Articulatory Phonetics
Course overview
This course is about how movements of the body (articulations) produce speech sounds (phonetics). The main objective is for you to be able to describe the vocal actions that are used in speech and how vocal movement creates both speech and non-speech sound.
As part of the course, we will consider the role of phonetics in Linguistics, including the historical convention that phonetics is distinct from phonology and the extent to which vocal articulations are grounded in speech-specific behavior. Along the way, we will consider varieties of vocal behavior that are not typically studied in phonetics like singing and beatboxing; these behaviors demonstrate the physical properties of speech we will be learning about, and they also help us create fuller theories of speech production.
Because a major part of working in Linguistics, Speech Science, and related fields involves understanding and contributing to speech research, throughout the course you will build up a research proposal for investigating a vocal behavior of your choice. You won't be required to actually perform an experiment, but you will work with an expert at that vocal behavior (your consultant) when developing a research question and hypotheses.
Learning objectives
The goal is that, by the end of this course, you will have some of the foundational skills and knowledge required to pursue a career in a field related to vocal articulation (including research, speech therapy, biomedical engineering, and vocal performance). You will:
- Identify anatomical features of the vocal and respiratory systems, including muscles, bones, and articulators.
- Explain how vocal movement is related to phonological properties of speech (the relationship between articulation and phonology).
- Explain how vocal articulations create sound (the relationship between articulation and acoustics).
- Write a research proposal for an articulatory study.
Schedule
| Week | Topic |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Orientation |
| Week 2 | Breathing |
| Week 3 | Phonation |
| Week 4 | Harmonics |
| Week 5 | Vowels |
| Week 6 | Perturbation theory |
| Week 7 | Consonants |
| Week 8 | Articulatory Phonology I |
| Week 9 | Articulatory Phonology II |
| Week 10 | Reflection |
Weekly plan
Due to COVID-19, this course will primarily be conducted asynchronously, which here means that there is no requirement for all of us to be in the same space (virtual or physical) at the same time. I've made this choice to accommodate our recent trying circumstances; for example, to ensure that students who now live in different time zones or have unreliable internet access can fully participate in the course.
The class is organized around weekly deadlines, as summarized in the table below. (The timeline will be a little different in the first week as we get our bearings.)
| Day | Things to do on or before that day |
|---|---|
| Monday |
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| Tuesday |
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| Wednesday | — |
| Thursday | — |
| Friday |
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Grades
| Category | % of grade |
|---|---|
| Weekly quizzes | 30% |
| Discussion | 20% |
| Weekly writing assignments | 30% |
| Final project | 20% |
Weekly quizzes
New readings, video lectures, or other materials will be available on the course site each week. To check your understanding, each week a quiz will be posted in the course site to assess your understanding.
The quizzes will usually be in the following format: 10-20 multiple-choice (or similar) questions, untimed. The quiz will be made available at the same time as the material it assesses, which will generally be 5-7 days before the quiz is due.
Discussion
Discussions in this course will take place through the course site. You are expected to participate in each week's discussion by posting your own thoughts early in the week and replying to your peers later in the week.
Each student will start their own thread in the week's discussion earlier in the week. Messages that start threads can be questions, criticisms, extensions, or epiphanies about the course content; said another way, your posts should show that you've put thought into the week's content.
Later in the week, you will reply to at least two of your peers' threads. Good replies could be affirm-and-add responses (the "yes, and…" model used in improvisation) or thought-provoking questions/challenges on the topic. Ideally, your reply should continue conversation, not shut it down. Likewise, the best thread-starters will invite comments and lengthy discussion.
Outside of the weekly graded discussion, you are encouraged to participate in the open discussion on the course page. This will be monitored, but not graded; it is a space for you to talk about whatever you want (as long as it would be appropriate to talk about in the classroom too), post gifs, ask unrelated questions, etc. Informal/conversational messages are welcome as long as they are respectful and appropriate (which is true of the discussion posts as well).
Weekly writing assignments
There will be a writing assignment each week, followed by a peer review assignment and revision or revision plan, unless noted otherwise. Many of the weekly writing assignments will build toward the final project, so you're more likely to do well on the project at the end of the course if you do all the writing assignments during the course and incorporate feedback from your classmates and teacher on the final submission.
There are three types of writing assignments, all of which add up to the final writing assignment grade (30% of the final grade): first-draft assignments, peer review, and revise-and-resubmit assignments.
First draft assignments
A "first draft assignment" is one that's graded based on completion: if you accomplished most of tasks in the assignment's grading rubric, you get 100% on the first draft. More than half of your weekly writing assignments will be first draft assignments.
First draft assignments are worth 25% of your weekly writing assignment grade (7.5% of your final grade).
Peer review
When a first draft assignment is a stepping-stone toward your final project, the draft you submitted will be reviewed by two (occasionally three) of your classmates. They'll each provide feedback that should help you figure out where your explanations could be clearer or where your reasoning doesn't make sense.
While your first draft assignment is getting peer reviewed, you'll be reviewing two drafts of your peers' work as well. You'll be given a few multiple-choice questions to help you determine whether the work you're reviewing accomplished the objectives of the assignment. Then, you'll give customized feedback by leaving two short comments using the (describe-evaluate-suggest)[https://elireview.com/2016/08/03/describe-evaluate-suggest/] model and an optional comment to help your peers prioritize their revisions.
Peer review assignments will be allocated 24-48 hours after the corresponding first draft assignment is due. If you do not submit a first draft assignment before the peer review assignments are allocated, you will be unable to participate in that week's peer review assignment. In that case, you are responsible for contacting your teacher to ask for feedback on your first-draft assignment.
Note: peer review is not grading your peers' assignments; instead, you're just helping each other do better.
Peer review assignments are worth 25% of your weekly writing assignment grade (7.5% of your final grade).
Revise-and-resubmit assignments
After receiving feedback from two of your classmates, you'll revise your first draft assignment based on that feedback and submit it again. This time, the assignment will be graded according to the assignment's grading rubric.
Revise-and-resubmit assignments are worth 50% of your weekly writing assignment grade (15% of your final grade).
Schedule of writing assignments
| Week | Writing assignments due that week |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | First draft assignment: Thinking about peer review |
| Week 2 |
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| Week 3 |
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| Week 4 | First draft assignment: Final project part 1 (generate questions about a vocal behavior with your consultant) |
| Week 5 |
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| Week 6 | First draft assignment: Final project part 2 (question, hypotheses, predictions, and references) |
| Week 7 |
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| Week 8 | First draft assignment: Final project part 3 (method for testing your hypotheses) |
| Week 9 |
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| Week 10 | First draft assignment: Reflection |
Research paper
The summative assessment for this course (what in other courses might be a final exam) is a research paper proposal. The purpose of the paper is to provide a practical assessment of how you apply the knowledge and skills you gained from this course.
For the paper, you will choose a vocal behavior relevant to speech (we will talk about what this means) and create a research proposal for studying its articulation. Note that you will not be required to actually perform an articulatory study, as this usually requires sophisticated instruments and the ability to get within 6 feet of other people. However, you will be asked to make observations and research questions based on consultation with an informant who uses the vocal behavior in your paper.
Some of the weekly writing assignments will help you write parts of your research paper long before the final product is due. For example, an earlier writing assignment will ask you to describe the vocal behavior you choose, and another will help you describe the method of your proposed research.