Gesture-Facilitated Learning of English Word Stress Patterns

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of using a gesture-based learning system to learn word stress patterns of English. A visual-based and a gesture-based system were designed to compare the effects of gestures or bar graphs on the word stress patterns in a series of learning activities. Based on the theory of embodied metaphor, it is hoped that the word stress patterns can be realized through the extension of embodied schema. Two tests using target words and transfer words were used to measure the learning outcomes and perception of stress patterns respectively. Results showed that the effect of gesture-based system was comparable to that of the gesture-based learning system on the learning of word stress patterns in the learned words. However, further analysis found that the use of gesture-based learning system can lead to enhanced performance on stress patterns in new words for learners with low initial word-perception as measured by the transfer test, while the use of visual learning system led to regressed performance.