Speech Language And Communication Flashcards
Three Guideposts of this lesson:
Communication
Components of Language
Components of Speech
What is communication?
Communication is the process of encoding, transmitting, and decoding signals in order to exchange information and ideas between the participants.
Encoding & Decoding:
putting meaning into and taking meaning from some type of symbol
Transmitting:
the method of communication used
In Ralphie’s case, the transmission was the radio message.
Information
the content which must be included
Communication can be oral-auditory (spoken) or visual-graphic (written, gestural, pictographic).
True
Language
a socially shared code or conventional system for representing concepts through the use of arbitrary symbols and rule-governed combinations of these symbols.
Language is all about rules.
True
Rules govern the meanings of words, how words are put together, and how words are used. However, rules only work if both participants share them.
True
Receptive language
skill is what you need to listen to and comprehend someone’s words. Following directions is a classic version of this. Reading comprehension can also be a type of receptive language skill.
Expressive language
is the language that you use to communicate to others. When you assemble words to say “I want to go to the party.” vs. “Do you want to go to the party?” you use the rules to communicate a statement rather than a question.
Speech
the dynamic neuromuscular process of producing speech sounds for communication.
Speech is the surface manifestation of spoken language. It describes the sounds made by your muscles which are used to communicate.
True
A spoken sound is a speech sound only if it is used to communicate, otherwise, it is just a sound.
True
Three components of Speech
Voice, Articulation, and Fluency
Voice
a resonated sound created by your vocal tract.
The Three Parts of Voice
Respiration, Phonation, and Resonance
Respiration
Inhalation and exhalation of air.
Speech begins with the air in your lungs - your respiration.
True
Phonation:
The production of speech sounds through the vibration of the vocal folds in the larynx.
Next is the motor of your voice, or phonation. This is where your vocal folds vibrate as air passes through them, resulting in a tone.
True
When you hum, this is what is happening. You can change your phonation by its pitch (or the frequencies used) and its loudness (or by the amplitude of those frequencies). Your fundamental pitch range is mostly determined by your size, but you can certainly make a range of sounds by using the structures in your larynx to change the tension of your vocal folds.
Phonation
Resonance
Modification of the vocal tone as it passes through the vocal tract.
Finally, when air is passed through your vocal folds, resulting in vibration, the shape of your throat, mouth and nose cavities determines the way in which that air continues to vibrate. This is called resonance.
True
Specifically, with regard to speech, resonance is the modification of the vocal tone as it passes through the vocal tract. This is most important in describing the typical production of /m/, /n/ and “ng” sounds.
True
Articulation
the production of speech sounds through the physical movement of the jaw, lips, tongue, and velum to change the size and shape of the vocal tract.
Once the resonated air enters your oral cavity, you use the structures of your mouth - jaw, lips, tongue, palate - in order to shape sounds. This is what is referred to as “articulation.”
True
When, for instance, a child has difficulty saying “r” in words, this is not because of his difficulty understanding the difference between “run” and the number “one.” It is also not because of the difficulty of turning his voice motor on. It is only because it is difficult for him to curl and tense his tongue in such a way that the air is shaped to create the /r/ sound. This is articulation.
True
Fluency
the rate and flow of speech as it is produced.
Finally, the last component of speech is fluency.
True
Fluency refers to the rate and flow of speech - how fast and how smoothly it is created. It requires the coordination of muscles to work well. A discoordination of movement in any part of the speech mechanism can cause a disruption in fluency.
True
We can describe language in three parts.
Content, Form, and use
Content
the meaning of words
Form
how the rules change the shape or structure of language
Use
how the way in which we use words affects the communication success and intentions
Semantics
are the rules that govern the meaning or content of words and word combinations-word meaning.
Words have specific parts to their meaning. For example, think of the word “mother.” Particular features come to mind, don’t they? “Parent” or “female” maybe some of the first words that you think of. These are semantic features of the word “mother. “ On the other hand, there are certain things that a “mother” cannot be. For example, a mother cannot be male, this is considered a “semantic restriction.” A male parent is a “father.”
Semantics
The form, or structure, of language includes three components of language (Syntax, Morphology, and Phonology)
True
Syntax
the set of rules which govern the form or structure of word order.
Hungrily you cookies ate.” Even though all of the words are meaningful, the order of them limits their meaning. The order of the words matter.
Syntax
Morphology
the set of rules that govern the internal organization of words.
The structure of language can be broken down into the smallest grammatical units of meaning. These are called morphemes.
True
Think about the word “laughed. “ There are two concepts embedded in the word. The first is the concept of an action someone uses when happy (“laugh”). The second concept is that something already happened, it is past. This is represented by the –ed ending.
Morphemes
two types of morphemes:
Free morphemes and bound morphemes
Free Morphemes
Independent grammatical units that can stand alone and still have meaning
Bound Morphemes
Grammatical tags or markers that cannot function independently, but change or add meaning when attached to a free morpheme. The –ed of past tense and the possessive -‘s are just two examples of bound morphemes.
Phonology
the set of rules that govern the structure, distribution, and sequencing of speech sounds and the shape of syllables.
Phonology is the study of how sounds are put together to create meaning in words.
True
For instance, if you said the word “seek” you could change the manner of how you say /s/ by stopping the airflow. The result would change the meaning “seek” to a type of wood, “teak.” If you also changed the place of articulation to the lips instead of the tongue, you would end up with a different word, “peek.”
However, if you changed the voicing on the /s/ you would end up with “Zeke” the name of a person. Finally, if you changed the sequence of the /s/ /i/ and /k/ you create “eeks” or “ski.” In this way, manipulating phonemes by changing their syllable structure or sequence follows the rules of phonology. If you didn’t follow the rules (like putting five consonants in a row) you would have nonsense.
Phonology
