Module Catalogue 2025/26

Pre Requisite Comment

N/A

Co Requisite Comment

N/A

Aims

This module provides a foundation in instrumental, acoustic, and advanced articulatory phonetics.

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*Objectives*:

1. To further develop students' understanding of articulatory phonetics, as well as their listening and transcription skills, building on content covered in Year 1.
2. To introduce students to Acoustic Phonetics, the branch of phonetics concerned with the physical properties of sound waves.
3. To build on theoretical foundations in speech production and perception, enabling students to apply instrumental techniques for speech analysis, including the clinical analysis of speech. The focus will be on reading and understanding waveforms and spectrograms.

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*Alignment with HCPC Standards of Proficiency*:

In relation to HCPC Standards of Proficiency, this module addresses aspects of the following standards, although other modules may also contribute:
- 7.3 Understand the characteristics and consequences of verbal and non-verbal communication and recognise how these can be affected by difference of any kind, including, but not limited to, protected characteristics, intersectional experiences and cultural differences.
- 12.2 Demonstrate awareness of the principles and applications of scientific enquiry, including the evaluation of treatment efficacy and the research process.
- 12.7 Understand linguistics and phonetics, psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics and all levels of typical processing and the differences for individuals whose home language is not English.
- 13.13 Administer, record, score and interpret a range of published and self generated assessment tools to describe and analyse service users’ abilities and needs using, where appropriate, phonetic transcription, linguistic analysis, instrumental analysis and psycholinguistic assessment.
- 13.14 Apply knowledge of communication impairment, linguistics, phonetics, psychology and biomedical sciences to the identification, assessment and differential diagnosis of a range of communication and swallowing impairments.

Outline Of Syllabus

This module introduces the students to instrumental techniques and covers:
1. Introduction into instrumental and acoustic phonetics
2. Sound and sound waves
3. Source and filter theory of speech production
4. Introduction to the software Praat that will be used for instrumental analyses of speech
5. Acoustic properties of sounds
6. Connected speech processes
7. Acoustic analysis in the assessment of consonants
8. Phonological assessment of vowels (bearing in mind dialectal differences)
9. Phonological assessment of prosody
10. Auditory phonetics and perception of speech
11. Acoustic analyses in the assessment of voice disorder/Phonological theory and application in an SLT context.

In relation to the RCSLT curriculum guidance, the module covers aspects related to phonetics and linguistics (4.4.1) including phonetics and clinical application, general linguistics and clinical applications (phonology) and sociolinguistics.

Intended Knowledge Outcomes

- To identify the principal acoustic and aerodynamic properties of speech.
- To relate articulatory and acoustic properties of speech.
- To perform segmentation of spectrograms, using relevant information from the acoustic trace and more general insights into variability in speech.
- To conduct acoustic analyses of speech signals using the computer software Praat, and recognise the available information that distinguishes between sound categories.
- To explore the role of acoustic analysis in evaluating disordered speech, by analysing speech samples and reviewing relevant cases from the available literature.
- To recognise elementary aspects of hearing and speech perception.
- To appraise the range of phonological phenomena that can be incorporated under the term 'phonological assessment'.
- To critically evaluate the practical and theoretical assumptions involved in conducting a phonological assessment.
- To assess key issues in the phonetic evaluation of atypical speech, including diagnostic intelligibility testing, data sampling, and profiling.
- To apply acquired knowledge of acoustic analysis in the evaluation of voice disorders.
- To identify key concepts related to the suprasegmental features of speech.

Intended Skill Outcomes

- To use a range of instrumental techniques for speech analysis.
- To listen objectively to speech and carry out both broad and narrow transcriptions of speech sounds following the International Phonetic Association (IPA) transcription conventions.
- To distinguish and produce the majority of sounds in the IPA.
- To record sound accurately in a laboratory setting.
- To generate and interpret spectrographic representations of speech utterances.
- To conduct acoustic analyses of speech signals, including both typical and atypical speech.
- To undertake a project involving the analysis of acoustic data and the subsequent reporting of results.

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

- *Lectures* introduce key concepts, theories, and methods in acoustic phonetics and further advanced articulatory phonetics. Guided reading supports these lectures, encouraging students to explore topics in greater depth and apply theoretical knowledge.

- *Lab sessions* provide hands-on experience with instrumental analysis techniques, allowing students to develop their skills in real-world applications of acoustic phonetics. This practical component directly supports the acquisition of technical skills outlined in the intended learning outcomes.

- *Small group practicals* facilitate intensive, personalised practice in phonetic skills, fostering a deeper understanding and refining the students’ ability to perform detailed acoustic analyses. These sessions are designed to address both the production and transcription of speech sounds and to build confidence in recognising phonetic features in spoken language.

- *Assessment preparation* provide students with the opportunity to consolidate their learning. Preparing for the assessments encourages active review and deepening of their understanding.

- *Independent study* further supports their ability to apply knowledge autonomously, ensuring students have the necessary skills to succeed in assessments.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

All assessment components of this module are to be passed to allow for progression.
- The *Individual Project* requires students to use their knowledge of articulatory and acoustic properties of speech to perform acoustic analyses while accounting for linguistic and social variability in speech.
- The *Dictation Exam* assesses students' abilities to transcribe speech accurately using the IPA conventions.
- The *Oral Exam* assesses the students’ abilities to produce the sounds of the IPA.

General Notes

N/A