Chapter 7

Question 1

Accent addition

Answer 1

Kjellin (1999) proposal for considering pronunciation instruction as adding a new skill to a learner’s L1 language skills. Learner’s L1 identity is not affected by L2 pronunciation practice in the classroom. Narrows the scope of pronunciation instruction.

Question 2

Intelligibility

Answer 2

An accent that does not distract the listener and allows the listener to recognize words or utterances. A learner-centered, realistic goal within reach of all L2 learners. Burden of intelligibility is shared by speaker and listener. Fluency is a component of intelligibility.

Question 3

Communicability

Answer 3

How well a learner can function in various communicative situations. Emphasizes real-word practice in the classroom to promote confidence outside the classroom. Also, emphasizes teaching learner how to monitor their own speech in order to improve understanding of input received from others.

Question 4

Multicompetent language user

Answer 4

Cook: the knowledge of more than one language in one person’s mind; the different languages a person speaks are one connected system, rather than each language being a separate system. People who speak a second language are seen as unique multilingual individuals, rather than people who have merely attached another language to their repertoire. The different languages a person learns affect each other; language transfer.

Question 5

ESL context

Answer 5

Refers to instruction that takes place in a country in which English is the primary language. Learners meet English daily outside the classroom. Since the classroom likely comprises learners from many language backgrounds, teachers aim for multicompetence and accent addition.

Question 6

EFL context

Answer 6

English is not the official language of the country, so learners do not meet English outside the classroom. Learners generally have the same language background, as may the teachers, so pronunciation is not a focus. However, such teachers can use L1 language for teaching as well as provide models for L2 language learning.

Question 7

EIL context

Answer 7

English as an International Language: The idea of English as a tool for international intelligibility, a Lingua Franca (ELF) used for communication among speakers of different L1 backgrounds and different accents. In such situations, learner’s goal is effective communication, not NAE or RP pronunciation. Local variety of English is often used in the classroom by both learners and teachers.

Question 8

Lingua Franca Core

Answer 8

A set of five pronunciation features identified by Jenkins (2000, 2006) as crucial for learners who wish to communicate with other non-native speakers of English.

1. Consonants (except /θ, ð/ and velarized, or dark, [ɫ])
2. Positional variations (aspiration and vowel lengthening)
3. Consonant cluster features
4. Tense-lax vowel distinctions
5. Prominence

Question 9

Realistic goals for instruction

Answer 9

functional intelligibility
functional communicability
increased self-confidence
speech-monitoring abilities

Question 10

Accent and identity

Answer 10

Accent is connected to personal identity and can represent identification without or membership in a particular group. Sign of status as well as basis for discrimination.

Question 11

Factors influencing design of pronunciation program

Answer 11

Age of learners
Prior exposure to and instruction in language
Motivitation
Speaking and pronunciation goals

Question 12

Goals

Answer 12

General statements about what is supposed to be achieved. General goals include…
Intelligibility: the extent to which a listener understands an utterance
Comprehensibility: the listener’s perception of the difficulty of understanding an utterance
Acentedness: the listener’s perception of how different the speaker’s accent is from the listener’s L1 community.

Question 13

Objectives

Answer 13

More specific statements that are often measurable and part of a student’s course grade. Objectives should be specific to each student’s strengths and weaknesses.

Question 14

Customizing goals and objectives

Answer 14

Different learners have different strengths and weaknesses, so setting individual goals is desirable. Personalized objectives can be set using recordings.

Question 15

Segmental objectives

Answer 15

Core vowels; the tense-lax vowel distinction.
Consonants, especially those that serve as grammatical signals (e.g., inflectional morphemes such as –ed, -s); consonant clusters.
Correct number of syllables in a word; the sounds in stressed syllables.

Question 16

Suprasegmental goals

Answer 16

Prominence: the word that receives stress in a though group. Stress and intonation work together. Therefore, teach thought groups.
Linking: how words connect with one another in smooth, rhythmic speech.

Question 17

Identity

Answer 17

The ways that language learners understand who they are, their relationship to the world, and the how that relationship is constructed. Race, gender, class, sexual orientation, nationality, region, level of education are all a part of identity.

Question 18

World Englishes

Answer 18

Inner circle: Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, and the United States
Outer circle: countries that were colonized and have developed their own L1 Englishes: India, Nigeria, the Philippines, and Singapore.
Expanding Circle: Countries where English is studied as a foreign language: China, Japan, South Korea, and Thailand.

Question 19

Learner’s speaking needs

Answer 19

Two categories of instruction: 1) tasks and content are decided externally by textbook writer or teach. 2) Tasks and content are decided to some extent by the learner.

Internal approach more meaningful to more learners, who have greater control over language production. Greater autonomy. Results in greater motivation.

Question 20

How to use recordings

Answer 20

Student records output.
Student transcribes recording
Student analyzes recording and transcription at one or more levels: phonemes, suprasegmentals, lexis (total words in a language), morpho-syntax, and pragmatics (how meaning is transmitted).
Teacher analyzes recoding and transcription and provides feedback
Student practices narrow aspects of task (deliberate practice).
Learner performs tasks again and with the teacher analyzes the results.
Repeat

Question 21

Key ideas behind recording and analyzing

Answer 21

input: Comprehensible input in the form of a model.
Output: allows noticing, analysis, and feedback. Spoken fluency development depends on production, not reception.

Noticing: learners only acquire what they notice, takes place on two levels: form and meaning.

Question 22

morpheme (morpho-syntax)

Answer 22

The minimal meaningful unit of a language. In a word such as independently, the morphemes are in-, depend, -ent, and ly; depend is the root and the other morphemes are derivational affixes

Question 23

Feedback

Answer 23

For adults, explicit negative feedback on linguistic form is necessary, as implicit learning is slow and uncertain.

Question 24

Deliberate practice

Answer 24

Focused practice, necessary for adult learners to acquire accuracy.

Question 25

Strategic planning

Answer 25

takes place before performing a task. Involvs planning the content or language to use. Benefits fluency, not so much complexity and accuracy.

Question 26

Task repetition

Answer 26

Benefits fluency and complexity.

Question 27

Summary

Answer 27

Provide motivating tasks
Provide large amounts of comprehensible input
Provide opportunities for meaningful, communicative output.
Focus explicitly on particular linguistic forms (phonologicla, suprasegmental, lexical, morpho-syntactic, and pragmatic (how meaning is transmitted) forms.

Strategic planning, task repetition, teacher feedback are helpful. Various types of tasks provide different benefits (syntactic complexity, syntactic accuracy, and fluency). Initially focus separately on meaning and form.

Question 28

Automaticity

Answer 28

automatizing the majority of bottom-up (linguistic) processes (phonological, lexis, morpho-syntax, pragmatics) so that they work together.
Largely based on frequency/repetition in meaningful context.
Explicit knowledge -> Proceduralization -> Automaticity

Question 29

Designing Pronunciation Instruction for a Specific Group of Learners (pp. 284-288)

Answer 29

Determine learner needs
Find authentic and relevant materials
Use these materials to illustrate and practice specific pronunciation features
Provide frequent and sustained choral repetition (with body movement).
Provide opportunities to use the target features in less controlled tasks
Record learner’s speech for feedback, deliberate practice, and review.