Name:Anna Czepiel

School/Affiliation:University of Toronto Mississauga,

Co-Authors:Christina Vanden Bosch der Nederlanden

Virtual or In-person:In-person

Short Bio:

Dr. Anna M. Czepiel is a postdoctoral researcher in the Language Audition, Music and Attention (LAMA) lab, at the University of Toronto Mississauga, exploring neural and physiological measures of engagement to speech and song in real-world settings. Prior to this, Anna completed her doctoral work in 2023 on the aesthetic and physiological responses to music in real-world concert contexts at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics and Maastricht University.

Abstract:

Language learning can be improved when words are put to song rather than speech. Although this effect is based on behavioural evidence, it is consistent with neural studies illustrating that the brain tracks words more strongly when they are a) sung compared to spoken, b) put to familiar rather than unfamiliar melodies, and c) presented in highly rhythmic compared to irregular utterances. However, these neural tracking studies are almost exclusively conducted in laboratory settings and do not directly compare neural tracking to word learning, limiting their generalizability and applicability. To extend our understanding of the neural mechanisms of foreign language learning, we conducted a mobile EEG study in a classroom setting with undergraduates in groups of 4-5 with a live instructor. Target words (16 per condition) in carrier sentences were presented across four topics alternating between spoken and sung presentations. Alongside continuous neural and audiovisual data, we assessed participant’s mood, engagement, and learning of target words. We hypothesized that 1) song enhances learning, 2) song has greater neural tracking, and 3) increases in neural tracking will be positively related with word learning. Preliminary data (N=16, goal=32) show that participants found the class engaging and connected socially with others in the class. Preliminary results also show that learning took place, though not significantly more in song. The current study will assess neural tracking to examine mechanisms underlying potential musical memory benefits. This research will directly inform how educators and clinicians can use music to support language learning.