Incorporating Music in CALL: An exploratory study establishing a protocol for Computer Assisted Language Learning Incorporating Music (CALLiM) (original) (raw)
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Unlocking the Power of Music: A Novel Approach to Language Teaching and Learning
Teaching and learning a new language is a complex process that requires more than just memorizing vocabulary and grammar rules. Immersing oneself in the target language's culture and history is essential for achieving fluency and accuracy. In recent years, researchers have explored the potential of music as a tool for language learning. This paper discusses the benefits of using music in language learning, including improved listening comprehension, pronunciation and fluency, and cultural understanding. The theoretical framework of sociocultural theory, cognitive load theory, and task-based language learning is presented to support the use of music in language learning. This paper also provides practical recommendations for learners to incorporate music into their language learning routine, as well as resources for finding music in the target language, such as online music platforms and language learning apps. The article concludes by encouraging language learners to incorporate...
Music and Language Learning: An Introduction
Among the different aims of scientific inquiry are those of describing, explaining, understanding the phenomena we live with or are surrounded by, many of them profoundly embedded in human nature since ancient times, even since the creation of humankind. This is the case of language and music, two unique, innate human capacities that have been considered an object of study in many different disciplines. In fact, it is a research topic that goes across disciplines and has been dealt with in brain, language, music, education, and health studies. More concretely, melodic and rhythmical patterns are two crucial elements that can be found in both, language and music studies. Curiously enough, the idiom “to have an ear for” is found in many different languages and is directly related to language and music. So in French, we find the expression ‘avoir de l'oreille pour’, while in German it is ‘ein Ohr haben für’ and in Spanish ‘tener oído para’. It shows that beliefs about the relationship between music and language are somehow supported by our common verbal behaviour, by common sense or street wisdom. However, analysing what is meant by ‘having a good ear for music or languages’ brings many different research perspectives into the picture. From neuroscience, it raises question about brain functioning, what brain areas are triggered by both or how musical and language stimuli are processed (Patel, 2014). Psychologists are interested in the affective power of music and words, as well as in the explanation of the common cognitive processes the mind activates (Chobert & Besson, 2013). Musicologists mainly seek to understand how musical training benefits language learning and to describe the main ingredients of an optimal music-for-language learning intervention program (Runfola, Etopio, Hamlen & Rozendal, 2012). Health studies are concerned about the conditions in which humans’ well-being is affected by music and language (Barnes, 2015). Finally, Educational specialists are interested in finding if alternative teaching methods based on musical approaches could help learners to overcome language learning difficulties or simply make them learn at a quicker rate (Fonseca, Gomez, Jara, 2015). The interplay language-music brings to applied linguists enquiries about the nature and function of speech melodies, the role of prosody, or the descriptions of rhythmical patterns in verbal behaviour. From another perspective, applied linguists are interested in knowing about the role of music in first and second language acquisition to see if students with a good ear for music are better equipped for language learning (Fonseca, Avila & Segador, 2015). While trying to understand the relationship between language and music, and more deeply, while trying to find out how music contributes to communication exchanges in any language, what universal properties it adds to the first language acquisition process and how the teaching and learning of foreign languages could be improved, the necessarily fragmentary answers from all disciplines are needed. As language and music are innate human capacities, with an undeniable link between them, does it mean that everyone could benefit from its intertwined input in the language classroom? On the one hand, musical abilities enhance linguistic cognitive processes such as phonemic and phonological awareness, reading comprehension, vocabulary acquisition, listening and speech abilities. On the other hand, language learning takes also advantage of the emotional elements provided by music and songs. Musical activities have been found to influence memory, attention and effort as a result of their physiological properties and to foster a relaxed and safe but motivating and productive classroom atmosphere (Fonseca & Herrero, 2016).
MUSIC(S) OF THE WORLD AS AN ONLINE EFL RESOURCE: A Japanese EFL classroom experience
Englisia: Journal of language, education, and humanities, 2020
This research considers how the study of musical performances from around the world can be drawn upon as a useful resource for language instruction, particularly in EFL Japanese university classrooms. This study shares the insights gained from literature reviews combined with the researcher’s teaching experiences on the advanced English elective course of Computer Assisted Ethnomusicology. This work was carried out over a five-year period between 2013–2018 at a university in the Tohoku region of Japan, based on a course that focused on the music and culture found in Oceania, South East Asia, East Asia, Africa and North America. This study identifies the language resources present within the ethnomusicological content, and identifies the ways it can help awaken learners to the rich variation that exists among the cultures of the world, and highlighting the way local and global features combine in the ‘glocal.’ In addition to digital applications, approaches introduced in the study al...
Learning French through music: the development of the Bande à Part app
Computer Assisted Language Learning, 2018
This article describes the development of Bande a Part, a mobile music application (app) for second language (L2) learners of French. Our focus on the pedagogical use of music results from the reported benefits that it offers language learners (e.g., it encourages repetitive exposure to the L2 in an enjoyable way, it extends the reach of the language classroom). In addition, Bande a Part has the potential to contribute to this under-researched area of L2 French pedagogy (Engh, 2013). The development of the app adopted current SLA theory and principles such as those set forth by Doughty and Long (2003). Some of these principles suggest that technology can help learners through input enhancements (e.g. grammatical gender highlighting, subtitles and translations) and grading content for proficiency level, particularly if offered in a mobile environment to foster "anywhere, anytime" learning (e.g., Stockwell, 2010). This paper introduces Bande a Part and the rationale for its development, including how Doughty and Long' (2003) principles were used to promote L2 learning in a mobile-assisted environment. Lastly, the current lyrical corpus is evaluated for vocabulary coverage in order to highlight the app's strengths and weaknesses according to this criterion.
Translation Today, 2017
Language and Music are two ways that human beings use to communicate and express themselves through sound‖. Abstract Numerous articles have been written on the role of music in language learning. The contribution of various scholars of different backgrounds in acknowledging the significance of music in promoting language learning is indeed astounding and encouraging. One would then wonder what new contribution in this already swelling body of information that this article seeks to provide. First of all, this study seeks to discuss practical or rather pedagogical strategies by which music can be utilised to promote foreign language learning. The approach employed in this study is quite unique in the sense that translation is taken as the gateway through which music can be harnessed to improve foreign language learning. The view that is central in this discussion is that, since music is understood as a universal language that cuts across different age groups, social and cultural structures, channelling translation based activities towards music can be a powerful method of foreign language learning. Rather than simply singing and rehearsing target language songs, learners can be given tasks and projects of translating target language songs into their L1/L2 and performing their work in classroom activities. In such activities, learners are given an opportunity of not only enjoying the process of foreign language learning but most importantly of localising the language experience into their lifestyle, thus domesticating the foreign. For instance, giving them an opportunity to use the target language learning material to compile songs which Music is a Gateway to the Soul… 94 they can translate and perform (both the original and the translated version) in front of other learners and the teacher, may give them the satisfaction of being the producers of their projects. Their chances of having an intimate relationship with their lyrics may be the much needed bond between the learner and the target language. In the context of this study, such projects are referred to as foreign language learning music/song projects. This discussion also encourages the utilisation of digitization in the performance of music/song projects. Hence, utilizing various applications that can be used to edit music (mini studios), music/song projects can be transformed into enjoyable activities, where learners may even forget that they are learning a foreign language and thus paving a way to a process of acquiring the target language rather than merely learning it.
Ryming the Rythm and Measuring the Metre: Pooling Music and Language in the Classroom
CLIL. Journal of Innovation and Research in Plurilingual and Pluricultural Education, 2018
S ongs are part of the teaching-learning processes of the language. However, music can contribute much more, in line with the proposals of the European Music Portfolio project: A Creative Way into Languages (EMP-L). In this article, placing ourselves in the shared space between music and language, we present three illustrative activities of linguistic work that can be developed from music. Finally, we defend the importance of looking for teaching-learning formulas that integrate different types of languages, in a holistic, vivid, and motivating concept of the curriculum. L Les cançons formen part dels processos d' ensenyamentaprenentatge de la llengua. Amb tot, la música pot aportar molt més, en la línia de les propostes del projecte European Music Portfolio: A Creative Way into Languages (EMP-L). En aquest article, situant-nos en l' espai compartit entre música i llengua, presentem tres activitats il•lustratives del treball lingüístic que es pot desenvolupar a partir de la música. Finalment, defensem la importància de buscar fórmules d' ensenyament-aprenentatge que integrin els diversos tipus de llenguatges, dins d'una concepció holística, vivencial i motivadora del currículum.
The Great Effects of Applying Music on Learning Second Language
Universal Journal of Educational Research, 2020
Today, in order to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems related to education, economy and society, countries increasingly open, interact with each other more, then learning foreign languages is one of the extremely necessary requirements. However, learning a language is not an easy one for everyone. Everyone has a different ability, and the way and tools people use to learn languages are not the same. One of the tools they use is music. By using rhythms of favorite songs, the learners might have much more better pronunciation, that is, they would find it enjoyable to learn a new language, easier to remember. They no longer learn the grammatical structures or sentences in the books, and as a result, they could improve their speaking skills as well as other skills more naturally. This article will mention benefits of learning languages via music, the paper also mentions some characteristics of music and words to prove that music is an effective tool to make foreign language learning extremely effective. The paper was completed with the support of 100 students currently studying at some universities in Ho Chi Minh City. These students are studying English or Japanese. The online survey method and oral interviews aim to further clarify the importance of music for foreign language access. The results show that most students mention the effects of music but there are also students who are not really aware of the importance of this form of learning.
Musical looping of lexical chunks: An exploratory study
The JALT CALL Journal, 2015
This paper reports on the experimental use of a recently developed musical looping app with a class of Japanese university students of English during 2014. Working in groups using shared hand-held devices, students created compositions based on lexical chunks or formulaic sequences selected freely from a fixed text. A scored example of one such group composition is included in the paper. During research, the author acted as instructor and a participant/ observer role afforded an intimate view of the educational process. Self-assessment questionnaires prior to and post working with Loopy indicate that students experienced increased confidence in their ability to produce spoken English over a three-month period. The affordances and constraints of using the musical app to learn English are examined and a significant increase in speech rate when reading from a fixed text is also noted.
Language and Music: Designing a Course at an Academic Level
Research in Language
The parallels that are present between language and music, together with popular beliefs that musicality may be a factor enhancing language learning, especially with regard to pronunciation, prompted the idea of designing an academic course whose main aim was to demonstrate the relation between the two domains from the linguistic perspective. There were eighteen students participating in the course which was an elective for 1st year MA students of English at the University of Łódź. The course content included presentation of direct links between language and music, and of selected studies indicating the influence of music on developing various aspects of linguistic performance, e.g. second language learning (e.g. Pastuszek-Lipińska, 2008; Kolinsky et al., 2009), early reading abilities (Fonseca-Mora et al., 2018) or pitch processing (Besson et al., 2007). The practical part of the course involved testing the students' musical abilities with the use of various tools: tests availa...