scholarly journals Native Speaker Perceptions of Accented Speech: The English Pronunciation of Macedonian EFL Learners

2010 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 41-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anastazija Kirkova-Naskova
Keyword(s):  
Web Application ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Point Scale ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Accented Speech ◽  
English Pronunciation ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Result Analysis

The paper reports on the results of a study that aimed to describe the vocalic and consonantal features of the English pronunciation of Macedonian EFL learners as perceived by native speakers of English and to find out whether native speakers who speak different standard variants of English perceive the same segments as non-native. A specially designed computer web application was employed to gather two types of data: a) quantitative (frequency of segment variables and global foreign accent ratings on a 5-point scale), and b) qualitative (open-ended questions). The result analysis points out to three most frequent markers of foreign accent in the English speech of Macedonian EFL learners: final obstruent devoicing, vowel shortening and substitution of English dental fricatives with Macedonian dental plosives. It also reflects additional phonetic aspects poorly explained in the available reference literature such as allophonic distributional differences between the two languages and intonational mismatch.

scholarly journals English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) in ESP contexts. Students' attitudes towards non-native speech and analysis of teaching materials

2017 ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Yolanda Joy Calvo-Benzies
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Law Students ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Teaching Materials ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Native Speech ◽  
Students Attitudes ◽  
Analysis Of Teaching

This paper focuses on non-native accents in ESP classrooms. In particular it looks at native and non-native speakers of English accents used in the audio material accompanying six ESP textbooks. In a second study, a group of undergraduate ESP students of Law and Tourism were asked to assess some of the non-native speakers accents found in these materials, focussing on aspects such as fluency, pronunciation, intelligibility and foreign accent. More specifically, they were asked to rate the following non-native accents of speakers in English: French, German, Polish, Chinese and Spanish. Results from the first part of the study show that native speaker models continue to be present in ESP textbooks to a far higher degree than non-native ones. In the second part, the non-native accents that students rated most positively were those of German and Polish speakers, and those seen in the most negative terms were French and Spanish. In general, the Law students tended to value native accents more than non-native ones, whereas students of Tourism broadly accept both native and non-native accents.

Requests by Chinese EFL learners and native speakers of English

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Meng ◽  
Beatrice Szczepek Reed
Keyword(s):  
Study Abroad ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Interactional Competence ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Study Abroad Students ◽  
At Home

Language learners' requesting behaviour has been the focus of pragmatic research for some time, including that of Chinese EFL learners, who constitute a large proportion of English speakers globally. The present study replicates elements of Wang (2011), focusing on the use of formulaic expressions and exploring the differences between advanced Chinese EFL learners and native speakers of English with regard to the use of request formulae. The study also investigates whether significant exposure to the target language in country is connected to a more native-like use of request formulae. Wang's Discourse Completion Task was adopted to elicit request utterances from three groups of participants: advanced Chinese EFL learners studying in China (at home students) and in the UK (study abroad students), respectively, and native speakers of British English. The findings show that, although in some respects study abroad students in the UK employed request formulae in a more native-like manner compared to at home students in China, neither group showed close approximation to the request behaviour of the native speaker group. The findings are discussed in the context of current debates, including interlanguage variations, interactional competence, and native speaker norms and intelligibility.

Foreign accent in advanced learners

2007 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 171-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Muñoz ◽  
David Singleton
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Advanced Learners ◽  
Language Background ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Oral Retelling ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

Research has generally found age of learning (AOL) (i.e., age of initial significant L2 exposure) to predict degree of foreign accent (FA), while length of residence (LOR) has sometimes been seen as simply a corollary of AOL. The subjects in the present study were twelve late L2 learners of English with an average AOL of 22.5 and an average LOR of 10, plus a native-speaker control group. All the English-L2 subjects had Spanish and/or Catalan as L1. Short extracts were taken from their oral retelling of a film narrative and judged for FA by four native speakers of English. Language background data were elicited by questionnaire and interview. A significant difference overall emerged between native speakers and non-natives in terms of FA ratings. However, two of the learners scored within the native-speaker range. The discussion examines the possible influence of an array of factors on degree of FA, and explores what might underlie the native-like performance of the two most successful learners.

scholarly journals The perception of native vs. non-native Danish speech: Bent and Bradlow’s matched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit revisited

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 284-296
Author(s):  
Paweł Korpal ◽  
◽  
Mikołaj Sobkowiak ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Speech Intelligibility ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Valuable Insight ◽  
Accented Speech ◽  
Polish Language ◽  
Native Speech ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Language Pair

The main objective of the study was to test the applicability of Bent and Bradlow’s matched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit to the Danish-Polish language pair. We aimed to verify whether it was easier for Polish students of Danish to understand a Danish native speaker or a Polish speaker with a proficient command of Danish. Sixteen Polish students, divided into two groups of eight, listened to two recordings of two Danish texts: one recorded by a native speaker of Danish and the other one — by a native speaker of Polish who is a graduate of Danish philology from a Polish university. Before the experiment, all of the recordings were evaluated in terms of traces of foreign accent using a 7-point Likert scale, the experts being native speakers of Danish. The evaluators assessed the Polish native speaker’s pronunciation as proficient, but they identified certain segmental and suprasegmental features in his speech that are common indicators of a foreign accent in Danish. During the experiment, participants were asked to fill in each recording transcript with twenty missing words. The analysis of the results revealed that the participants scored higher when listening to the text recorded by the Polish speaker. Hence, the matched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit was observed in a study using Polish as L1 (native language) and Danish as a foreign language. The study may provide a valuable insight into the question of non-native speech perception, foreign-accented speech and the veracity of the matched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit for the Polish–Danish language pair.

scholarly journals Problems of Speech Perception Experienced by the EFL Learners

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 143
Author(s):  
Adi Sutrisno
Keyword(s):  
Speech Perception ◽  
Listening Comprehension ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Research Result ◽  
Connected Speech ◽  
Secondary Research ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

Most native speakers of English modify complicated sequences in connected speech in order to simplify the articulation process. This habit has created problems in the part of EFL learners as they are not trained enough to extract word sequences from the running speech. As a consequence, misperception occurs, which often leads to the failure in the listening comprehension. This article is intended to prove that such a problem is not solely triggered by the native speaker factor. Other factors might play pivotal roles, too and need to be carefully examined. In light of this interest, a secondary research aimed at revealing factors causing speech perception problems was carried out. The research result shows that problems of speech perceptions experienced by the EFL learners were mostly caused by their phonetic knowledge and phonological competence, besides lexical and syntax knowledge.

Age and Understanding Speakers with Spanish or Taiwanese Accents

2003 ◽  
Vol 97 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela N. Burda ◽  
Carlin F. Hageman ◽  
Julie A. Scherz ◽  
Harold T. Edwards
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
The Other ◽  
Foreign Accent ◽  
Accented Speech ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Two Age Groups

This pilot study concerned the intelligibility of accented speech for listeners of different ages. 72 native speakers of English, representing three age groups (20–39, 40–59, 60 and older) listened to words and sentences produced by native speakers of English, Taiwanese, and Spanish. Listeners transcribed words and sentences. Listeners also rated speakers' comprehensibility, i.e., listeners' perceptions of difficulty in understanding utterances, and accentedness, i.e., how strong a speaker's foreign accent is perceived to be. On intelligibility measures, older adults had significantly greater difficulty in understanding individuals with accented speech than the other two age groups. Listeners, regardless of age, were more likely to provide correct responses if they perceived the speaker easier to understand. Ratings of comprehensibility were highly correlated with ratings of accentedness.

scholarly journals ENGLISH IN THE GLOBAL WORKPLACE: A NARRATIVE APPROACH

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 69
Author(s):  
Emilia Wąsikiewicz-Firlej
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Narrative Approach ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Diffi Cult ◽  
International Environment ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
New Directions ◽  
Native Speakers Of English

This paper aims to contribute to the discussion on the new directions in ESP education and revisit the concepts of the native speaker and lingua franca as seen from the lay perspective. It reports the results of a research study – an analysis of narratives of ten Polish professionals working for international organizations who share their experiences and tell stories on communicating and using English in the workplace. The narrative approach adopted in the study gives an insight into individual perspectives, facilitating an in-depth, holistic understanding of the studied matters. The fi ndings have shown that native English is still deemed to be the main point of reference by the participants of the study and the notion of lingua franca appears unfamiliar and diffi cult to accept, especially in the educational context. Variations in individual preferences concerning communication with native or non-native users of English and declared comfort related to such interactions have been observed and correlated with the level of profi ciency in English. In most cases, more profi cient users have reported to feel more comfortable in interactions with native speakers of English. They have also demonstrated certain language awareness, which stands in a sharp contrast to the participants less profi cient in English, whose perception of language is very simplifi ed. As regards pedagogical implications, the study has signalled a need for sound cultural preparation of professionals working in international environment and a greater emphasis on developing communication skills for socialising – an essential aspect of business communication.

scholarly journals Implementasi UML Dan Grennfoot Untuk Membangun Aplikasi Pengucapan Bahasa Inggris

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wire Bagye
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Object Oriented Programming ◽  
English Learning ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Recording Material ◽  
English Pronunciation ◽  
Black Box Testing ◽  
The Right

One of the materials in the English Language course is listening, namely the skill of hearing the pronunciation of English sentences. Learning listening must use native speaker or recording material so that the pronunciation is heard according to the original. If you use the course participants as a sound source, there is a high probability of mistakes in the pronunciation of words or sentences. Then an application is needed to help with course activities as tutors or native speakers in giving correct English pronunciation. In this research, English Pronunciation Application was built using the Greenfoot Application with the object oriented programming concept. This application is to help pronoun learning that can output audio when the object clicked. The development method uses SDLC, application modeling uses UML and testing using Black-box testing. The English pronunciation application is compiled into a .jar file so that it can be run on a computer with a Windows operating system that has JDK installed. The test results show that this English learning application can replace tutors, produce the right audio, and can replace native speakers. This can be seen from the results of the questionnaire showing 82%.

scholarly journals Communication Strategies Used by Iranian EFL Learners and English Native Speakers: Gender in Focus

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Layla Hajiesmaeli ◽  
Laya Heidari Darani
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Numerical Data ◽  
Communication Strategy ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
The Difference

<p>This article was intended to explore the frequency and order of communication strategies used by Iranian male and female EFL earners as well as English native speakers while facing communication breakdowns. Furthermore, it was aimed to investigate the difference between native speakers and non-native speakers of English in their use of communication strategies. In addition, it was probed whether gender had any effects on the use of these strategies among native and non-native speakers. To this end, the data were collected through the communication strategy questionnaire distributed among 30 male and female Iranian intermediate EFL learners and 15 English native speakers. The design of this study was a quantitative one in which the questionnaire and thus numerical data were applied. To analyze the data, Cronbach alpha and independent-samples t-tests were used. The results indicated that non-verbal and social affective strategies were the most frequent strategies used by non-native speakers and native speakers of English, respectively. Furthermore, there was no significant difference between male and female Iranian EFL learners, but a significant difference between male and female English native speakers were seen. It can be concluded that language proficiency can contribute to the type and frequency of communications strategies which are used non-native speakers; likewise, it can play a significant role in gender differences in language use.<em></em></p>

A Recurrent Word Combination Approachto the Study of Formulae in the Speech of Native and Non-Native Speakers of English

1998 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvie De Cock
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Study ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Quantitative Comparison ◽  
Automatic Extraction ◽  
Word Combination ◽  
Full Discussion ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Recurrent Word

This article reports on a pilot study into how corpus methods can be applied to the study of one type of phraseological unit, formulae, in native speaker and learner speech. Formulae, or formulaic expressions, are multi-word units performing a pragmatic and/or discourse-structuring function and have been characterised as being typically native-like. The methodology presented here is contrastive and involves the use of computerised corpora of both native and non-native speaker speech. It consists of two steps: (1) the automatic extraction of all recurrent word combinations to produce lists of potential formulae, and (2) a carefully specified manual filtering process designed to reduce these lists to lists of actual formulaic usage. The results of this process allow for the first genuine quantitative comparison of formulae in the speech of native and non-native speakers, which in turn has significant implications for SLA research. This paper focuses on methodology and does not present a full discussion of the results. However, selected example findings are presented to support the approach adopted.

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