Empatheme: Two-second unit of practice to overcome the biggest bottleneck in English learning
The Bottleneck of English learning is your working memory
The foundation of all learning lies in memory.
Listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
All these elements always pass through the brain’s working memory.
You can use words because your working memory can process the “sound chunks” that disappear the moment they reach the ear.
At the same time, your working memory also connects sounds and rhythms with letters and images, sending them to long-term memory.
Simultaneously, it searches for words in your mental lexicon (network) from these sounds and assembles them instantly.
These functions are interconnected and flow smoothly through iterations, enabling us to use words.
Although science has proven that working memory is critically important for any learning, there have been very few concrete training and support methods that anyone can use in their daily English practice.
Your working memory for learning is two seconds
The constraint of your working memory is the biggest bottleneck in English learning.
It is critical even in acquiring one’s native language, but when it comes to learning a second language, “studying in the dark” with this bottleneck becomes a significant burden.
And unfortunately, you can’t acquire critical skills without touching on the most crucial element.
Ei Pra focuses on the sound sequences that you can process in 2 seconds.
Why two seconds?
(1) Most speech in a conversation is shorter than two seconds. (You vocalize a line of words in a breath, which last less than two seconds)
(2) You can only memorize a line of words that you can vocalize within two seconds at a time. (Even when you read written material and remember the text, your working memory converts it into a phonological sequence in an inner speech-based form).
(3) You can only capture what you can vocalize within two seconds (You cannot hear what your working memory cannot process)
Using Empatheme, you can learn English efficiently and effectively while training your working memory.
Empatheme enables the two-second practice
Ei Pra provides a practice method to maximize the iteration of the dual task of vocalizing in one breath and imagining the scene in two-second unit.
The practice consists of the following:
・Output in two seconds
・Compare phrases in two seconds
・Reflect in two seconds.
・Data, visualization, and quantification in two-second units (the basis for feedback)
Ei Pra offers a consistent, integrated practice that uses a two-second yardstick for the entire practice.
The practice includes a “wait a few seconds” pause, avoids working memory overflow, and captures “weak and short sound chunks that pass by more effectively, literally in the blink of an eye.
Practice sharing through two-second tutoring platform
Empatheme is a communication platform that supports practice sharing and native tutoring. Tutors are mainly students attending university in the U.S.
The tutors review your practice data (voice, subtle micro-actions, and context) in two-second units and give you personalized feedback.
Empathy with others and willingness to interact is the foundation of language learning.
Tutors are also practicing Empatheme to learn how they can best guide and give you pinpointed advice.
You will feel connected and supported by real persons walking alongside your practice. The genuine connection makes your routine more fun, meaningful and enduring.