Foreign Language Pronunciation, from Theory to Practice


Book Description

This book comprehensively deals with foreign language pronunciation. It considers several essential issues, including the relationship between native and foreign language pronunciations, the problems of non-native learners when learning foreign language pronunciation and the factors that can positively or negatively affect its learning. The book analyses foreign language pronunciation from both the linguistic and pedagogical points of view. It will thus appeal to all foreign language learners, teachers, linguists, and methodologists.




Teaching Pronunciation


Book Description

This course includes an overview of current theory and practice. The paperback edition offers current and prospective teachers of English a comprehensive treatment of pronunciation pedagogy, drawing on current theory and practice. The text provides an overview of teaching issues from the perspective of different methodologies and second language acquisition research. It has a thorough grounding in the sound system of North American English, and contains insights into how this sound system intersects with listening, morphology, and spelling. It also contains diagnostic tools, assessment measures, and suggestions for syllabus design. Discussion questions encourage readers to draw on their personal language learning/teaching experiences as they assimilate the contents of each chapter. Follow-up exercises guide teachers in developing a range of classroom activities within a communicative framework.




Second Language Pronunciation


Book Description

Practical resources designed to help language educators apply the latest research and most effective pedagogical methods to classroom pronunciation instruction In Second Language Pronunciation: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Teaching, a team of distinguished researchers and educators delivers an incisive and practical approach to evidence-based pronunciation instruction in second language classrooms. Developed for language teachers who want to incorporate and implement the most effective pedagogical methods in their language instruction, this edited volume offers 15 essays that connect the latest research with practical applications in the classroom. In addition to exploring recent but less well-known methods—like High Variability Phonetic Training, discourse-based teaching, communicative classrooms, and technology-based methods—these chapters are unified in bringing theory to bear on practical questions faced by language teachers. The chapters follow a standard format, moving from critical research issues to pedagogical implications, and practical resources to equip language teachers, scholars, administrators, and teachers-in-training with the tools they require to develop their students’ pronunciation abilities. Readers will also find: A thorough introduction to using empirical evidence to guide pronunciation instruction in second language students Comprehensive explorations of the integration of pronunciation instruction into second language education Practical discussions of perception training in pronunciation instruction and the importance of L2 segmental and suprasegmental contrasts in pronunciation learning In-depth examinations of classroom research for pronunciation and the use of technology to explore L2 pronunciation Perfect for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students studying TESOL, applied linguistics, and second language acquisition, Second Language Pronunciation: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Teaching will also earn a place in the libraries of researchers, scholars, and teachers of language and education.




English Pronunciation Teaching and Research


Book Description

This book offers contemporary perspectives on English pronunciation teaching and research in the context of increasing multilingualism and English as an international language. It reviews current theory and practice in pronunciation pedagogy, language learning, language assessment, and technological developments, and presents an expanded view of pronunciation in communication, education, and employment. Its eight chapters provide a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of pronunciation and the linguistic and social functions it fulfils. Topics include pronunciation in first and second language acquisition; instructional approaches and factors impacting teachers’ curriculum decisions; methods for assessing pronunciation; the use of technology for pronunciation teaching, learning, and testing; pronunciation issues of teachers who are second-language speakers; and applications of pronunciation research and pedagogy in L1 literacy and speech therapy, forensic linguistics, and health, workplace, and political communication. The chapters also critically examine the research base supporting specific teaching approaches and identify research gaps in need of further investigation. This rigorous work will provide an invaluable resource for teachers and teacher educators; in addition to researchers in the fields of applied linguistics, phonology and communication.




How to Learn a Foreign Language


Book Description

In this entertaining and groundbreaking book, Dr. Paul Pimsleur, creator of the renowned Pimsleur Method, the world leader in audio-based language learning, shows how anyone can learn to speak a foreign language. If learning a language in high school left you bruised, with a sense that there was no way you can learn another language, How to Learn a Foreign Language will restore your sense of hope. In simple, straightforward terms, Dr. Pimsleur will help you learn grammar (seamlessly), vocabulary, and how to practice pronunciation (and come out sounding like a native). The key is the simplicity and directness of Pimsleur’s approach to a daunting subject, breaking it down piece by piece, demystifying the process along the way. Dr. Pimsleur draws on his own language learning trials and tribulations offering practical advice for overcoming the obstacles so many of us face. Originally published in 1980, How to Learn a Foreign Language is now available on the 50th anniversary of Dr. Pimsleur’s publication of the first of his first audio courses that embodied the concepts and methods found here. It's a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of the mind of this amazing pioneer of language learning.




English Pronunciation for Speakers of Spanish


Book Description

English Pronunciation for Speakers of Spanish fills a gaping hole in the market for books on English phonetics and pronunciation because it not only combines theoretical issues and applications to practice, but it also adopts a contrastive English-Spanish approach to better suit the needs of Spanish-speaking learners of English (SSLE), enabling them to build gradually on the knowledge gained in each chapter. The book covers the key concepts of English phonetics and phonology in seven chapters written in an accessible and engaging style: 1. Phonetics and Phonology 2. The Production and Classification of Speech Sounds 3. Vowels and Glides 4. Consonants 5. Segment Dynamics: Aspects of Connected Speech 6. Beyond the Segment: Stress and Intonation 7. Predicting Pronunciation from Spelling (and vice versa) Features: in-text audio illustrations, as well as over a hundred written and audio exercises with corresponding keys and different kinds of artwork (Tables, Figures, illustrations, spectrograms, etc.) classic readings in the discipline in the Further Reading section of each chapter highlights the phonetic contrasts and specific cues that are more important to aid comprehension in English and offers guidelines on "correct" pronunciation habits to help SSLE sound as close as possible to native English The book's companion website, EPSS Multimedia Lab, can be used on computers, smartphones and tablets, and is useful for the self-taught student and the busy lecturer alike. The website of the EPSS Multimedia lab can be accessed here: http://www.usc.gal/multimlab/ Features of the website: a complete sound bank defining and illustrating the sounds of English RP as compared with those of Peninsular Spanish written definitions and animated diagrams, videos and original recordings (by native speakers of English and Spanish) showing the articulation of each sound, alongside its most common spellings, as well as pronunciation practice for individual words and whole sentences a comprehensive selection of over a hundred written and audio exercises (with their keys) for practice both at home or in the language lab audio files corresponding to the audio illustrations given in the written book a repository of useful resources by topics and a list of online glossaries and pronunciation dictionaries




The Practice of Foreign Language Teaching


Book Description

The Practice of Foreign Language Teaching: Theories and Applications is a collection of essays which will appeal to teachers of modern languages no matter the level of instruction. The volume analyzes the concepts of foreign language education and multicultural competence, including the notion of the intercultural speaker. It also discusses the ways in which language education policy develops, by comparing the theories and purposes of foreign language education. The essays collected here highlight the various different methods and approaches in language teaching, and introduce more experienced teachers to new approaches and teaching ideas. The book will also provide language instructors with the theoretical background and practical solutions they need to decide which approaches, materials, and resources can and should be used in their L2 classrooms.




The Pronunciation of English by Speakers of Other Languages


Book Description

This book focuses on an increasingly attractive, yet controversial topic of non-native accentedness in speech. The contributors here are aware of the fact that the mechanisms and effects of pronunciation are far too complex to allow for strong and definite claims of any sort, but present research leading to useful answers to relevant questions. The book contributes to the deeper understanding of many aspects of foreign-accented English with reference to clearly described empirical evidence. The volume brings together fourteen chapters organized into four subdivisions, covering conceptual and perceptual issues, questions of segmental and suprasegmental pronunciation features, and methodological and didactic recommendations. As such, it provides a cross-sectional view of the current phonetic and didactic empirical research into the pronunciation of non-native English.




Phonology and Second Language Acquisition


Book Description

This volume is a collection of 13 chapters, each devoted to a particular issue that is crucial to our understanding of the way learners acquire, learn, and use an L2 sound system. In addition, it spans both theory and application in L2 phonology. The book is divided into three parts, with each section unified by broad thematic content: Part I, “Theoretical Issues and Frameworks in L2 Phonology,” lays the groundwork for examining L2 phonological acquisition. Part II, “Second Language Speech Perception and Production,” examines these two aspects of L2 speech in more detail. Finally, Part III, “Technology, Training, and Curriculum,” bridges the gap between theory and practice. Each chapter examines theoretical frameworks, major research findings (both classic and recent), methodological issues and choices for conducting research in a particular area of L2 phonology, and major implications of the research findings for more general models of language acquisition and/or pedagogy.




German Phonetics and Phonology


Book Description

8.2.1. Consonants