The Effects of Music Upon
Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition
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Document # ED 352-834
Suzanne
L. Medina, Ph.D.
School of Education
Graduate Education Department
California State University, Dominguez Hills
1000 East Victoria Street
Carson, CA 90747
Fax: (310) 514-0396
E-Mail: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
Can English be
acquired through a musical medium? The positive
effects of music upon rote memorization are
well-documented, yet empirical support for music
as a vehicle for second language acquisition is
lacking.
A recent study
investigated the effects of music upon the
acquisition of English vocabulary in a group of
48-second grade limited-English-proficient
children. A Pretest-Posttest Control Group Design
with Matching and Repeated measures was selected
for this investigation. The main independent
variable, medium (Music/No-Music) was crossed
with a second variable, extralinguistic support
(Illustrations/No-Illustrations), producing four
treatment groups. No-Music group subjects
listened to an oral story while Music subjects
heard a sung version of the same story.
Illustration group subjects were shown pictures
of target vocabulary words while listening to the
story. No-Illustration subjects listened to the
story without the benefit of pictures.
As
a result of performing two-way analyses of
variance, the null hypotheses were accepted.
Consequently, these findings support past
positive claims: A musical medium promotes
language acquisition to the same extent as a
non-musical medium. Stated differently, the
same amount of vocabulary is acquired from
listening to a song as listening to a story.
Definite patterns in the data were also observed:
Sample mean gain scores were consistently higher
for Music and Illustration treatments. The
combination of Music and Illustrations resulted
in the largest vocabulary acquisition gains.
Further investigation is needed in order to
determine whether a musical medium may promote
even greater vocabulary acquisition than a
non-musical medium.
THE
EFFECTS OF MUSIC UPON SECOND LANGUAGE VOCABULARY
ACQUISITION
It is currently
a common practice to use songs in the classroom
to support second language acquisition. The
literature abounds with the positive statements
regarding the efficacy of music as a vehicle for
first and second language acquisition. (Jalongo
and Bromley, 1984, McCarthey, 1985; Martin, 1983,
Mitchell, 1983, Jolly, 1975). Although this
phenomenon has not been well researched or
documented, empirical support can be found in the
research on second language acquisition and
psychology.
Second
Language Research on Incidental Vocabulary
Acquisition
In recent years,
second language researchers have concerned
themselves with the acquisition of vocabulary.
Within this body, researchers have distinguished
between vocabulary, which is acquired
incidentally as opposed to intentionally.
According to Krashen (1989), there is substantial
evidence that vocabulary is acquired incidentally
by reading or listening to oral stories. (Cohen,
1968, Elley, 1989; and Eller, Pappa, and Brown,
1988). During the preschool years, the child
relies exclusively upon the oral language he/she
listens to in order to acquire language. As Nagy
and Herman (1987) pointed out, this acquisition
of language takes place before the child can read
and without explicit instruction of any kind.
Furthermore, even after the child begins to
attend school, he/she continues to acquire
vocabulary which has not been learned formally.
Of the 3,000 words which the average child
acquires each year, only a portion are learned as
a result of the instruction received in school.
Thus, Nagy and Herman have argued that the
remainder of these vocabulary must be learned
incidentally from a variety of sources including,
but not limited to such sources as television,
parents, etc. Similarly, songs may also provide a
source of incidental acquisition of vocabulary.
The Input
Hypothesis: Explaining the Incidental Acquisition
of Vocabulary Through Stories
The incidental
acquisition of vocabulary has been explained by
Krashen (1985) within the context and framework
of his "Input Hypothesis." According to
this hypothesis, new, unfamiliar vocabulary is
acquired when its significance is made clear to
the learner. Meaning is conveyed by providing
extralinguistic support such as illustrations,
actions, photos, and realia. This in turn results
in what Krashen refers to as "comprehensible
input" since the linguistic input is made
comprehensible to the second language learner.
Krashen further posits that the amount of
comprehensible input is proportionate with the
amount of vocabulary acquired. Thus, according to
Krashen (1989), vocabulary is incidentally
acquired through stories because (1) familiar
vocabulary and syntax contained in the stories
provide meaning to less familiar vocabulary, and
(2) picture illustrations clarify the meaning of
unfamiliar words. There is evidence that picture
illustrations succeed at supporting the reading
process by clarifying the meaning of incoming
verbal information (Hudson, 1982; Omaggio, 1979;
Mueller, 1980; Bradsford and Johnson, 1972). In
short, meaning is critical to the incidental
acquisition of second language vocabulary.
Apart from oral
stories, there may be other means of bringing
about the incidental acquisition of vocabulary:
songs. The song shares all of the same elements
of an oral story, yet the vehicle through which
the song is conveyed is musical rather than
spoken. What distinguishes the song from an oral
story is the addition of the musical vehicle.
Furthermore, if the oral story and song are
identical, with the exception of their vehicle,
then it follows that a song's vocabulary may be
acquired by simultaneously providing
extralinguistic support (e.g., pictures,
actions).
Psychological
Research on Music and Verbal Learning
Although the
effects of music upon second language acquisition
have not been thoroughly investigated, there is
empirical support for music as an aid to other
forms of verbal learning. In the psychological
research, music and its subcomponent, rhythm,
have been shown to benefit both the rote
memorization process. When various types of
verbal information (e.g., multiplication tables,
spelling lists) have been presented simultaneously
with music, memorization has been enhanced
(Gfeller, 1983; Schuster and Mouzon, 1982).
Research on the effectiveness of rhythm, a
subcomponent of music, has been equally favorable
(Staples, 1968; Ryan, 1969; Weener, 1971; Shepard
and Ascher, 1972; Milman, 1974). The literature
also indicates that the retentive effects of
rhythm can be maximized when the targeted verbal
information carries meaning. In several studies,
a rhythmic presentation benefitted memorization
when the items were both meaningful and
meaningless (i.e., nonsense syllables). Yet, the
impact of rhythm was greatest when the verbal
information was more meaningful (Weener, 1971;
Shepard and Ascher, 1971; Glazner, 1976). There
is additional evidence that music is not limited
to benefiting the rote memorization process.
Music has proven beneficial when the objective
has been to retain the meaning of verbal
information as well (Isern, 1958; Bottarri and
Evans, 1982). This is the case when vocabulary is
acquired: It is the word's semantic properties
that must be retained in memory. Furthermore,
music does not appear to prevent or be in
competition with verbal learning. Instead, some
studies point to the bond which exists between
the two (Deutch, 1972; Palermo, 1978; Serafina,
Crowder, Repp, 1984; Borchgrevink, 1982).
The
psychological literature offers evidence of the
positive relationship between music and verbal
learning. Yet, can music promote second language
acquisition as well? Can music, when coupled with
the targeted second language, promote language
acquisition to the same extent as other
traditional and non-musical approaches (e.g.,
oral stories)? To date, this has not been tested.
Still a second
question is related to the first. The
psychological literature points to the
interactive relationship between music and
meaning. That is, although meaningful information
is memorized with greater success than less
meaningful information, retention is even greater
when more meaningful verbal information is
learned with music. As it has been pointed out in
the second language research, meaning also
occupies a significant role in the acquisition of
a second language. Krashen has demonstrated that
language acquisition results when the target
language item is heavily laden with meaning. This
is made possible by providing extralinguistic
support such as actions, etc., which make
linguistic input comprehensible. Given this,
might the same interactive relationship between
music and meaning be as beneficial for language
acquisition as it is for rote memorization?
Music, particularly if accompanied by
extralinguistic support (e.g., illustrations),
may be a viable vehicle for language acquisition.
It is timely that this issue be empirically
tested.
The purpose of
this investigation was to determine (1) if music
would bring about language acquisition to the
same extent as other more traditional non-musical
approaches (e.g., oral stories); (2) if
illustrations impact vocabulary acquisition; and
(3) if there is a strong interactive relationship
between the Instructional Medium (Music/No Music)
and Extralinguistic Support (Illustrations/No
Illustrations).
In
order to answer these questions, the dependent
variable of vocabulary acquisition was
investigated under four treatment conditions
which resulted from crossing two independent
variables: (1) Instructional Medium (Music/No
Music) and (2) Extralinguistic Support
(Illustrations/No Illustrations). This study was
structured using a Control Group Pretest-Posttest
Design with matching and repeated measures, a
variation of the randomized design (Isaac and
Michael, 1989).
METHOD
Description
and Selection of Subjects
Subjects
participating in this study consisted of
48-second grade Spanish-speaking limited English
proficient students. All students were enrolled
in an elementary school belonging to the Los
Angeles Unified School District during the
1990-91 academic year. The elementary school was
located in a suburb of Los Angeles which was
largely low-income and Hispanic. Subjects were
selected from a pool of two-second grade limited
English-speaking classes.
Of the original
52 students who participated in the study, 4 were
dropped due to a number of reasons (e.g.,
transfer to another school, lack of parental
support forms, absence on testing day).
Materials and
Apparatus
Commercially
produced tape cassettes with accompanying big
book illustrations were used for this
investigation. These materials, contained a sung
and spoken version of A Surprise for Benjamin
Bear by J. Nelson (1989). This story was
selected because it conformed to a number of
criteria. At its most basic level, the story used
for this study had to (1) be illustrated and (2)
have tape-recorded sung and spoken versions. This
would allow it to be used in any one of the
following four treatments:
1. No
Music-Illustrations (story spoken with
illustrations)
2. No
Music-No Illustrations (story spoken without
illustrations)
3.
Music-Illustrations (story sung with
illustrations)
4.
Music-No Illustrations (story sung without
illustrations)
Apart from these
were other criteria which were met. The story
illustrations were large, colorful, and clearly
illustrated key vocabulary and concepts in the
story. The story had content and vocabulary
appropriate for second grade children and
contained at least 20 vocabulary words which
would be unfamiliar to some of the children. The
voices heard on the tapes were clear,
comprehensible, and equally appealing. The tempo
of the sung version did not prevent the
comprehension of words. The lyrics of the sung
and spoken versions were identical. The melody
used in the sung version was simple,
uncomplicated, and pleasing to the ear.
Testing
Instrument
The testing
instrument was devised by the investigator for
the purpose of this study. This instrument was
patterned after that which was developed and used
by Elley (1989) to measure the amount of
vocabulary acquired from listening to oral
stories.
The
vocabulary acquisition measurement instrument
used for pretests and posttests consisted of a
20-item multiple-choice paper and pencil test.
This test was developed so that it could be
administered to large groups of students. Since
the subjects participating in this study were
exposed to oral language, as they were in Elley's
study, written words did not appear on the exam.
Instead, the stem of each test item consisted of
a target word, which was orally presented.
Multiple choice options consisted of four
illustrations. Thus, in the test instrument, the
children heard the practice wordbook pronounced
three times by the investigator. They were then
asked to circle the illustration which they
believed best matched this spoken word. The
target words used in this testing instrument were
as follows: butler, tailor, magician,
country, mirror, search, coat,
message, carriage, suit, parlor,
manor, measured, share, stare,
knocked, unzipped, woke up, unhappy,
chair.
PROCEDURE
Procedure for
Assigning Subjects to Treatments
Four equivalent
groups were created prior to administering
treatments by matching subjects on the basis of
vocabulary pretest scores. Pretest scores
belonging to all subjects were listed from lowest
to highest. The experimenter identified the first
group of scores from this master score list then
randomly assigned the subjects associated with
those scores to one of four groups. These groups
were then randomly assigned to one of the four
treatment conditions.
Treatment and
Testing Schedule
The selection of
subjects was followed by preliminary activities
which included meetings with teachers and
classroom visitations which allowed the
experimenter the opportunity to establish rapport
with the children. Two days later the vocabulary
pretest was administered, followed by a four-day
treatment period one and a half weeks later.
During the treatment period, tapes were played
three consecutive times. At the end of this
treatment period, the first posttest was
administered while the second vocabulary posttest
was administered one and a half weeks later.
Description
of Treatments
All subjects
were instructed to enjoy listening to the story
which was played on the audio tape. Audiocassette
tapes allowed for standardization from one
exposure to the next. Tape recordings were also
the preferred means of administering musical
treatments in other investigations (Gingold,
1989; Gfeller, 1982).
The
Music treatment group heard the story in its sung
version while the No Music group heard the spoken
rendition of the story (i.e., oral story).
Subjects in the Illustration treatment groups
were shown large color illustrations of the story
while listening to the tape-recording. The words
which had been printed on each page of the
storybook were covered with strips of white
paper. Subjects were able to derive the meaning
of unfamiliar words from the illustrations.
Subjects in the No Illustration group were not
shown illustrations, therefore, they extracted
meaning from contextual information.
ANALYSIS
OF DATA
In
order to determine the short-term and long-term
effects of music and illustrations, the dependent
variable, vocabulary acquisition, was measured
prior to treatment (pretest) and at two
additional points in time: (1) at the end of the
four-day treatment period (Posttest 1), and (2)
one and a half weeks after the last treatment
(Posttest 2). Consequently, the amount of
vocabulary acquired was determined by computing
two vocabulary gain scores: Gain 1 scores, which
were representative of the initial amount of
vocabulary acquired, and Gain 2 scores, which
represented the amount of vocabulary acquired and
retained over a longer period of time. In light
of these distinctions, two two-way analyses of
variance (ANOVA) were performed, one for each set
of gain scores. Given that the hypotheses being
tested were nondirectional, a significance level
at the .05 level was set.
RESULTS
No
statistically significant differences were found
between the main effects of Medium (Music/No
Music), Extralinguistic Support (Illustration/No
Illustration) or their interaction when initial
gain scores and retained gain scores underwent
analysis (see Tables 1 and 2.). There were,
however, definite patterns found in the
descriptive data which were noteworthy.
TABLE
1
Summary of
ANOVA Gain 1 Source
Source |
SS |
df |
MS |
F |
P |
M/N
M (Medium) |
.09 |
1 |
.09 |
.49 |
.49 |
I/N
I (ES) |
.22 |
1 |
.22 |
1.17 |
.28 |
Medium
X ES |
.04 |
1 |
.04 |
.21 |
.65 |
Within
Call |
8.27 |
44 |
.19 |
|
|
TABLE 2
Summary of
ANOVA Gain 2 Source
Source |
SS |
df |
MS |
F |
P |
M/N
M (Medium) |
.12 |
1 |
.12 |
.38 |
.54 |
I/N
I (ES) |
.34 |
1 |
.34 |
1.12 |
.30 |
Medium
X ES |
.11 |
1 |
.11 |
.35 |
.56 |
Within
Call |
13.59 |
44 |
.31 |
|
|
When vocabulary acquisition was
measured immediately after the four-day
treatment, mean vocabulary gain scores were
consistently higher for Music treatment groups
and Illustration groups (see Table 3). The group
subjected to the combined effects of both Music
and Illustrations produced the highest mean
vocabulary gain (1.50 words) of the four
treatments. As Table 3 indicates, there was a
difference of .77 words between the average
amount of vocabulary acquired when the
combination of music and illustrations was
compared to the absence of this combination.
TABLE
3
Main Gain 1
Scores Belonging to Four Treatment Groups
|
|
Music |
No Music |
Total |
Illustration |
X |
1.50 |
1.00 |
1.25 |
|
SD |
1.24 |
2.00 |
|
|
N |
(12) |
(13) |
|
No |
X |
.83 |
.73 |
.78 |
Illustration |
SD |
1.33 |
1.19 |
|
|
N |
(12) |
(11) |
|
|
Total |
1.16 |
.86 |
|
This general pattern was mirrored
by the data obtained one a half weeks after
treatment (see Table 4). Mean gain scores were
consistently higher for Music treatment groups
and Illustration groups. The group subjected to
the combined effects of both Music and
Illustrations acquired an average of 1.75 words,
.93 more vocabulary than the No-Music
No-Illustrations group.
TABLE
4
Main Gain 2
Scores Belonging to Four Treatment Groups
|
|
Music |
No Music |
Total |
Illustration |
X |
1.75 |
1.08 |
1.41 |
|
SD |
1.81 |
1.80 |
|
|
N |
(12) |
(13) |
|
No |
X |
.83 |
.82 |
.82 |
Illustration |
SD |
2.33 |
1.66 |
|
|
N |
(12) |
(11) |
|
|
Total |
1.29 |
.94 |
|
Figure 1 (left)
illustrates the relationship between the four
treatments and the mean vocabulary gain scores
which were obtained immediately after treatment
and one and a half weeks later. As this figure
indicates, the relative order was maintained over
time. While the effects of illustrations was
seemingly quite powerful, it was the addition of
music which appeared to boost the positive
effects of the illustrations.
In
order to determine whether the treatments had
differential effects upon subjects exhibiting
different levels of English proficiency,
additional analyses were performed. For the
purposes of this investigation, subjects scoring
below 8 on the vocabulary pretest were designated
as low proficiency students while those scoring
above 12 were termed high proficiency students.
Low proficiency level mean vocabulary gain 1 and
2 scores consistently followed the same pattern
noted previously The differences between
treatments was greater and more dramatic.
Immediately after receiving their treatments, low
proficiency subjects exposed to the combination
of music illustrations produced the greatest
amount of vocabulary gain (i.e., 2.33 words) as
opposed to the No Music-No Illustration group
(i.e., .33 words) (see Table 5).
TABLE
5
Main Gain 1
Scores Belonging to Low Proficiency Subjects
|
|
Music |
No
Music
|
Total |
Illustration |
X |
2.33 |
2.00 |
2.16 |
|
SD |
.58 |
2.83 |
|
|
N |
(3) |
(4) |
|
No |
X |
1.50 |
.33 |
.91 |
Illustration |
SD |
1.00 |
1.53 |
|
|
N |
(4) |
(3) |
|
|
Total |
1.91 |
1.16 |
|
Low proficiency students in the
Music-Illustration group acquired an average of
2.0 more words than subjects listening to the
No-Music and No-Illustration story versions.
After one and a half weeks had elapsed, the
difference between these two treatments was
equally dramatic, with the Music-Illustration
group acquiring an average of 3.33 words in
contrast to the No-Music No-illustration group
which acquired an average of 1.0 words, a
difference of 2.33 more vocabulary words (see
Table 6).
TABLE
6
Main Gain 2
Scores Belonging to Low Proficiency Subjects
|
|
Music |
No
Music
|
Total |
Illustration |
X |
3.33 |
1.50 |
2.41 |
|
SD |
1.15 |
1.29 |
|
|
N |
(3) |
(4) |
|
No |
X |
1.75 |
1.00 |
1.37 |
Illustration |
SD |
2.63 |
0.00 |
|
|
N |
(4) |
(3) |
|
|
Total |
2.54 |
1.25 |
|
Figure 2 (right) illustrates the
relationship between the Low Proficiency
subjects' Gain 1 (initial) and Gain 2 (retained)
vocabulary scores. While the average number of
vocabulary words increased slightly over time,
the greatest increase was experienced by the
Music-Illustration group which acquired an
average of 1.0 words more after a one and a
half-week period.
As
Tables 7 and 8 indicate, high proficiency initial
and retained gain scores did not conform to this
pattern. For high proficiency learners, initially
upon receiving treatment, the average vocabulary
acquired was slight with the exception of the
Music-Illustration group which acquired an
average of 1.25 vocabulary words (see Table 7).
TABLE
7
Main Gain 1
Scores Belonging to Low Proficiency Subjects
|
|
Music |
No
Music
|
Total |
Illustration |
X |
1.25 |
0.00 |
.62 |
|
SD |
1.25 |
.71 |
|
|
N |
(4) |
(5) |
|
No |
X |
.5 |
.25 |
.37 |
Illustration |
SD |
1.29 |
.50 |
|
|
N |
(4) |
(4) |
|
|
Total |
.87 |
.12 |
|
According to Table 8, by the end
of the one and a half-week period the four
treatment conditions appeared to have little
impact upon vocabulary acquisition. Three of the
four treatments produced no gain in vocabulary
acquisition with the exception of the Music-No
Illustration group which produced an average gain
of .5 words.
TABLE
8
Main Gain 2
Scores Belonging to Low Proficiency Subjects
|
|
Music |
No
Music
|
Total |
Illustration |
X |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
|
SD |
.82 |
.70 |
|
|
N |
(4) |
(5) |
|
No |
X |
.50 |
0.00 |
.25 |
Illustration |
SD |
1.73 |
1.41 |
|
|
N |
(4) |
(4) |
|
|
Total |
.25 |
0.00 |
|
Figure 3 (right) displays the
average amount of vocabulary gain belonging to
the subjects receiving the four treatments both
initially upon receiving treatment and one a half
weeks later (retained). The effects of music and
illustrations appear to have faded with the high
proficiency subjects over time. This is in
contrast to the low proficiency subjects whose
Music-Illustration effects increased over time by
an average of 1.0 words.
DISCUSSION
Effects of
Medium & Extralinguistic Support
From the
findings of this investigation, several
conclusions could be drawn. As the analyses of
variance revealed, statistical significance was
not achieved for the main effect of Medium
(Music/No Music). Acceptance of the null
hypothesis implied that the two media (Music/No
Music) produced comparable amounts of vocabulary
acquisition. Stated differently, the same amount
of language acquisition resulted whether musical
or non-musical means were used. It follows then,
that music is a viable vehicle for second
language acquisition. This finding is consistent
with the statements which have been made
regarding the efficiency of music upon language
acquisition (McCarthy, 1985; Jalongo &
Bromley, 1984; Martin, 1983; Mitchell, 1983;
Jolly, 1975). Consequently, the findings from
this investigation have succeeded at providing
empirical support for previously unsupported
statements. Acceptance of the null hypothesis
also implied that music neither markedly helped
nor hindered vocabulary acquisition in the group
of subjects. The descriptive data demonstrated
definite and consistent patterns favoring music.
These patterns were consistent with the
psychological research which provided evidence of
music's positive effects upon other forms of
verbal learning (Schuster & Mouzon, 1982;
Gfeller, 1983; Staples, 1968; Ryan, 1969; Weener,
1971; Shepard & Ascher, 1972; Milman, 1974).
The main effect
of Extralinguistic Support (Illustration/No
Illustration) did not produce statistical
significance at the .05 level. However, the raw
data revealed a definite pattern: illustrations
consistently produced higher levels of vocabulary
acquisition than no illustration groups both in
the short and long term. This general pattern
favoring illustrated treatments was expected in
light of the research on comprehensible input
(Krashen, 1985) and picture illustrations
(Hudson, 1982; Omaggio, 1979; Mueller).
Although the
interaction between music and illustration was
not statistically significant at the .05 level,
the combination of music and illustrations
consistently yielded the highest average amount
of vocabulary gain. The positive effects produced
by the combination of music and illustrations was
predicted from the psychology literature. Several
studies, particularly the studies on rhythm and
verbal learning reported positive effects from
the combination of music and meaning upon memory
retention (Weener, 1971; Glazner, 1976; Shepard
and Ascher, 1972).
Clearly,
illustrations boosted the effects of music, yet
could additional extralinguistic support beyond
that supplied by illustrations further maximize
the effect of music? Both Cohen (1968) and Elley
(1989) demonstrated that the addition of
follow-up activities to illustrated oral story
readings resulted in greater vocabulary
acquisition. When Elley compared illustrated oral
stories with and without additional vocabulary
elaboration, vocabulary acquisition was highest
when additional support was provided. One of the
two stories used in the study yielded a mean
vocabulary gain of 39.9% when vocabulary were
further elaborated upon as opposed to a 14.8%
gain without these elaborations. The story
readings in this investigation designated as
"No Music-Illustration" were similar to
Elley's "No explanation" treatment.
Therefore, it is possible that vocabulary gain
could be increased with multiple forms of
extralinguistic support.
Limitations
of this Study
There were
several limitations which may have affected the
generalizability of this study. In this
investigation, exposure to music and
illustrations occurred over a 4-day period, yet
this may not have been sufficient time to observe
a change in the students' ability to acquire
vocabulary. The outcome of this study may have
been affected by other factors such as degree of
cooperation and attention span limits. Because
subjects participating in this study were
representative only of the population from which
they were sampled, generalizations to pupils of
other age groups, socioeconomic backgrounds and
geographical areas cannot be made. Finally, the
sample size may not have been large enough to
study the constructs of this investigation.
Still another
limitation may have been the nature of the story,
which was selected for this investigation. This
story, Benjamin Bear, may have had certain
characteristics which did not produce large gains
in language acquisition. Elley (1989) found that
differential effects were obtained as a result of
using two different stories in her study. Gains
for Rapscallion Jones were more dramatic
than those resulting from readings of The
White Crane. While subjects hearing the first
story produced a mean gain of 14.8% vocabulary
words, subjects hearing the second story gained
only 4.4%. Neither of these stories were
accompanied by additional follow-up activities,
therefore, these were similar to the No Music
Illustration treatment in this investigation. It
is possible that the gains reported for the No
Music-Illustration group were similarly
influenced by the story itself since the mean
gain (5.0%) approximated those produced by White
Crane. When Elley introduced a second story,
the gains were markedly higher. Therefore, the
gains reported in this investigation may have
been low due to the characteristics of the story
being used. However, the exact nature of these
story characteristics is unclear. Any number of
factors could have contributed to the
differential effects of the two stories used in
Elley's study. In their study of vocabulary
acquisition from reading, Anderson, Nagy and
Herman (1987) found that vocabulary acquisition
was influenced by the proportion of conceptually
difficult words in the passage being read. In
their study, little acquisition took place when a
large number of conceptually difficult words were
present. Similarly, oral passages may produce
varying degrees of vocabulary acquisition
depending upon the conceptual complexity of the
vocabulary in the passage being read.
Furthermore, the subjects' reaction to the melody
used in this investigation may have affected the
amount of vocabulary acquired. The melody used
may or may not have been appealing to the
subjects in this investigation. In short, all of
the above-mentioned studies serve as a reminder
that the amount of vocabulary gain can be
influenced by any number of factors.
Implications
This finding has
definite curricular implications. If music is a
viable vehicle for second language acquisition to
the same extent as other non-musical means, then
songs can no longer be regarded as recreational
devices having little instructional value.
Consequently, musical means of promoting second
language acquisition should occupy a more
important role in the second language curriculum.
This can easily be accomplished by increasing the
frequency with which songs are used in the
curriculum. Even if the child acquires a mean of
2.0 words as the result of listening to an
illustrated story-song, much has been gained
given the relatively small investment of time. In
this investigation, subjects were exposed to 10
minutes of a story over a 4-day period. If
similar story-songs were played on a regular
basis this seemingly small amount of vocabulary
gain would grow. For example, assuming that this
amount of gain did not radically vary, the child
could acquire approximately 72 new words over a
nine-month period by simply listening to one
story song each day. If two songs were played
each day, subjects could acquire approximately
144 words. Furthermore, those newly acquired
words, serving as comprehensible input, could
contribute to the acquisition of other words.
Elley (1989) similarly spoke of the contributions
which could be made to the child's vocabulary by
reading an illustrated story with occasional
explanation of vocabulary words. According to
Elley, "there are clearly good linguistic
grounds for increasing this activity over and
above the recreational and cultural reasons for
doing so." In short, the investment of time
is relatively small, yet the potential benefits
in terms of vocabulary acquisition are great.
Not only can
children benefit from additional exposure to the
second language, songs can provide the classroom
teacher with an alternative means of promoting
second language acquisition apart from
non-musical means such as oral stories. Between
the two, musical approaches are often preferred.
As part of the pilot study, subjects were asked
if they preferred sung stories or spoken stories.
All 23 children responded in favor of the sung
stories. Therefore, songs may prove to be a
better means of capturing the attention of
children who show little interest in oral
stories.
Future
Research
Given
the limitations of this study, there is a
definite need for additional research on this
topic. For one, similar investigations need to be
made employing large numbers of subjects. The
absence of statistical significance may have been
due to the relatively small number of subjects
who participated in this study. Large sample
sizes increase the power of the statistical test
(Hinkle, Wiersma, Jurs, 1988). Additionally,
future studies need to be made in which more than
one story is used. This is necessary since
stories differ in terms of characteristics (e.g.,
motivational level) which ultimately influence
the amount of vocabulary acquisition.
Furthermore, given the research literature, it
would be helpful to learn whether additional
extralinguistic support (e.g., further
explanation) is critical to the effectiveness of
music and its impact upon language acquisition.
Apart form these areas of future study, there is
a need to conduct research on subjects or various
age levels in order to determine whether the
impact of music is greatest at any one particular
developmental period.
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Copyright © 2000 Suzanne L. Medina. All rights reserved. No
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