scholarly journals Overcoming Pronunciation Difficulty

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
NOVALITA FRANSISCA TUNGKA

Using authentic materials as pronunciation models and having an explicit phonetic instruction in English pronunciation pedagogy will develop our English pronunciation awareness and will build our confidence in using English orally. By having such kinds of awareness and confidence, we can avoid mispronunciation possibly occurring in our oral communication.

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melor Md Yunus ◽  
Hadi Salehi ◽  
Mahdi Amini

<p>In recent years, a great number of attempts have been made on teachers’ cognition with the aim of understanding the complications reinforcing the teachers’ cognitions and their classroom practices. Such studies shed light on how teachers’ cognitions expand over time and how they are reflected in their classroom practices. The aim of the present study was to investigate Iranian EFL teachers’ cognition particularly in terms of the pronunciation techniques they apply in the oral communication classrooms and their knowledge about their language learners’ characteristics. To achieve the goals of the study, the cognitions of five English teachers in the oral communication classrooms were explored. The teachers were requested to answer two semi-structured interviews to obtain the data about their cognitions regarding the pronunciation techniques. Furthermore, their students were asked to fill out a questionnaire to express their opinions about the techniques applied by their teachers during instruction of English pronunciation. The qualitative and quantitative results showed that there was an intricate relationship between language teachers’ experience with their cognitions about their language learners. Moreover, those teachers who were in higher level language courses showed to have broader cognitions about both the techniques they used in classrooms and the language learners’ characteristics as well.</p>


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 47-54
Author(s):  
Walter Coronado Latorza

The Explicit Phonetic Instruction-Centered (EPIC) Module is a compilation of topics and exercises in English pronunciation made and modified by the researchers where the explicit phonetic instruction is highlighted as the main approach to enhance the pronunciation skills of the respondents. The study is aimed at evaluating, validating, and determining the effectiveness of the EPIC Module and its actual delivery conducted to the Grade 10 students of Kauran National High School in the Philippines. A panel consisting of five teachers from different schools served as evaluators of the module to validate its content, relevance, acceptability and instructional quality. To determine how the module was delivered, another five English teachers observed and evaluated the researcher-teachers in the implementation of the module. The respondents of the study for both the experimental and control groups were chosen randomly. The researchers used mean in the validation of the module and in the performance of the researcher-teachers based on the delivery of the module. To identify whether there was or no significant difference on the respondents’ performance and mean gain scores, t-test was used. The findings revealed that students in experimental group improved their pronunciation skills significantly due to the intervention of the EPIC Module and its excellent delivery. It was statistically verified that the use of EPIC Module apparently improves the English pronunciation skills of the respondents.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florentina Stanciu ◽  
◽  

The last decades, characterized by changes in the transnational relationships, by the growth of the European Union and the increasing need to communicate in the globalized world, lead to a reevaluation of the practices, methodologies and materials used in teaching languages, especially in teaching French as a foreign language. Online learning completes the classical learning suggesting accessible information which can be accessed anytime through electronic platforms. Qualitative online learning involves planning online learning, online teaching and online learning its-self. Using multimedia contents in teaching constitutes an advantage in shaping the communicative competence of the students in French as a result of the pictures in general and particularly of the videos, which make learning efficient. Interaction and communication facilitate the learning-teaching-evaluation process and the authentic materials – the videos expose the learner to situations which enable them to improve the comprehension competences, the written and oral communication and the development of intercultural competences.


2016 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 151-163
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Załóg-Kociuga

Difficulties in mastering the pronunciation of a foreign language arise due to numerous factors, among which the differences between the learners’ L1 and L2 seem to be significant. For Polish learners of English, these differences would include considerable disparities between the two vowel systems, which is why the subject of this study are difficult English vowels. The difficulty of vocalic sounds is judged according to Prator’s 1967 Hierarchy of Difficulty. The study aims at determining whether deductive and inductive formal types of phonetic instruction have any influence on the intelligible pronunciation of the most difficult English vowels for Polish 13-year-old learners. Two groups of students were subject to an experiment in which they were taught English pronunciation for 5 weeks: the first group deductively, the second group inductively. Their pronunciation proficiency was tested before and after the teaching sessions by recording the subjects reading a text composed of words containing the tested phonemes. The comparison of the recordings revealed that while the deductive techniques did not yield any statistically significant improvement in the pronunciation of any of the tested vowels, the inductive techniques significantly improved the learners’ pronunciation of [iː], [æ] and [ǝ] in the interconsonantal context. The conclusion to be drawn is that increased aural exposure, imitation and meaning-focused practice yield better results than providing theoretical, metalinguistic information about the sounds, comparing L1 and L2 sounds and pronunciation-focused practice, at least for young adolescent learners, who may not yet be ready to comprehend abstract phonetic notions.


2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abbas Pourhosein Gilakjani ◽  
Narjes Banou Sabouri

<p>Understandable pronunciation is an important part of communicative competence. Individuals who have acceptable pronunciation can easily improve their language skills better than those who have weak pronunciation. Thus, English pronunciation is very significant for successful communication. Despite the fact that English pronunciation is very important for oral communication and communicative competence, it is sometimes neglected in many language teaching programs. This study examined Iranian teachers’ views toward English pronunciation instruction. A quantitative method was used to gather data by an instrument. The researchers used a questionnaire as the instrument of this study. 100 teachers voluntarily participated in this study. Data were collected and analyzed. The findings of this paper indicated that lack of time, motivation, resources, materials, and educational facilities like computer technologies prevented teachers from teaching pronunciation and if teachers want to include pronunciation into their classes, they should be equipped with these factors that can increase their success in teaching English pronunciation.</p>


2012 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Nowacka

This article is an attempt to review the most recent phonetic literature on the application of questionnaires in phonetic studies. In detail, we review the scope of pronunciation questionnaire-based surveys with respect to Polish and non-Polish students of English. In addition, this paper aims to examine European students’ beliefs and attitudes towards their own English pronunciation and is also intended to provide some arguments for or against the use of foreign-accented rather than native models of pronunciation in phonetic instruction. The data come from three groups of informants, namely: Italian, Spanish and Polish students of English. With respect to foreign, non-Polish respondents, the study was conducted at the University of Salento in Italy and the University in Vigo, Spain within the framework of the Erasmus Teacher Mobility Programme in two consecutive academic years: i.e. 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. As regards Polish respondents, our research involved subjects from six different tertiary schools, i.e. five universities and one college, located in various parts of Poland. On balance, the results of our study give an insight into the phonetic preferences of adult European advanced students of English with reference to the importance of good native-like pronunciation, the aims of pronunciation study, factors contributing to phonetic progress and their self-study pronunciation learning strategies. Our findings point to the fact that students of English wish to speak with good pronunciation, set a high native-like standard for themselves, report having benefited from their phonetic instruction and exposure to native English and that they work on their pronunciation by means of various, mostly cognitive, strategies. Rather than casting new light on teaching pronunciation, the outcome of this study is consistent with the findings of other research on foreign students’ choice of preferred pronunciation model, which is undeniably native rather than foreign-accented.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 1249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abbas Pourhossein Gilakjani

Despite decades of advocacy for greater attention, research into pronunciation instruction in English language teaching continues to be restricted. This article provides a comprehensive review of some important issues of English pronunciation instruction. The purposes of this review are (a) to explain different views of pronunciation instruction, (b) to elaborate the role of pronunciation in language teaching methods, (c) to discuss native-like pronunciation, and (d) to mention some recommendations for the better teaching of English pronunciation. The review of the literature of this paper indicated that the objective of pronunciation instruction is not to gain native-like pronunciation and speak exactly like native speakers of English. Instead understandable pronunciation should be the ultimate aim of oral communication.


Author(s):  
Diane Frome Loeb ◽  
Kathy Redbird

Abstract Purpose: In this article, we describe the existing literacy research with school-age children who are indigenous. The lack of data for this group of children requires speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to use expert opinion from indigenous and non-indigenous people to develop culturally sensitive methods for fostering literacy skills. Method: We describe two available curricula developed by indigenous people that are available, which use authentic materials and embed indigenous stories into the learning environment: The Indian Reading Series and the Northwest Native American Reading Curriculum. We also discuss the importance of using cooperative learning, multisensory instruction, and increased holistic emphasis to create a more culturally sensitive implementation of services. We provide an example of a literacy-based language facilitation that was developed for an indigenous tribe in Kansas. Conclusion: SLPs can provide services to indigenous children that foster literacy skills through storytelling using authentic materials as well as activities and methods that are consistent with the client's values and beliefs.


Author(s):  
Dentik Karyaningsih ◽  
Puji Siswanto

Lecture courses in the English Language Education Study Program of STKIP Setiabudhi Rangkasbitung are still conducted in face-to-face class, so the students who do not attend lectures cannot know the pronunciation material at that time, because the Pronunciation course is a practical course in the English pronunciation system. The E-Learning Pronunciation is built so that lectures can be carried out anywhere and anytime without reducing the quality of the teaching and learning process. Therefore, the students who are left behind can continue to follow the Pronunciation course material, as well as habituating students in utilizing communication and information technology. E-Learning Pronunciation is important to be built to improve the ability of students’ pronunciation when doing distance learning, so that students are clearer and more firm in understanding Pronunciation so that there are no errors in English pronunciation. Participants in this study were first semester students of English education study programs. This study uses an experimental research design with the Prototype System development method and system of testing uses Black box testing.


Author(s):  
Ali Akbar Khansir ◽  
Afsaneh Salehabadi

As the topic suggests, the research paper presents Study of Consonant Pronunciations Errors Committed by EFL Learners. Error analysis always tries to resolve language learners’ problems in acquiring second or foreign language setting. Learning to English pronunciation is perhaps as important as learning listening skill, speaking, and spelling. Errors in English pronunciation create several problems for English language learners in their works. In other words, most of the English language errors of pronunciation are due to the lack of knowledge of language learners. However, all the students in our sample are of age group (16-25) at Bushehr language institute and they are all Iranian nationals. In addition, all of them were female learners. An English pronunciation (consonant) test was used to get information about the knowledge of the learners in English pronunciation. Findings of this article indicated that the first and second hypotheses of this article were accepted, but the third hypothesis was rejected. However, the findings of this paper showed that the Iranian EFL students have problem to pronounce English sounds correctly.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document