TEACHING ENGLISH THROUGH ADOBE AUDITION:

SONGS IN MP3 FORMAT BASED MATERIALS

Paper presented in
the 2nd National English Language Teachers and Lecturers
Conference,
State University of Malang, Indonesia,
March 20, 2010.

By

Saiful Rifa’i
___________________________________________________________________

[email protected]

State University of Malang

 2010
TEACHING ENGLISH THROUGH ADOBE AUDITION:
SONGS IN MP3 FORMAT BASED MATERIALS

Saiful Rifa’i
[email protected]

A. Background

In improving the quality of learning process and achievement, many

lectures and teachers, have applied Language Learning Approach beginning from

Grammar Translation method, Audio Lingual, Silent Way, Suggestopedia,

Community Language learning, Total Physical Response and communicative

Approach, and have also applied the innovative teaching and learning models,

such as: Jigsaw, STAD, Group Investigation, Think-Pair Share, Number Head

Together, Example Non Example, etc.

Realizing that the success of teaching is not only determined by the

approach, method and technique the teachers use, they also apply the learning

media, such as tape recorder, OHP, Picture, Flash card, LCD, Computer, from so

many media which have been used the writer believes that there is still a few

English teachers apply Adobe Audition as a teaching medium, this condition

makes the writer interested in writing an article entitled,’ Teaching English

Through Adobe Audition: Song in MP3 Format Based Materials’. He hopes

that after they have joined the conference they will be interested in applying this

medium-Adobe Audition- in teaching English.

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B. Theoretical References

1. Adobe Audition 1.5

Adobe Audition 1.5 is an audio recording, editing, and mixing application

for Windows 2000 and XP. Adobe upgraded and redesigned Audition from its

origins as Cool Edit Pro, adding a suite of digital video tools to work alongside

Premiere Pro, After Effects, and Encore DVD, to provide a completely integrated

workflow and a more efficient way to develop high-quality audio. Audition is

designed to work in a variety of environments and for a variety of end-users. It

has been developed in the work of broadcasting and post production facilities,

audio designers, video production houses, and multimedia developers can all use

Audition to create, edit, loop, and enhance individual sounds and mix them in

a multitrack recording environment using up to 128 different tracks. To

know more about Adobe Audition, see the following functions:

a.Importing/Recording/Playing Audio

Importing Audio from CD, Playing Audio, Playing Audio from the Organizer

Window, Recording Audio, Recording in Multitrack View

b. Editing Sound

Selecting Audio Data, Selecting Frequencies in Spectral View,

Copying/Cutting/Deleting Audio, Pasting Audio, Time Stretching Audio,

Adjusting to Zero Crossing Points, Finding Beats and Snapping, Setting Up

and Working with Cues, Modifying Cues, Play Lists, Converting Sample

Types pt. 1, Converting Sample Types pt. 2, Adding or, Removing Silence
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c. Looping Sound / repeating Sound

Creating Loops, Calculating Loop Tempos, Setting Loop Properties in Edit

View pt. 1, Setting Loop Properties in Edit View pt. 2, Setting Loop

Properties in Multitrack View, Loops in Multitrack View pt. 1, Loops in

Multitrack View pt. 2

d. Working in Multitrack View

Working with Sessions, Grouping and Aligning Clips, Splitting and

Rejoining Clips, Cross Fading and Inserting Empty Clips, Configuring Tracks,

Mixing with Clip Envelopes, Mixing Real-Time Effects

e. Multichannel Audio

About 5.1 Surround Sound Audio, Using the Multichannel Encoder, Setting

Panning Assignments, The Surround Panner, Surround Sound Pan Envelopes,

Exporting, Surround-Sound Files

f. Noise Reduction

Auto Clip/Pop Eliminator Effect, Click Pop Removal pt. 1, Click Pop

Removal pt. 2, Clip Restoration, Hiss Reduction, Noise Reduction Effect pt. 1,

Noise Reduction Effect pt. 2

g. Equalization Tools

Audition Equalization Tools, Equalizing in Multitrack View, Using the Quick

Filter, Using the Graphic Equalizer, Using the Parametric Equalizer, Using

the Dynamic EQ Effect

h. Using Effects

Audition Effects: An Overview, Configuring and Organizing Effects,

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 Previewing Effects, Working with Real-time Effects, Amplitude Effects,

Delay Effects, Special Effects, Time/Pitch Effects, Multitrack Only and Plug-

in Effects

i. Working with Video

Linking Exports to Sessions, Inserting and Previewing Video in Audition,

Working on Audio Tracks in Video Files

j. Preparing Audio Files for the Web

Wave Properties Menu, MP3 Compression pt. 1, MP3 Compression pt. 2,

Preparing Files for Optimization, Compressing Files with the Batch Processor

2. Song

a. Why Songs

Songs are one of the most charming and ethnically prosperous resources

that the teachers can easily use in verbal communication classrooms. Songs

propose a change from habitual classroom actions. They are valuable resources to

expand students’ abilities in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. They can

also be exercises to teach a variety of language matters such as sentence patterns,

vocabulary, pronunciation, rhythm, adjectives, and adverbs. Learning English in

the course of songs also affords a non-threatening ambiance for students, who

usually are tense when speaking English in an official classroom location

(Gina.2007).

Songs also give original texts, that is why they are inspiring the prosodic

features of the language such as stress, rhythm, intonation. Through using songs

whether they are modern or old, since they are popular for youngsters, songs are

really challenging and interesting material for teaching English in the classroom

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because songs are extremely unforgettable and it can increase learning motivation.

For some songs containing subculture, the songs are also the contextual material

to broaden the learners’ knowledge on culture. Most songs, especially pop songs

give more repetitive verse form, with rhyme, and have a series of other discourse

features, which make the learners easy to follow; furthermore, with songs as the

materials of teaching, students play a participative role, the songs can be applied

to comprehension stages (listening) or production (singing), there are songs for all

levels and ages and they very easy to get, this is the address: www.4shared.com

b. Criteria of Good Songs

Since there is no fix criteria of good songs for teaching English, the

writer puts the following criteria:

1) Songs should be in the level of the students‘ language proficiency, don’t

select songs the lyrics of which are difficult to understand.

2) Songs should give more repetitive verse form, with rhyme, and have a

series of other discourse features, which make the learners easy to follow.

3) Songs should consist of pedagogical and cultural aspects, absolutely No

profanity, violent, illegal or immoral themes like sex, drug use,

prostitution, gang violence, kill-your-mother, suicide, etc.

4) Songs should be challenging and interesting for the students

5) Songs should be currently popular. Both you and your students can

collaborate on selecting songs provided in your lap top.

The criteria of good songs stated above also supported by Larry E. Smith

(1976) in his article, he stated that songs should be popular among the students,

the songs the students talk about or sing frequently, slow and easy to sing, and

fairly well articulated-the words of the songs must be clear enough to understand.
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 3. MP3 Format

MP is the abbreviation of Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG), while

MP 1 is the abbreviation of Moving Picture Experts Group – 1 Audio Layer 1

( MPEG – 1 Audio Layer 1) and it is one of three audio codes included in the

MPEG-1 standard. While supported by most media players. MPEG-1 layer 1 was

also used by the Digital Compact Cassette format.

MP2 began in the late 1980s as part of the ISO's Moving Picture Experts

Group (MPEG) effort to standardize digital audio and video encoding for digital

radio and TV broadcasting and use on Video CD. The MPEG-1 audio standard

was based on the existing Audio formats. The MPEG-1 standard, including the

three audio "layers" (encoding techniques) now known as MP1, MP2 and MP3,

was finalized by December 1991 in the committee draft of ISO-11172.

The Layer III (MP3) component, uses a compression algorithm that was

designed to greatly reduce the amount of data required to represent an audio

recording and sound like a decent reproduction of the original uncompressed

audio for most listeners.

C. Procedure of Teaching

General Procedure

1) Switch on your laptop; 2) After it has finished loading, activate the

Adobe Audition and wait until it has finished loading, 3) Choose teaching

materials from the folder or file from your laptop (song in mp 3 format); it is also

possible for TOIEC, or TOEFL or other materials which is in mp3 format.

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 Since the Adobe Audition facilitates use the Graphic Equalizer showing

the length of the song sung, we could easily stop the song anywhere we need to.

The way to stop and play the songs just press the space key – it is usually called

Looping.

Specific Procedure

1. Teaching Listening skill

Teaching listening by asking the students to listen to the cassette or the CD

players and answer the questions has been a customary for many – if not all-

English teachers or even lecturers. To me this is not teaching but testing the

students listening comprehension, in this way we never give them a chance to

practice to write what they listen, how do they comprehend when they do not know

the words they listen., one of the reasons why we always teach them this way is that

it is difficult to stop and replay the song accurately and quickly, this may be the

cause why they always fail their listening comprehension. Teaching listening skill

using Adobe Audition is the answer, because this facility gives us a chance to stop

and replay the song many times without making the students get bored.

Activity 1. For elementary level

Preparation: Construct the worksheet by deleting some of the words of the song

lyric (construct the cloze procedure)

a) Ply the songs from your laptop installed with Adobe Audition.
b) Ask the students to listen to the song carefully
c) Distribute the worksheets in the form of cloze procedure to the students.
d) Ply the song again.
e) While listening to the song ask the students to fill in the blank with the
words the students listen from the song.

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 f) To give more exercise to the students in listening skill, do the Looping at
every phrase you need. In this activity the students will have more chances
to check whether or not the words they have inserted in to the blanks are
really correct
g) Check the students’ work
h) Sing the song together

For example:

We Will Not Go Down (Song for Gaza)

Singer: Michael Heart

A ……..flash of white …..

Lit up the … over Gaza …….
People ……. for cover
Not ……. whether they're …. or alive
They …. with their ….. and their …..
With …….. fiery flames
And …….. remains
Just a …….rising up in the ……… haze
We………..go down
In the night, without ………
You can……. up our……. and our …….. and our ……….
But our ……. will never die
We will not go …….
In Gaza tonight
……… and children ……….
Murdered and………. night after night
While the so-……… leaders of ……… a far
Debated on who's ……… or right

But their ………… words were in ………

And the……….. fell down like ………… rain
But through the ……. and the ……. and the …….
You can still hear that voice …………. the smoky haze

Activity 2. For intermediate or advanced Level

Preparation: no special preparation, just have the blank paper for exercises

a) Ask the students to make a group of 2 or 4

b) Ply the songs from your laptop installed with Adobe Audition.

c) Ask the students to listen to the song carefully

d) Distribute the worksheets – blank paper

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 e) Ply the song again.

f) While listening to the song, ask the students to write the words or phrases the

students listen from the song.

g) To give more exercise to the students in listening skill, do the Looping at

every phrase you need. In this activity the students will have more chances to

check whether or not the words they have written are really correct

h) Check the students’ work

i) Sing the song together

2. Teaching Pronunciation

Songs are the speech sounds consisting phonemes that can be categorized

as vowels and consonants, in other words English phonemes is the smallest

meaningful unit of the speech sounds that can differentiate meanings, that is why

incorrectly pronounced sounds strain communication, sometimes even changing a

phrase's meaning. In this case the students need to listen more English sounds. Songs

can help students solve this problem because songs are authentic and easily accessible

examples of spoken English. The rhymes in songs provide listeners with repetition of

similar sounds and students often choose to listen to songs again and again joyfully.

Activity:

Preparation: Construct the worksheet by underlining some of the words of the

song lyric

a) Ask the students to make a group of 2 or 4

b) Ply the songs from your laptop installed with Adobe Audition.

c) Ask the students to listen to the song carefully

d) Distribute the worksheets ( the song lyric with some underlined words)

e) Ply the song again.

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 f) While listening to the song, ask the students to write the pronunciation of the

underlined words or phrases.

g) To give more exercise to the students to write the pronunciation, do the Looping

at every underlined words or phrases you need. In this activity the students will

have more chances to check whether or not the pronunciation they have written

are really correct

h) Check the students’ work

i) To give more exercises on pronouncing the words, ask the students to pronoun the

underlined words or phrases after listening to the sound of the songs again and

again.

j) Sing the song together.

D. Conclusion

Teaching English, especially listening skill and pronunciation, through

Adobe Audition will serve the teachers and lecturers satisfaction, because they

can easily conduct the teaching and learning process. There are no standard songs

for teaching listening skill and pronunciation. Any song can be used to teach

students. However, we try to choose songs that are clear (use quality recordings

where it is possible), not too fast, memorable, likely to appeal to our learners

(possibly songs they have already known) and easy to create activities.

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References

Milano, Gina. 1994. Teaching English through Broadway. Musical, Vol. II (Online).
www.nicu.edu/cill/vol2/milano.html, accessed December 15, 2009.

Orlova, N.F. 2003. Helping Prospective EFL Teachers Learn How to Use Songs in
Teaching Conversation Classes. The Internet TESL Journal, 9(3), March 2003
(Online), http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Orlova-Songs.html, accessed March 3,
2009).

Orlova, N.F.2009.Developing Speech Habits with the Help of Songs, (Online),

  (http://marksesl.com/music.htm , accessed March 3, 2009).

Smith, Larry E. 1976. Using Popular Songs. English teaching Forum, 14(1), January
1976. United States of America.

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