson Higher Education, 7th Edition.
5. Seikel, A. J., King, D. W. and Drumright, D. G. (2005). Anatomy and Physiology for
Speech, Language and Hearing. Singular.
6. http://wps.ablongman.com/ab_pinel_biopsychology_6/37/9630/2465293.cw/index.html
and relevant articles depending on the chosen topic of research
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