Introduction 3 References 30

The effects of suggestopedia in increasing foreign language achievement.
As education has progressed, educators continue to search for new techniques to accelerate the rate of learning and to increase retention of material learned. In his search to develop new techniques, Dr. George Lazanov, a Bulgarian, has carried out experimental research in teaching foreign languages at the University of Sofia. His pioneering research offers hope for a breakthrough for a solution of this common
problem of educators. Lozanov termed his technique "Suggestopedia." The technique combines memory expansion and relaxation to utilize the unconscious mental activity and intuitive mode of awareness. He claimed learning was increased 5 to 50 times the normal rate by releasing the unused reserve power of the mind, by developing the "intuitional perceptive potential," and by increasing concentration while reducing stress and anxiety. Students learned with less effort, more efficiency,
and more retention of the material, while feeling no mental or physical fatigue after attending a class employing suggestopedic methods. A positive, warm, receptive, and calm classroom atmosphere was created using relaxation techniques. Suggestion saturation was used to increase self-confidence and spontaneity. This approach reduced tension and anxiety thereby removing the barriers which tend to block the
flow of cognitive material to the brain. Distractions which hampered learning were avoided, as a calm and positive atmosphere was enhanced by the relaxation. Astor stated that the learning environment should maintain a low anxiety level with a supportive atmosphere to produce positive emotional states which influence learning efficiency. Suggestopedia utilizes the person's ability to learn more effectively via nonspecific mental activity. By using the periphery of the mind rather than the center of attention, the antisuggestion barriers can be bypassed to reach the latent power of the mind. Lawrence suggested that "relaxed alertness" increases the ability to absorb and assimilate information because of increased suggestibility, increased openness to new ideas, and reduced criticalness of suggestions. During the suggestopedic process, students are in a state of "relaxed alertness," learning new material without consciously participating in the ordinary manner of memorizing, but through an "intuitive perceptive" approach. Students who attended the classes at the University of Sofia were tested a year after the course ended and the results showed they had retained the words, phrases, and grammar they had learned in the course. Lozanov claimed the capacity of the brain to learn vast amounts of new material seemed endless, once the barriers were lowered and unconscious mental activity was in effect. Suggestopedia is an attempt to reach the unused power of the mind and to prove learning is pleasant and retainable.
The purpose of this part was to apply suggestopedic techniques to an American college classroom to determine if there was a significant effect on learning efficiency in a foreign language. The original research was done in a foreign language in Bulgaria, therefore, foreign language classes were selected as a natural expansion of that research. Lozanov's technique has not been adequately researched, which indicated a need for further research to determine the effectiveness and practicality of Suggestopedia in an American college classroom. Scope of the Study Transcendental ^^editation, fantasy trips and relaxation, and hypnosis are closely related to Suggestopedia because of the common usage of relaxation in each technique. This study was limited to the use of Suggestopedia, as developed by Lozanov.
The question arises about the effectiveness of Suggestopedia and its feasibility as a teaching tool in an American college classroom. Will learning efficiency be increased? Will there be a significant difference in the amount of achievement of learning new material between experimental and control groups when the experimental group was exposed to Suggestopedia? Will there be a significant difference between the experimental groups exposed twice a week to Suggestopedia and those exposed to it four times a week? Vnat will be the students' evaluation of this technique? Will they decide it is helpful in learning nev; material?o Will they see it as helpful in enhancing a positive classroom atmosphere? ^ Will the teacher find it an effective tool to use in the classroom?^Will class attendance improve? C Is Suggestopedia effective and practical in increasing foreign language achievement?
This work attempted to answer questions about the use of Suggestopedia in the typical college classroom. More specifically, this study examined three groups of subjects to compare the achievement occurring in foreign language using Suggestopedia with two of the groups and traditional methods with the third group. The level of learning achievement was examined between a control group traditionally taught and an experimental group exposed to Suggestopedia four times each week in classes and laboratories to determine if one was significantly higher than the other one. The control group and an experimental group exposed to Suggestopedia twice weekly in classes were examined for foreign language achievement levels to determine if one achieved significantly higher than the other one. The third level of learning achievement between groups to be examined for foreign language achievement was the experimental groups exposed to Suggestopedia four times each week and those exposed twice weekly.
This study had related research questions that were posed. An effort was made to determine if the experimental groups preferred Suggestopedia over the traditional methods of teaching. The second question dealt with the subjects' evaluation of Suggestopedia as being helpful in learning and retaining material. The third question posed was whether or not Suggestopedia enhanced a positive classroom atmosphere. The fourth question was an effort to determine if there was a difference in class attendance between classes taught with Suggestopedia and those traditionally taught. The instructors were asked to evaluate Suggestopedia as to its effectiveness and practicality in the typical college classroom.
The literature relating to Suggestopedia, a technique developed by Dr. George Lozanov, has been limited by the availability of the sources cited. Suggestion, as a technique in improving learning efficiency, has a short history dating back to the early 1960's, when Lozanov began extensive experimental research in the area of the laws of suggestion. Lozanov noted the similarity of hypnosis and suggestion and concluded that there was a difference between a state of hypnosis and the
process of suggestion which occurs in all of the conditions of human existence. Transcendental Meditation and fantasy trips both utilize relaxation as does the suggestopedic process. The scope of this study has been limited to Suggestopedia and its application to the American college classroom. The techniques employed in the application of Suggestopedia to the learning process have been described by Lozanov from his development of the techniques in his laboratory in Bulgaria. Relaxation techniques, based upon Hatha Yoga, have been an intricate part of Suggestopedia, emphasizing Yoga breathing exercises and the Savasana relaxation technique.
Lozanov has carried out pioneering research in a method combining suggestion and relaxation, which he termed "Suggestopedia." His application of Suggestopedia to the classroom to improve achievement in learning has been described in detail in his writings, which were the primary source of material for the review of literature. Bancroft, a Canadian language professor and former student of Lozanov, has written about the application of Suggestopedia to foreign language classes at the college level. Ostrander and Schroeder coauthored two books about psychic discoveries in which they included Lozanov's work in Suggestopedia and his other research in parapsychology. The search of literature revealed that publications in the United States on Suggestopedia are almost nonexistent. This, therefore, limited the availability of this relevant literature to American researchers. Historical Background of Suggestopedia Lozanov, a Bulgarian, has been portrayed as a medical doctor, parapsychologist, language theorist, and a psychiatrist. He became interested in searching for the laws of suggestion in the early 1960's, when he carried out extensive experimental research in Bulgaria at the Medical Postgraduate Institute, the Science and Research Institute, and the Institute of Pedagogies. The Federation of Technical and Scientific Societies investigated Suggestopedia under experimental conditions at the request of Lozanov who believed the best way of convincing an investigative committee of the effectiveness of his method was to expose the committee members themselves to Suggestopedia in a learning situation. According to Bancroft the committee was convinced of the value of these new methods of learning a foreign language. Lozanov applied Suggestopedia to medicine first, then to education. He began his research at the Department of Psychiatry of the Medical Postgraduate Institute, where he applied suggestion of positive thoughts to the healing of physical ailments. On August 24, 1965, in Bykovo, Bulgaria, he used "thought anesthesia" on a patient for the first time during major surgery. This procedure proved so successful that Bulgaria adopted his method as a technique in their medical clinics. According to Ostrander and Schroeder, the Bulgarian Ministry of Education founded a center in 1966, the Institute of Suggestology and
Parapsychology, in Sofia, Bulgaria, as a part of the University of Sofia, where Lozanov continued his research in Suggestopedia. Lozanov experimented with Suggestopedia in foreign language classes because of the ease of measuring progress by counting new words learned per session as an index to learning achievement. Later, he enlarged the scope of classes to include mathematics, history, literature, physics, chemistry, and biology. Bancroft stated that from 1967 to 1972, 1800 persons took foreign language courses at the Institute on a voluntary basis. An advantage of Suggestopedia was demonstrated to be the increased speed of acquiring new material, when a 2-year course was shortened to 20 days.
Ostrander and Schroeder reported that in Bulgaria, Suggestopedia was used in the school curriculum of regular public schools as a teaching tool, when, in 1972, a group of elementary students were taught a year's course work in a foreign language in 2-1/2 months. Ostrander and Schroeder further reported that the Moscow Foreign Language Pedagogical Institute in the USSR and Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, and many other Soviet-bloc countries were using this method to teach foreign languages. Scarborough College in Toronto, Canada, has sent teachers to Sofia to be trained by Lozanov in this technique to be used at the college level.
Transcendental Meditation Transcendental Meditation (TM), as taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, has been defined as
...a systematic procedure of turning the attention inwards towards the subtler levels of a thought until the mind transcends the experience of the subtlest state of the thought and arrives at the source of the thought. This expands the conscious mind and at the same time brings it in contact with the creative intelligence that gives rise to every thought. Several writers described the technique for meditation as a simple, easily learned one, which consisted of having the subject sit in a comfortable position with eyes closed, for 15 to 20 minutes twice a day, thinking only of his assigned "mantra." Neither suggestion nor any kind of mind control is involved; rather, this technique uses the process of the repetition of the secret "mantra," or meaningless sound, allowing meditation to occur, while the mind drifts effortlessly, producing alpha waves. When a person practices TM, he is physically rested and psychologically alert, in a state of deep physical relaxation and expanded mental awareness, with alpha waves predominating, and increased skin resistance, indicating relaxation and a reduction of anxiety. TM, therefore, combats the stress which blocks creative intelligence and spontaneity, and raises the level of consciousness thereby facilitating later learning. A comparison of nonmeditators with meditators by Abrams showed that meditators increased their learning ability. Collier and Heaton and Orme-Johnson found that grade point averages improved after students began practicing TM. Fiske, Levine, and Schultz attributed benefits attained from TM to include increased alertness, efficiency, energy, enthusiasm, productivity, creativity, perceptiveness, harmonious interaction with others, decreased use of drugs, alcohol and tobacco, and improved physical and mental health.
The Eastchester Public Schools began teaching TM as a part of the
curriculum in high school and adult education classes after an extensive
publicity program in the community. The results showed improved grades,
better relationship with teachers, parents, and peers, and a reduction
of drug abuse by those practicing TM. TM and Suggestopedia both use relaxation which produce alpha waves but with a major difference in the application of each. TM has a twicedaily meditation period of 15 to 20 minutes when the "mantra" is repeated for the duration of the period. Suggestopedia uses the relaxed state for the learning period as the teacher presents the subject material to the students. Relaxation and Fantasy Trips Roberts described a new technique of relaxation and fantasy trips applied in the classroom as a part of a new approach to educational psychology, termed "Transpersonal Psychology," which emphasizes the altered states of consciousness. A combination of relaxation and fantasy trips, an easily applied transpersonal technique, was used to develop the creative ability of the students. The process, claimed by teachers who used it to produce excellent results, began with selfrelaxation of the students, followed by a structured imaginary journey relating to the course content, and concluded with a presentation of cognitive material for integration with the information already gained at a preverbal level. A relaxed high school shop class went through a fantasy trip as electrons in force fields around induction coils, then received cognitive material about force fields on the electrons around the induction coils, and improved the quality of their laboratory work. The students using fantasy trips showed a better understanding of the cognitive material than previous classes. Advantages of relaxation and fantasy trips included fewer discipline problems, more eagerness to participate in classes, more enthusiasm for classwork, and a union of reason with intuition for creative thinking. Relaxation and fantasy trips have been described because Suggestopedia also uses relaxation as a component of learning, with the major difference being the structured fantasy trip guided by the teacher, followed by a presentation of the cognitive material, and Suggestopedia's use of relaxation in combination with the presentation of course materials, such as new words in a foreign language course. Hypnos is Lozanov stated that hypnosis and suggestion were not the same, although the similarity had caused some confusion. Suggestion was used in Suggestopedia as an approach and method, an association, and reverberation, whereas hypnosis was described as a state more closely related to a behavioral somnolent condition which changed the state of consciousness. Krippner defined hypnosis as a procedure that induced a state of consciousness which heightened responsiveness to suggestion. Part of the confusion resulted from the use of suggestion to reach the hypnotic state, the increased suggestibility during the state, and the suggestive phenomena first observed during hypnosis. Hoivever, hypnosis could be obtained without suggestion as in the hypnosis of animals, or with the use of mechanical rhythmic sound or light stimuli.
The study of hypnosis used in learning environments has been extensive, although inconclusive in research findings. Kliman and Goldberg, Mutke, and Krippner reported a significant increase in reading advancement by subjects who were hypnotized compared to a group which had not been hypnotized. Donk reported a significant increase in reading speed using hypnosis when compared to a control group. Sakata and Anderson concluded that posthypnotic suggestion improved task performance more than suggestion presented in an awake state, and they further suggested that relaxation occurring during hypnosis could have increased task performance as it reduced test anxiety and tension. Salzburg found that hypnosis facilitated learning when deep hypnosis was combined with suggestion that learning would be increased prior to the actual learning task. Hagedorn used posthypnotic suggestion to facilitate recall of lecture material and found there was a significant difference in recall of material by those subjects who had been hypnotized. Several researchers concluded that hjrpnosis made no difference in learning efficiency and even reported that hypnosis inhibited learning efficiency. Swiercinsky and Coe concluded that hypnosis made no difference in learning material nor did
hypnosis have an effect on reading comprehension. Barbar stated that the task-motivating suggestion improved learning rather than hypnosis, which added to the confusion of hypnosis and suggestion as a learning tool. Treloar's review of research on hypnotic learning concluded that the findings were contradictory, and were obtained using faulty experimental procedures. Suggestion, as reported by Lozanov, exists in all conditions of human existence, including sleep, hypnosis, and wakefulness, requires a minimum use of the conscious process, and covers a broader area than the restricted communication and stimuli of hypnosis. Suggestion was also used to obtain other changes in mental and somatic states, as in the effective use of a placebo given to a patient for therapeutical purposes without the use of hypnosis. Suggestopedia uses pseudopassiveness based on relaxation, creating an alert state of mind, with the antisuggestion barriers lowered, to increase the receptiveness of suggestions. Hypnosis is a behavioral somnolent state which uses suggestion as a technique, but which is not necessary to obtain the hypnotic state. Everyone is constantly exposed to suggestions regardless of the conscious state, while for a very limited time persons are exposed to the state of hypnosis. Hypnosis and Suggestopedia both use relaxation procedures although the learning environment is different for each, with Lozanov claij^iing more positive results in learning efficiency.
Lozanov developed a theory about the scientific study of suggestion called Suggestology, which when applied to education, was termed Suggestopedia. He claimed that learning was increased 5 to 50 times using Suggestopedia, which was basically a technique combining memory expansion and relaxation. A new foreign language could be learned in 20 to 30 days. Carson reported that Lozanov could converse in English four years after taking a short English course and not having heard English for more than a year. When a person was exposed to Suggestopedia, he was in the waking state and in a state of awareness, while attempting to reach the unknown reserves, powers, and abilities of the mind. Suggestopedia attempted to go beyond the normal capacity of the mind, bypassing the defense mechanisms to reach the unused 90% of the brain and to break through the barriers of the mind which prevented the utilization of the latent ability of the brain, to reach the human "plus" reserves. Suggestopedia could be used for all ages and levels of intelligence with increased learning speed and retention of material with little effort by the students. Ostrander and Schroeder reported that students tested a year later retained the material learned using Suggestopedia while showing an improvement in memory and intelligence. The capacity of the brain to learn vast amounts of new
material seemed endless, once the barriers were lowered. Lozanov performed an extreme experiment to try to discover just how much the mind could absorb. In 15 minutes, 500 new words were learned and retained when tested 3 days later. The conscious limits of the mind were bypassed to open up reserve powers of the mind and to develop the intuitive and perceptive nature of the mind.
Bancroft and Ostrander and Schroeder described the student as having attained a free floating state of consciousness or meditative state to increase concentration while reducing stress and anxiety. The relaxation techniques used Yoga deep breathing and Savasana, or Complete Rest Position, by freeing the mind of distractions, which hampered learning, to act as a sponge soaking up new material. The student did not consciously participate in the learning process as in the ordinary way of memorizing. Memorization and learning were approached through a perceptive intuitive means, on the periphery of the mind where assimilation occured more easily as material was presented by the teacher. Lozanov used suggestion, which exists, in all human conditions, to develop the functional reserves of the human psyche via the unconscious mental activity by presenting the suggestion during a state of "mental relaxation" or, as he labeled it, concert pseudo-passiveness, The student was alert and relaxed, possessing adequate motivation to increase memorization. To facilitate utilization of the functional reserves of the mind, Lozanov employed a direct flow of information to the unconscious regions, automatic assimilation, speed, accuracy, and economy of effort. To protect the person from receiving too much stimuli from the constant flow of suggestions from the environment, antisuggestion barriers, have been established. Lozanov listed three antisuggestion barriers: the critical-logical barrier which rejects all that does not make a logical impression, the intuitional-affective barrier which rejects all that does not create a feeling of confidence and security, and the ethical barrier which rejects all that contradicts the principles of the individual. To bypass these barriers or to comply with the barriers , a state of calm and relaxation is achieved to utilize the unconscious mental activity in an intuitive perceptive manner. Lozanov identified some principal theoretical elements in Suggestopedia as authority, infantilization, double-planeness, intonation, rhythm, and concert pseudo passiveness. The authority and prestige of the teacher are basic to the teacher's role to command or suggest memorization in a positive, self-confident, and enthusiastic manner.
The greater the authority of the teacher, which is maintained by distance between student and teacher, the greater are the expectations by the students, which in turn increases learning as they remember more from an authoritative source. Infantilization of the student is increased as the authority of the teacher increases with the aim of reestablishing a child's curiosity and ability to memorize new information and gaining the self-confidence, spontaneity, and the receptivity of a child, utilizing techniques of role-playing, games, songs, and exercises. Double planeness takes into account the effects of the environment as stimuli of the unconscious. The teacher's dynamic personality, reflected in tone of voice and gestures, inspires learning, as the teacher conveys different meanings of new words through gestures and varied intonation. During the seance three phrases are used, each with a different intonation in addition to the acted out dialogues to be imagined by the student to increase memorization. Rhythms vary from animated conversation to the passivity of the seance at which time the rhythm is in accordance with the music which is necessary while presenting new material. Lehmann wrote that the role of music in Suggestopedia is to support the learning process and to act as a
medium to activate the subconscious. Concert pseudo-passiveness was coined by Lozanov to describe the relaxed state of the students during the seance when the teachers act out or read new material as background music is played. The student is instructed to listen to the music as he assimilates new material effortlessly. Punchev found that memorization increased significantly with secondary pupils when suggestopedic techniques are used which emphasized authority and concert
pseudo-passiveness. Lozanov stated that Suggestopedia corrects misconceptions about learning and demonstrated in the classes that learning can be pleasant and retainable.
Lozanov's research at the Institute utilized small classes of 12 students, who had volunteered for the foreign language course and who were expected to attend all classes. No special equipment was required, although the small classrooms had recliner chairs placed in a semicircle. The typical classroom, with bright and charming decor, looked more like a lounge than a classroom with subdued lighting and gentle and soothing music playing in the background, to enhance the calmness
of the relaxation and to create a positive atmosphere which was necessary in this learning method. A small area of the classroom was used as a stage for simple plays based on lesson dialogues.
The student was relaxed, passive, completely awake, unresisting, and in control of himself with alpha waves predominating to intensify concentration, memorization, and learning. The student was not listening to the teacher as 120-150 new words and grammar were presented each session, but was absorbing the material in an intuitive manner while listening to the music. The student leaned back in the recliner, relaxed, breathed easily and deeply, listened to the music, learned without effort while not realizing that he was learning, and assimilated a vast amount of material without difficulty or mental or physical fatigue. Students reported that they liked the technique and that they progressed more rapidly. Ostrander and Schroeder reported that the classes at the Institute met 6 days a week, for 4 hours each day, with 1 hour of practice and tests over old material, 1 hour for the presentation of new material, and 2 hours for the suggestion or relaxation session. These classes were scheduled for 30 days in which a course equivalent to 2-3 years was covered, including 6000 words and grammar. The most frequently taught languages were French, English, German, and Italian, with an emphasis on the practical knowledge of a foreign language, utilizing speaking, writing, reading, and translation designed to prepare interpreters, translators, and teachers. The program consisted of 3 units; linguistics, socio-political, and educational. The students viewed foreign films, which were not accessible to most Bulgarians, to get a better grasp of the language. The voice of the teacher varied from businesslike, harsh, and commanding to soft and calm using a special rhythm and intonation to reinforce the material against a musical background and in accordance with the rhythm of the music. The teacher maintained a positive attitude, making corrections in a positive rather than negative manner, suggesting to the student that he was capable and could communicate spontaneously in the foreign language, to increase self-confidence of
the student and to create an encouraging atmosphere in the classroom. The classes were divided into 3 sections: presentation of previously learned material, presentation of new material, and the second presentation of new material during the seance. The review of previously learned material consisted of a conversation between the teacher and student who reacted spontaneously to given situations. Each student was given a new name and role to encourage the removal of inhibitions in the use of the foreign language and to benefit from the practical use of a foreign language in a "human setting." The second part was a presentation of new material almost entirely in a foreign language using dialogues with minimal translation and a precise rhythm and situation based on "real life" with the student describing what he saw around him. The third session consisted of two parts in the séance or relaxed part, active and passive, when new material was presented in a manner similar to television commercials or Sesame Street. The acted-out dialogues were presented varying the tone and rhythm and repetition of the material by the teacher, coordinating sound and printed word with a background of calm music with the student relaxed in a s t a t e of pseudo-passiveness. During the active part of the session the student watched the printed word or phrase which had been grouped by threes and spoken by the teacher using a different intonation with each phrase. The teacher tried to communicate the meaning of the word by the tone of his voice and "command" that it be remembered. During the passive part of the seance or "concert" part, the student listened to the music as the teacher acted out the dialogue or read the material to be memorized with a rhythm to the music, while the student was encouraged to imagine the scene or repeat to himself the foreign word or phrase, or "inner speech," which was considered important to learning. The new material had been reinforced three times before the students went "into the s t r e e t s " to practice the use of the foreign language by describing what they saw. They also presented simple plays in the foreign language in the class.