Destabilizing effects of L2 explicit pronunciation instruction on L1 speech:

Anchored in a Complex Dynamic perspective on language development, this study explores the effects of L2 explicit pronunciation instruction on L2 English and L1 Brazilian Portuguese VOT production. To this end, 16 Brazilian intermediate users of L2 English were investigated. Volunteers were divided into control and experimental groups. The latter received explicit pronunciation instruction on the production of the English voiceless stops. The study included three data collections, a pre-test, an immediate post-test and a delayed post-test. An acoustic analysis of VOT duration is reported. The results revealed that the control group did not produce the expected VOT pattern for L2 English at any time of the study. No alterations in the L1 were reported. On the other hand, after the instruction, the experimental group produced higher L2 English VOT values. First language attrition was reported since the L1 BP VOT durations also increased after instruction. In addition to highlighting the effects of explicit instruction on L2 development and L1 attrition, this study confirms that language development is constant, and that even L1 adult grammars are not rigid, with potential to change due to the perception and processing of novel nonnative phonetic-phonological categories.

Segmental error patterns in Finnish-accented English

Research suggests that explicit pronunciation teaching improves second language speech production, but language teachers often lack the relevant knowledge to teach pronunciation. This study examined segmental error patterns in Finnish-accented English and the relationship between segmental errors and foreign accent ratings in two groups differing in amount of second language experience. Our study identified a number of common segmental error patterns in Finnish-accented English, which may guide formal pronunciation instruction. We further found that the sheer number of segmental errors in a sentence affected foreign accent ratings as did the number of vowel errors in a sentence. We speculate that the detrimental effect of vowel errors may be related to the finding that vowel errors resulted in non-English segments more often than consonant errors did. Finally, we found a facilitative effect of second language experience on foreign accent rating that cannot be reduced to number of segmental errors, despite the finding that number of consonant errors was reduced with increased second language experience.

Evidence in favor of a strategy-based model for English pronunciation instruction

Research has increasingly demonstrated that pronunciation difficulties in English can seriously affect learners’ intelligibility and ability to comprehend spoken English. It is thus crucial that we find ways of helping learners of English become more intelligible. In this talk, I present compelling research evidence in support of a strategy-based pronunciation instruction model, and uncover individual learner, teacher, and instructional variables affecting long-term improvement. Findings from my published and ongoing studies involving different groups of learners and teachers highlight the critical role of teachers in self-regulated learning, and suggest the need for methodological refinements to the model. The results show that students’ self-regulated efforts at learning can be further enhanced and supported if combined with goal-setting and awareness-raising activities, online speech models and resources, video-recordings to assess progress, guided reflections on oral assignments, ongoing feedback, and re-assessments of goals after improvement. I conclude the talk with a discussion of these methodological refinements and possible avenues for future research.

Approaches to Pronunciation Instruction in Communicative Language Teaching Classrooms

One of the main factors that affects pronunciation instruction in the classroom is the educators’ teaching approach. Various elements like L1 (first language), cultural backgrounds, et cetera would influence teaching pronunciation, making English teachers deploy different pedagogical approaches for the learning process to occur. This article aims to provide insights into the pedagogical approaches used by EFL (English as a Foreign Language) and ESL (English as a Second Language) teachers in their CLT (Communicative Language Teaching) classrooms. It will also explore the influencing variables on these approaches. For this purpose, five English teachers (two EFL and three ESL teachers) provided the needed data through a questionnaire and a semi-structured interview for this qualitative study. The results showed that the participants used two teaching approaches for delivering pronunciation lessons, and two types of variables (i.e., student-related and teacher-related variables) influenced their choice of approach in the pronunciation classroom. Although this study does not intend to be generalized, it provides language teachers with a view of pedagogical approaches used by a number of EFL and ESL teachers for teaching pronunciation.

English phonology in a globalized world: Challenging native speakerism through listener training in universities in Sweden and the US

English phonetics and phonology often focus on improving learners’ pronunciation. However, phonological processing is ‘a two-way street’ involving both speaker and listener. Thus, pronunciation instruction in this globalized time needs to be complemented with ways to help listeners understand a wide range of accents, thereby challenging the native speakerism and standard language ideology of more traditional English teaching. In this paper, we share our experiences of promoting listener abilities in university courses in Sweden and the US, two very different teaching contexts. In Sweden, Jeong takes a truly phonetic approach, starting from students’ own pronunciations rather than a ‘standard’ model, and focuses on ability to comprehend diverse accents. In the US, Lindemann uses native-speaking students’ complaints about supposedly incomprehensible instructors, not as justification for further training of instructors who are already proficient English users, but as an opportunity to offer listener training to the students. Put together, these experiences provide a basis for reflection on the teaching of L2 phonetics and pronunciation in other languages such as Swedish, and the benefits of shifting some of the focus from speaker to listener in order to begin to overcome native speakerism and standard language ideology.