ESL/ Culture

Question 1

A highschool teacher refers a Hmong-speaking 16 yr old boy for an eval. When screened the student has some speech-sound and language differences. Which one of the following would NOT be predictable based on the student’s first language is Hmong?

A. substitutions of t/th (tin/thin)
B. epenthesis in words with consonant blends
C. confusion of /r/ and /l/
D. substitutions of f/th (fick/thick)

Answer 1

D. substitutions of f/th

Although there is no /th/ sound in the vast majority of Asian languages it would not be predictable for a speaker to display f/th substitutions. The most likely pattern would be a t/th substitution (bat/bath)

Question 2

Which speech-sound difference is NOT commonly observed among Asian speakers of English as a second language?

A. shortening of polysyllabic words
B. t/k substitutio (tin/kin)
C. confusion of /r/ and /l/
D. substitution of a/ae (shock/shack)

Answer 2

B. t/k substitution

Though there is great heterogeneity among Asian languages, a t/k substitutions is not a typical speech-sound substitution

Question 3

A kindergarten teacher refers Tomiko to you for a speech- language screening. Tomiko’s first language is Korean, and she has been exposed to English for 8 months in school. The teacher is concerned because he thinks that Tomiko “has a speech problem.” Which one of the following patterns (in English) would you not expect to find in a student who speaks Korean?

Answer 3

Substitution of t/k (tea/key)

The following 3 patterns would be predictable and indicate the presence of transfer form Korea to English:
-substitution of a/ae (bock/back)
-final consonant deletion (be/bed)
-confusion of r/l (lay/ray)

Question 4

Select the false statement about African American English (AAE).

Answer 4

It is a substandard form of Mainstream american english