The relationship between neural phase entrainment and statistical word-learning: A scoping review.

Statistical language-learning, the capacity to extract regularities from a continuous speech stream, arguably involves the ability to segment the stream before the discrete constituents can be stored in memory. According to recent accounts, the segmentation process is reflected in the alignment of neural activity to the statistical structure embedded in the input. However, the degree to which it can predict the subsequent leaning outcome is currently unclear. As this is a relatively new avenue of research on statistical learning, a scoping review approach was adopted to identify and explore the current body of evidence on the use of neural phase entrainment as a measure of online neural statistical language-learning and its relation to the learning outcome, as well as the design characteristics of these studies. All included studies (11) observed entrainment to the underlying statistical pattern with exposure to the structured speech stream. A significant association between entrainment and learning outcome was observed in six of the studies. We discuss these findings in light of what neural entrainment in statistical word-learning experiments might represent, and speculate that it might reflect a general auditory processing mechanism, rather than segmentation of the speech stream per se. Lastly, as we find the current selection of studies to provide inconclusive evidence for neural entrainment's role in statistical learning, future research avenues are proposed.

Naturalistic acquisition in an early language classroom.

This study investigated whether it is possible to provide naturalistic second language acquisition (SLA) of vocabulary for young learners in a classroom situation without resorting to a classical immersion approach. Participants were 60 first-grade pupils in two Norwegian elementary schools in their first year. The control group followed regular instruction as prescribed by the school curriculum, while the experimental group received increased naturalistic target language input. This entailed extensive use of English by the teacher during English classes, and also during morning meetings and for simple instructions and classroom management throughout the day. Our hypothesis was that it is possible to facilitate naturalistic acquisition through better quality target language exposure within a normal curriculum. The students' English vocabulary knowledge was measured using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, version 4 (PPVT-IV, Dunn and Dunn, 2007a), at the beginning and the end of the first year of school. Findings are that (1) early-start second-language (L2) programs in school do not in themselves guarantee vocabulary development in the first year, (2) a focus on increased exposure to the L2 can lead to a significant increase in receptive vocabulary comprehension in the course of only 8 months, and (3) even with relatively modest input, learners in such an early-start L2 program can display vocabulary acquisition comparable in some respects to that of younger native children matched on vocabulary size. The overall conclusion is that naturalistic vocabulary acquisition is in fact possible in a classroom setting.