1. Introduction to Phonetics II  Spring 2015
Instructor: Karen Steffen Chung 史嘉琳老師
karchung@ntu.edu.tw
Mondays 1, 2 (8:10-10:00am) Classroom: 外教 204
Wednesdays 9, A (17:30-19:20 [5:30-7:20pm]) Classroom: 外教 204

CET articles on English pronunciation
Syllabus for Spring 2014

Eligibility:

       Students who have successfully completed one semester of an introductory phonetics course; others by permission only. This course is highly recommended for anyone planning to do advanced work in phonetics or linguistics. A serious but friendly course!
       

Textbooks:

       Ladefoged, Peter & Keith Johnson. 2011. A Course in Phonetics. 6th edition. Boston: Wadsworth Cenage Learning. 322pp. Available at Crane's 文鶴.

       Ladefoged, Peter. 2005. Vowels and Consonants: An Introduction to the Sounds of Languages. 2nd edition. Oxford: Blackwell. 206pp. Paper. Includes CD-ROM; same material is also available online (this site is for the 3rd edition). Buy at Crane's 文鶴. (Since the 3rd edition is not yet available at Crane's - in addition it is also quite expensive - we will use the 2nd edition.)

Course description:

     This course is a continuation of Karen Chung's Introduction to Phonetics Course; though students who have taken other phonetics courses are also welcome. The primary goal of the course will be to finish Ladefoged's A Course in Phonetics, starting from Chapter Six, "Airstream Mechanisms and Phonation Types", and to go through all of the material in Ladefoged/Disner's Vowels and Consonants.

     Note that Chapter 11 of the Course will not be covered in class, though material in it may appear in the final exam, so you will need to read chapter 11 of the Course yourself, independently. You are however of course welcome to ask questions about it in class.

     Students are expected to take careful class notes, including on pronunciation corrections, and will be asked to submit a summary of their notes every Monday onto Google Drive. You must also draw up a pronunciation improvement plan, in Excel format, in which you set goals and target dates for achievement of each goal. This will be updated every week and submitted every Monday, also to Google Drive.

     Every Wednesday, you will read and submit a brief summary of one chapter of Vowels and Consonants and write and submit two questions on the chapter a week, in this sequence:

February 25-March 4: Chapter 1 March 4-11: Chapter 2 March 11-18: Chapter 3 March 18-25: Chapter 11 March 25-April 1: Chapter 12 (Wednesday 4/1 is a holiday) April 1-8: Chapter 13 April 8-April 15: Chapter 14 April 15-22: Chapter 4

April 22-29: Chapter 5 April 29-May 6: Chapter 6 May 6-13: Chapter 7 May 13-20: Chapter 8 May 20-27: Chapter 9 May 27-June 3: Chapter 10 June 3-10: Chapter 15 June 10-17: Chapter 16

     There will be a number of class dictations, and practical exercises in English pronunciation will be assigned, as time permits, with emphasis on consolidating past progress and identifying and fine-tuning areas left for improvement. Various Web assignments will be given, and you will get more practice in using Praat and other speech tools.

     Make sure you join and check in often with NTU Phonetics on Facebook, where we can continue and supplement class discussions and ask and answer questions online.

     Final exam date: Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 5:30-7:20pm in 外教 204.

Grade calculation:

     Students will be graded on written work, dictations (to a lesser extent), quizzes, chapter tests, and a final, as well as attendance, class participation, attitude, and progress made.

Syllabus: NOTE: This syllabus is basically a modified copy of the Spring 2014 Phonetics II syllabus,
     so it is for reference only. It is certain to be changed a lot over the course of the semester.
     It will be updated weekly, so in general, it should be accurate up to and including the current week;
     for any time after that, check back after it's been updated for this semester.
     PLEASE REPORT ANY ERRORS OR DEAD LINKS you find to karchung@ntu.edu.tw!

Week 1: 2/25
Wednesday 2/25:
(1) Enrollment and other class business;
     make sure you have a copy of Vowels and Consonants asap!
     See reading schedule above; we will be reading the chapters
     in a different sequence from the one in the book.
     Also note that there is a companion website for the book.
     Read and summarize chapter 1 and write two questions on the
     material in the chapter, to be submitted 3/4.

(2) Your final exam from last semester will be returned; correct it carefully
      and hand it in on Monday March 2.

(3) Just like last semester, class notes are to be uploaded to Google Drive
      before Monday of each week. Also make sure you keep your pronunciation
      plan up to date. Try to focus on just 1-3 issues per week so you don't get
      overwhelmed. Your goal is to automate the correct form in your brain so
      that you permanently fix it (and so we won't have to keep repeating the
      same corrections in class!).

(4) Read and summarize CET 19 (issue #88; it will be emailed to you)
     and submit with your class notes.

(5) Everyone will share with the class three observations about language
     collected over the winter break (or starting from today!) on Wednesday, 2/19.

(6) Book sharing: Dead Souls, by Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol (1809 - 1852).

(7) Start reading chapter 6 of Ladefoged/Johnson's A Course in Phonetics.
     Learn how to pronounce ejectives.
     Some Chinese translations for "ejective": 外爆音、緊喉音、噴音;
     for "egressive": 外呼音、呼氣音、擠氣音、外擠音;
     for "creaky voice": 吱嘎（嗓）音;
     for "breathy voice": 氣（聲）音;
     for "plosive": 爆音、爆發音.
     for "implosive": 內爆音
     for "click: 咂音、搭嘴音、吸氣音

Week 2: 3/2, 3/4
3/2:
(1) Upload your class and CET 19 notes (Word), listening log record,
     and pronunciation plan (Excel file).
     CET 19 has been sent to you by email; please subscribe to
     Email Updates list to receive future articles before publication:
     http://eepurl.com/505qT

(2) Hand in corrected final exams from last semester.

(3) Is everything OK with Vowels and Consonants (V&C)?

(4) Course, ch. 6.

3/4:
(1) Ask questions on V&C ch. 1, hand in your summary and 2 questions.
     Next week's V&C chapter: Ch. 2, for 3/11.

(2) Course, ch. 6.


Week 3: 3/9, 3/11
3/9:
(1) Upload to Google Drive class notes and your weekly plan for pronunciation improvement.

(2) Dictation: Ejectives and VOT.

(3) Course, ch. 6. Clicks; phonation types.

3/11:
(1) Ask questions on V&C ch. 2, hand in your summary and 2 questions.
     Next week's V&C chapter: Ch. 3, for 3/18.

(2) Dictation.

(3) Course, ch. 6: phonation types.

7:30pm: English Bloggers Editorial Meeting in room 204


Week 4: 3/16, 3/18
3/16:
(1) Upload to Google Drive class notes, weekly plan for pronunciation improvement.

(2) Dictation.

(3) Course, ch. 6: phonation types.

3/18:
(1) Ask questions on V&C ch. 3, hand in your summary and 2 questions.
     Next week's V&C chapter: Ch. 11, for 3/25.

(2) Dictation.

(3) Course, ch. 6: states of the glottis, phonation types.


Week 5: 3/23, 3/25
3/23:
(1) Upload class notes, listening log, and pron plan to Google Drive, and also hand in paper notes;
      same for next Monday.

(2) Dictation: Lakhota: Ejectives.

(3) Book sharing: 鄭貞銘, 丁士軒. 百年大師, 二冊. 台北: 源流, 2015.

(4) Finish Course, ch. 6: phonation types.

(5) We'll mark written exercises for ch. 6 and go over the performance exercises on Wednesday 3/25.

(6) Test on chapter 6 on Monday 3/30.

3/25:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 11, summary of ch. 12
     with 2 questions for next Wednesday, 4/1 (a holiday);
     hand in on 4/8.

(2) Dictation: Khmer.

(3) Begin Course, ch. 7.

(4) Test on chapter 6 and dictation on Monday 3/30.


Week 6: 3/30, (4/1 is a holiday; no class)
3/30:
(1) Hand in notes and pronunciation plan update.

(2) Test on chapter 6 and dictation will be postponed till after spring break.

(3) Hand in summary of V&C ch 12; summarize ch 13,
     to be handed in on Wednesday 4/8 (Monday 4/6 is a holiday).

(4) Course, ch. 7.

4/1: (4/1 is a holiday; no class)


Week 7: (4/6 is a holiday; no class), 4/8:
4/6:
(Holiday; no class)

4/8:
(1) Hand in notes, update on pronunciation plan, and summary of V&C ch 12 and 13;
     summarize and write 2 questions on V&C ch. 14, for Wednesday 4/15.

(2) Test on chapter 6 and dictation.

(3) Course, ch. 7.


Week 8: 4/13, 4/15
4/13:
(1) Hand in notes and pronunciation plan update.
     Chapter 6 tests will be returned; correct and resubmit 4/15.

(2) Course, ch. 7.

4/15:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch 14 with 2 questions;
     summarize and write 2 questions on V&C ch. 4 for Wednesday, 4/22.

(2) Dictation.

(3) Course ch 7.

(4) Do the exercises for ch. 7 and submit on Monday 4/20.
     We will finish ch. 7 on 4/20 and then go over the exercises in class.


Week 9: 4/20, 4/22
4/20:
(1) Submit class notes and pronunciation plan update.

(2) Progress on producing alveolar trill?

(3) Dictation including new consonants from ch. 7.

(4) Finish Course ch. 7.

(5) Mark exercises for ch. 7.

(6) Test on ch. 7 is postponed to Wednesday 4/29.

4/22:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 4; summarize ch. 5 for next Wednesday, 4/29.

(2) Chapter test on Course, ch. 7 with dictation is postponed to Wednesday 4/29.

(3) Begin ch. 8 of Course.

(4) Web page: 8. Fundamental frequency and harmonics will be covered 4/27.


Week 10: 4/27, 4/29
4/27:
(1) Submit class notes and pronunciation plan update.

(2) Finish ch 7, mark written exercises, go over performance exercises in class. Test with dictation on Wednesday April 29.

(3) Start Course ch 8.

(4) Guitar demonstration of modes of vibration of a string, using guitar, retractable ruler, electronic tuner, calculator.

(5) Web pages: 8. Fundamental frequency and harmonics;
      and: 10. Vowels and Formants II (with duck call demonstration)

(6) Ruben's handout on palatal nasals in Hakka.

4/29:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 5; summarize ch. 6 for next Wednesday, 5/6.

(2) Test on ch 7 with dication.

(3) Course, ch. 8.

(4) Finish web page: 10. Vowels and Formants II (with duck call demonstration)

(5) Do the logarithms tutorial; introduction and link on web page:
     11. Getting ready to learn about decibels: a tutorial on logarithms

(6) For reference: the speed of sound is 340.29 meters per second; Wikipedia gives 343.2 m/s; in many calculations it is often rounded up to 350 meters per second.


Week 11: 5/4, 5/6
5/4:
(1) Submit class notes and pronunciation plan update.

(2) Has everybody successfully completed the logarithms tutorial?

(3) Course, ch. 8.

(4) Book sharing: How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When,
     Where, and Why It Happens, by Benedict Carey. New York: Random House, 2014.
     (I got it in paperback at Cave's)

(5) Melissa's Amazing IPA Handout

5/6:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 6; summarize ch. 7 for next Wednesday, 5/13.

(2) Course, ch. 8.

(3) Plot F1 and F2 of vowels for General American English and standard Southern British English. Due 5/11.


Week 12: 5/11, 5/13
5/11:
(1) Submit class notes, corrections for test on ch 7,
     pronunciation plan update and F1 and F2 vowel plots.

(2) Course, ch. 8.

(3) Bring scientific calculator to class on Wednesday 5/13 for Decibels tutorial.

5/13:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 7; summarize ch. 8 for next Wednesday, 5/20.

(2) 12. Decibels tutorial. Have scientific calculator ready.

(3) Course, ch. 8.


Week 13: 5/18, 5/20
5/18:
(1) Submit class notes, pronunciation plan update.

(2) Web page: 13. The Case of the Missing Fundamental

(3) Demonstration of beats on 2-tone bird whistle, of difference frequency on 3-note horn.

(4) Course, ch. 8.

5/20:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 8; summarize ch. 9 for next Wednesday, 5/27.

(2) Dictation: Shona.

(3) Course, ch. 8


Week 14: 5/25, 5/27
5/25:
(1) Submit class notes and pronunciation plan update.

(2) Course, ch. 8.

5/27:
(1) Hand in summary of V&C ch. 9 with 2 questions; summarize V&C ch. 10 and write 2 questions for Wednesday, 5/28.

(2) Dictation: Burmese.

(3) Web page: 19. Vowels and Formants III: Formants for fun and profit (with samples of exotic music)

(4) Course, ch. 8.

(5) Spectrogram reading.


Week 15: 6/1, 6/3
6/1:
(1) Submit class notes and pronunciation plan update.

(2) Finish Course, ch. 8.

(3) Check exercises for ch. 8.

(4) Read this page on your own: 16. White noise, pink noise...orange noise???

(5) Test on ch. 8 on Monday 6/8.

6/3:
(1) Submit summary on V&C ch.10 with 2 questions; summarize V&C ch. 15 and write 2 questions for next week, 6/17.

(2) Course, ch. 9.


Week 16: 6/8, 6/4
6/8:
(1) Submit class notes and pronunciation plan update;
      hand in observations on two TTS samples, if you haven't already.

(2) Finish Course, ch. 9.

(3) Go over performance exercises for ch. 9, if there's time.

(4) Hand in written exercises for ch. 9 on Wed. 6/10.

6/10:
(1) Submit summary of V&C ch. 15;
     for next Wednesday 6/17, summarize last chapter of V&C ch. 16.

(2) Dictation.

(3) Go over written and performance exercises for ch. 9.

(4) Course, ch. 10.

(5) Final evalution and Summary of Class Notes (submit as two separate pdf files)
      for Phonetics II are due June 17:

      I. End-of-semester evaluation:
      Part 1: evaluate the class, teacher, homework assignments,
what was most and least useful, things that could be improved, and how
— everything about the class this semester.
      Part 2: Evaluate yourself: Attendance and punctuality, homework submission,
how prepared for class you were, how much you learned from the class,
how much effort you put into this class.
      Part 3: How do you plan to continue improving your English and learning more about linguistics?

      II. Organized summary of your class notes:
      Go through all your old notes, and organize them into a summary of main points,
including notes on the CET articles and Vowels & Consonants. You do not have to include every single detail
from your notes; try rather to combine notes that are about the same thing and to generalize.

      Format and submission instructions: Convert your files to pdf format
before emailing both files to Ms. Chung at: feathermountain@gmail.com no later than June 17, 2015.


Week 17: 6/15, 6/17
6/15:
(1) Hand in class notes.

(2) Web page: 17. Hearing with your eyes: The McGurk Effect

(3) Finish Course ch 10.

(4) Church Romanization and IPA transcription of Southern Min: Try doing reading in Romanization.

6/17:
(1) Summary of class notes and evaluation to feathermountain@gmail.com due today.

(2) Hand in summaries of V&C ch. 16. We've finished Vowels and Consonants!

(3) Go over exercises for Course ch. 10.

(4) IPA transcription of Southern Min, if there's time.


Week 18 (Finals week): 6/22 (no class), 6/24(Final exam)
6/22:
(1) NO CLASS.

(2) Make you've submitted your summary of class notes and evaluation to feathermountain@gmail.com.

6/24:
Final exam: 5:30-7:20pm in 外教 204.

Next: A question that came up over the LINGUIST list...

on to next page         back (index II)         index I         home