Second language vocabulary level is related to benefits for second language listening comprehension under lower reverberation time conditions

A Scoping Review of the Effect of Classroom Acoustic Conditions on University Students' Listening, Learning, and Well-Being

PURPOSE

University is an important time for learning; therefore, it is vital that the classroom acoustic environment is conducive for all students. The aim of this scoping review was to determine what is known from the literature about the effect of classroom acoustic conditions on university students' listening, learning, and well-being and identify future research needs.

METHOD

This review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews protocol. After a search of four online databases, a total of 29 articles met the criteria to be included in the review.

RESULTS

The scoping review revealed that poor classroom acoustic conditions such as increased noise, decreased signal-to-noise ratio, increased reverberation time, decreased clarity, or decreased speech transmission index largely have a negative effect on university students' listening, learning, and well-being. Nonnative speakers were more adversely affected than native speakers. Students with hearing loss were also more adversely affected, though these students were only included in two studies.

CONCLUSIONS

It would be beneficial for acoustic modifications to be made in classrooms to enhance students' listening, learning, and well-being. Limitations of the reviewed studies and future research needs are discussed.

A Slight Increase in Reverberation Time in the Classroom Affects Performance and Behavioral Listening Effort

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a small change in reverberation time (from 0.57 to 0.69 s) in a classroom on children's performance and listening effort. Aiming for ecological listening conditions, the change in reverberation time was combined with the presence or absence of classroom noise. In three academic tasks, the study examined whether the effect of reverberation was modulated by the presence of noise and depended on the children's age.

DESIGN

A total of 302 children (aged 11-13 years, grades 6-8) with normal hearing participated in the study. Three typical tasks of daily classroom activities (speech perception, sentence comprehension, and mental calculation) were administered to groups of children in two listening conditions (quiet and classroom noise). The experiment was conducted inside real classrooms, where reverberation time was controlled. The outcomes considered were task accuracy and response times (RTs), the latter taken as a behavioral proxy for listening effort. Participants were also assessed on reading comprehension and math fluency. To investigate the impact of noise and/or reverberation, these two scores were entered in the statistical model to control for individual child's general academic abilities.

RESULTS

While the longer reverberation time did not significantly affect accuracy or RTs under the quiet condition, it had several effects when in combination with classroom noise, depending on the task measured. A significant drop in accuracy with a longer reverberation time emerged for the speech perception task, but only for the grade 6 children. The effect on accuracy of a longer reverberation time was nonsignificant for sentence comprehension (always at ceiling), and depended on the children's age in the mental calculation task. RTs were longer for moderate than for short reverberation times in the speech perception and sentence comprehension tasks, while there was no significant effect of the different reverberation times on RTs in the mental calculation task.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate small, but statistically significant, effects of a small change in reverberation time on listening effort as well as accuracy for children aged 11 to 13 performing typical tasks of daily classroom activities. Thus, the results extend previous findings in adults to children as well. The findings also contribute to a better understanding of the practical implications and importance of optimal ranges of reverberation time in classrooms. A comparison with previous studies underscored the importance of early reflections as well as reverberation times in classrooms.

fNIRS Assessment of Speech Comprehension in Children with Normal Hearing and Children with Hearing Aids in Virtual Acoustic Environments: Pilot Data and Practical Recommendations

The integration of virtual acoustic environments (VAEs) with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) offers novel avenues to investigate behavioral and neural processes of speech-in-noise (SIN) comprehension in complex auditory scenes. Particularly in children with hearing aids (HAs), the combined application might offer new insights into the neural mechanism of SIN perception in simulated real-life acoustic scenarios. Here, we present first pilot data from six children with normal hearing (NH) and three children with bilateral HAs to explore the potential applicability of this novel approach. Children with NH received a speech recognition benefit from low room reverberation and target-distractors' spatial separation, particularly when the pitch of the target and the distractors was similar. On the neural level, the left inferior frontal gyrus appeared to support SIN comprehension during effortful listening. Children with HAs showed decreased SIN perception across conditions. The VAE-fNIRS approach is critically compared to traditional SIN assessments. Although the current study shows that feasibility still needs to be improved, the combined application potentially offers a promising tool to investigate novel research questions in simulated real-life listening. Future modified VAE-fNIRS applications are warranted to replicate the current findings and to validate its application in research and clinical settings.