The human species is largely defined by its use of spoken language, so integral is speech communication to behavior and social interaction. Despite its importance in everyday life, comparatively little is known about the auditory mechanisms that underlie the ability to understand language. The current volume examines the perception and processing of speech from the perspective of the hearing system. The chapters in this book describe a comprehensive set of approaches to the scientific study of speech and hearing, ranging from anatomy and physiology, to psychophysics and perception, and computational modeling. The auditory basis of speech is examined within a biological and an evolutionary context, and its relevance to applied domains such as communication disorders and speech technology discussed in detail. This volume will be of interest to scientists, engineers, and clinicians whose professional work pertains to any aspect of spoken language or hearing science.

The essential, up-to-date guide for helping children with language and listening problems Does your child have trouble getting the right words out, following directions, or being understood? In this revised new edition of Childhood Speech, Language, and Listening Problems, speech-language pathologist Patricia Hamaguchi-who has been helping children overcome problems like these for more than thirty years-answers your questions to help you determine what's best for your child. This newest edition: * Expands on speech and articulation issues affecting toddlers * Includes a new chapter on socially "quirky" children Explains how to get the right help for your child, including when to wait before seeking help, how to find the right specialist, and how the problem may affect your child academically, socially, and at home Covers major revisions in educational laws and programs and insurance coverage as well as current information on new interventions and cutting-edge research in the field Updates information on autism spectrum disorders, neurobiological disorders, and auditory processing disorders "Provides valuable information for parents of children with speech, language, and listening problems."-Sandra C. Holley, Ph.D., Former President, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (on the Second Edition) More than 1.1 million children receive special education services each year to address speech and language problems, and many others struggle with language and listening to some degree. If your child is one of them, this book gives you the crucial and up-to-date guidance you need to help him or her both in school and at home.

Although listening is central to human interaction, its importance is often ignored. In the rush to speak and be heard, it is easy to neglect listening and disregard its significance as a way of being with others and the world. Drawing upon insights from phenomenology, linguistics, philosophy of communication, and ethics, Listening, Thinking, Being is both an invitation and an intervention meant to turn much of what readers know, or think they know, about language, communication, and listening inside out. It is not about how to be a good listener or the numerous pitfalls that stem from the failure to listen. Rather, the purpose of the book is, first, to make readers aware of the value and importance of listening as a fundamental human ability inextricably connected with language and thought; second, to alert readers to the complexity of listening from personal, cultural, and philosophical perspectives; and third, to offer readers a way to think of listening as a mode of communicative action by which humans create and abide in the world. Lisbeth Lipari brings together historical, literary, intercultural, scientific, musical, and philosophical perspectives, as well as a range of her own personal experiences, to produce this highly readable analysis of how “the human experience of being as an ethical relation with others . . . is enacted by means of listening.”

A vital resource on speech and language processing in bilingual adults and children The Listening Bilingual brings together in one volume the various components of spoken language processing in bilingual adults, infants and children. The book includes a review of speech perception and word recognition; syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic aspects of speech processing; the perception and comprehension of bilingual mixed speech (code-switches, borrowings and interferences); and the assessment of bilingual speech perception and comprehension in adults and children in the clinical context. The two main authors as well as selected guest authors, Mark Antoniou, Theres Grüter, Robert J. Hartsuiker, Elizabeth D. Peña and Lisa M. Bedore, and Lu-Feng Shi, introduce the various approaches used in the study of spoken language perception and comprehension in bilingual individuals. The authors focus on experimentation that involves both well-established tasks and newer tasks, as well as techniques used in brain imaging. This important resource: Is the first of its kind to concentrate specifically on spoken language processing in bilingual adults and children. Offers a unique text that covers both fundamental and applied research in bilinguals. Covers a range of topics including speech perception, spoken word recognition, higher level processing, code-switching, and assessment. Presents information on the assessment of bilingual children’s language development Written for advanced undergraduate students in linguistics, cognitive science, psychology, and speech/language pathology as well as researchers, The Listening Bilingual offers a state-of-the-art review of the recent developments and approaches in speech and language processing in bilingual people of all ages.

This book gives teachers an understanding of speech training through specially selected exercises. The book's exercises aim to help develop clear speaking in the classroom. Methodically and perceptively used, the book will assist those concerned with the creative powers of speech as a teaching art. In Part 1, there are sections on the links between speech and child development, the speech organs, the effects of artificially produced sound on speech development, rhythm and meter, and the sound groups. In Part 2, the consonants are linked to the constellations of the zodiac and applied to classroom work. Part 3 contains: a bibliographic note from Imma von Eckhardtstein; "Introduction Motifs of the Twelve Constellations" (Fiona Tweedale); "Appendix: Live Music and Recorded Sound" (Norbert Visser); 30 references; a bibliography and a list of useful addresses and resources. (CR)