Rethink your old teaching methods: designing a pronunciation course for young teenagers

Dorota Lipińska

doi:10.31261/TAPSLA.6155

Received: 2017-09-30
Accepted: 2018-03-06
Published: 2018-03-07

Vol. 4 No. 1 (2018)

Rethink your old teaching methods: designing a pronunciation course for young teenagers

Dorota Lipińska

Section: Articles

https://doi.org/10.31261/TAPSLA.6155

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Numerous studies (e.g. Lipińska, 2014; Majer, 2002; Nowacka, 2003; Sobkowiak, 2002; Szpyra-Kozłowska, et al., 2002; Szpyra-Kozłowska, 2008; Waniek-Klimczak, 2002; Wrembel, 2002) have shown that although teaching L2 pronunciation is included in university curricula, it is at the same time virtually absent at lower stages of education. Moreover, it has been noticed that teaching phonetics to younger learners is advisable and may be really effective (e.g. Lipińska, in press a; Nixon and Tomlinson, 2005). Undoubtedly, one can say that there are a lot of books and courses designed for adults written by and for Polish learners of English (e.g. Porzuczek et al., 2013; Sawala et al., 2011) or dedicated to international users (e.g. Baker, 2006; Hancock, 2008; Hewings, 2010). But the materials and methods used while working with adult learners and university students are no longer applicable if one wants to teach phonetics in a different environment and create an attractive and efficient course for children or young teenagers, since, as e.g. Komorowska (2011) notices, each foreign language course has to be characterised by realistic goals and appropriate methods and components.

The aim of this paper is to present various methods and materials which can be successfully applied while teaching English pronunciation to 11-13-year-olds. They have been used in three groups consisting of such L2 learners, and their usefulness and effectiveness have been proven by studies on both speech production and perception (e.g. Lipińska, in press b).

Keywords:

foreign language learning , pronunciation teaching , teaching materials

Download files

PDF

Citation rules

Lipińska, D. (2018). Rethink your old teaching methods: designing a pronunciation course for young teenagers. Theory and Practice of Second Language Acquisition, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.31261/TAPSLA.6155

Cited by / Share

Licence

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

The Copyright Holders of the submitted texts are the Authors. The Reader is granted the rights to use the material available in the TAPSLA websites and pdf documents under the provisions of the Creative Commons 4.0 International License: Attribution - Share Alike (CC BY-SA 4.0). The user is free to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format, and to remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

1. License

The University of Silesia Press provides immediate open access to journal’s content under the Creative Commons BY-SA 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Authors who publish with this journal retain all copyrights and agree to the terms of the above-mentioned CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

2. Author’s Warranties

The author warrants that the article is original, written by stated author/s, has not been published before, contains no unlawful statements, does not infringe the rights of others, is subject to copyright that is vested exclusively in the author and free of any third party rights, and that any necessary written permissions to quote from other sources have been obtained by the author/s.

If the article contains illustrative material (drawings, photos, graphs, maps), the author declares that the said works are of his authorship, they do not infringe the rights of the third party (including personal rights, i.a. the authorization to reproduce physical likeness) and the author holds exclusive proprietary copyrights. The author publishes the above works as part of the article under the licence "Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International".

ATTENTION! When the legal situation of the illustrative material has not been determined and the necessary consent has not been granted by the proprietary copyrights holders, the submitted material will not be accepted for editorial process. At the same time the author takes full responsibility for providing false data (this also regards covering the costs incurred by the University of Silesia Press and financial claims of the third party).

3. User Rights

Under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, the users are free to share (copy, distribute and transmit the contribution) and adapt (remix, transform, and build upon the material) the article for any purpose, provided they attribute the contribution in the manner specified by the author or licensor.

4. Co-Authorship

If the article was prepared jointly with other authors, the signatory of this form warrants that he/she has been authorized by all co-authors to sign this agreement on their behalf, and agrees to inform his/her co-authors of the terms of this agreement.

I hereby declare that in the event of withdrawal of the text from the publishing process or submitting it to another publisher without agreement from the editorial office, I agree to cover all costs incurred by the University of Silesia in connection with my application.

References

Acton, W. 1984. Changing Fossilized Pronunciation. TESOL Quarterly. 18(1). pp. 71–85.
Google Scholar

Arabski, J. 1987. Wymowa Amerykańska. Warszawa: Wiedza Powszechna.
Google Scholar

Arabski, J. 1996. Przyswajanie Języka Obcego i Pamięć Werbalna. Katowice: Śląsk.
Google Scholar

Baker, A. 1996. Introducing English Pronunciation: A Teacher’s Guide to ‘Tree or Three?’ and ‘Ship or Sheep?’. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Baker, A. 2006. Ship or Sheep? An Intermediate Pronunciation Course. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Bałutowa, B., 1965. Wymowa angielska dla wszystkich. Warszawa: Wiedza Powszechna.
Google Scholar

Baran-Łucarz, M. 2006. Prosto w oczy – fonetyka jako ‘michałek’ na studiach filologicznych? In: Sobkowiak, W. and Waniek-Klimczak, E. (eds.) Dydaktyka Fonetyki Języka Obcego w Polsce. Referaty z Szóstej Konferencji Naukowej, Mikorzyn 08-10.05.2006. Konin: Wydawnictwo Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Koninie, 7-17.
Google Scholar

Baran-Łucarz, M., Czajka, E. and Cardoso, W. 2015. A Mixed-Method Approach to Investigating the Use of Clickers in an English Phonetics Class. In: Proceedings of 4th International Conference on English Pronunciation: Issues and Practices (pdf version).
Google Scholar

Beebe, L. 1984. Myths about interlanguage phonology. Studies in descriptive linguistics, Vol. 13. In: Eliason, S., (ed.), Theoretical issues in contrastive phonology. Heidelberg: Julius Groos Verlag, pp. 51-62.
Google Scholar

Boersma, P. 2001. Praat, a System for Doing Phonetics by Computer. Glot International 10, pp. 341-345.
Google Scholar

Burns, T.C., Yoshida, K.A., Hill, K. and Werker, J.F. 2007. The Development of Phonetic Representation in Bilingual and Monolingual Infants. Applied Psycholinguistics 28, pp. 455-474.
Google Scholar

Cardoso, W. 2011. Learning a Foreign Language with a Learner Response System: The Students’ Perspective. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 24, 5, pp. 1-25.
Google Scholar

Celce-Murcia, M.D., Brinton, M. and Goodwin, J.M. 1996. Teaching Pronunciation: A Reference for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Demirezen, M. 2009. “A Model to Rehabilitate a Fossilized Pronunciation Error of Turkish English Language Teachers: the Nasal Devoicing of // as /k/”. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences. 1. pp. 2722–2727.
Google Scholar

Demirezen, M. 2010. The Causes of the Schwa Phoneme as a Fossilized Pronunciation Problem for Turks. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2 (2), pp. 1567-1571.
Google Scholar

Deprez, C. 2008. Remarques socio-didactiques sur l’accent en français, langue étrangère. Retrieved from: http://www.frl.auth.gr/sites/congres/Interventions/FR/deprez.pdf on 05.08.2016.
Google Scholar

Eddine, A.N. 2011. Second Language Acquisition: The articulation of vowels and importance of tools in the learning process. In: J. Arabski, A. Wojtaszek (eds.), The acquisition of L2 phonology. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Google Scholar

Ervin-Tripp, S. 1974. Is Second Language Learning Like the First?. TESOL Quarterly. 8. pp. 111–127.
Google Scholar

Gajewska, E. 2011. Techniki nauczania języka obcego. Tarnów: Wydawnictwo Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Tarnowie.
Google Scholar

Gilbert, J.B. 2012. Clear Speech. From the Start. Basic Pronunciation and Listening Comprehension in North American English. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Gilbert, J.B. and Levis, J.M. 2001. Review of The Phonology of English as an International Language [Jennifer Jenkins]. TESOL Quarterly 35: 505-506.
Google Scholar

Gonet, W. 2004. Seven deadly sins in teaching English phonetics. Materiały z konferencji ‘Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego w Polsce’ Mikorzyn k. Konina, 1-15.
Google Scholar

Guiora, A.Z., Beit-Hallahmi, B., Brannon, R. C., Dull, C. Y., and Scovel, T. 1972. The effects of experimentally induced changes in ego states on pronunciation ability in a second language: an exploratory study. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 13: 421-428.
Google Scholar

Gumbaridze, J. 2012. Error Correction in EFL Speaking Classrooms. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences. 70. pp. 1660–1663.
Google Scholar

Hancock, M. 2008. English Pronunciation in Use. Intermediate. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Harmer, J., 2006. How to teach English. Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd.
Google Scholar

Hewings, M. 2010. English Pronunciation in Use. Advanced. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Hoonhorst, I., Colin, C., Markessis, E., Radeau, M., Deltenre, P. and Serniclaes, W. 2009. French Native Speakers in the Making: From Language-general to Language-specific Voicing Boundaries. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 104, pp. 353-366.
Google Scholar

Jenkins, J. 2000. The Phonology of English as an International Language. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Google Scholar

Jespersen, O. 1904. How to teach a foreign language. London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd.
Google Scholar

Kelly, G. 2000. How to Teach Pronunciation. Harlow: Longman.
Google Scholar

Klein, W. 1986. Second Language Acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Komorowska, H. 2011. Metodyka Nauczania Języków Obcych. Warszawa: Fraszka Edukacyjna.
Google Scholar

Kotuła, K. 2015. Nowe media wspomagające autonomię uczniów szkół ponadgimnazjalnych w nauce wymowy języka francuskiego. In: Pawlak, M. (Ed.) Autonomia w nauce języka obcego – techniki, strategie, narzędzia. Konin: Wydawnictwo Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Koninie.
Google Scholar

Krashen, S. 1975. The Critical Period for Language Acquisition and Its Possible Basis. In: D. Aaronson, R.W. Rieber (eds.), Developmental Psycholinguistics and Communication Disorders. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 263. pp. 211–224.
Google Scholar

Krashen, S. 1977. Some Issues Relating to the Monitor Model. Paper Presented at the TESOL Convention. Miami Beach, FL.
Google Scholar

Laroy, C. 2004. Pronunciation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Google Scholar

Lennenberg, E.H. 1967. Biological Foundations of Language. New York: Wiley and Sons.
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. 2013a. Influence of Formal Instruction in English Phonetics and Phonology on Polish Learners’ Production of English /æ/. In: Przedlacka, J., Maidment, J. and Ashby, M. (eds.) Proceedings of PTLC 2013. Papers from the Phonetics Teaching and Learning Conference, London, 8–10 August 2013. London, Phonetics Teaching and Learning Conference Chandler House, pp. 59-62. (e-book PDF)
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. 2013b. Forming New Vowel Categories in L2 Speech: The Influence of Gender and Formal Instruction in English Phonetics and Phonology on Polish Learners’ Production of English /e/. In: Arabski, J., Łyda, A. and Ziębka, J. (eds.) Gender w Języku, Kulturze i Literaturze. Katowice, Wyższa Szkoła Zarządzania Marketingowego i Języków Obcych, pp. 171-190.
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. 2014. Polish learners’ attitudes towards learning English pronunciation: revisited. In: Majchrzak, O. (ed.) PLEJ_3 Czyli PsychoLingwistyczne Eksploracje Językowe. Łódź: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego, 151-175.
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. 2015. ‘I don’t want to sound like a native speaker of English!’ and other opinions on L2 pronunciation. In: Marczak, M. and Hinton, M. (eds.) Contemporary English Language Teaching and Research. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 94-120.
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. 2017a. English Philology Students' Opinions on Their L2 Pronunciation Skills: A Changing Perspective. JELTL: Journal of English Language Teaching and Linguistics 2 (2), pp. 181-190.
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. 2017b. Teaching EFL: Is the Pronunciation Component Present in Textbooks for Primary Schools? In: Krawczyk-Neifar, E. (ed.) Continuity and Change. And what next? Katowice: Wyższa Szkoła Zarządzania Ochroną Pracy, pp. 47-59.
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. in press a. Teaching pronunciation to primary school learners: Yes, we can!
Google Scholar

Lipińska, D. in press b. Minimal pairs? Minimal difficulty! Vowel perception in young learners.
Google Scholar

Littlewood, W.T. 1994. Foreign and second language learning: language-acquisition research and its implications for the classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Majer, J. 2002. Sick or seek? Pedagogical phonology in teacher training. In: Waniek-Klimczak E. and P.J. Melia (eds.) Accents and Speech in Teaching English Phonetics and Phonology, Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, pp. 153-176.
Google Scholar

Marks, P. 2013. English Pronunciation in Use. Elementary. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Murphey, T. 1992. The Discourse of Pop Songs. TESOL Quarterly 26 (4), pp. 770-774.
Google Scholar

Neufeld, G. 1978. On the Acquisition of Prosodic and Articulatory Features in Adult Language Learning. The Canadian Modern Language Review. 34. pp. 163–174.
Google Scholar

Nixon, C. and Tomlinson, M. 2005. Primary Pronunciation Box. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Nowacka, M. 2003. Analiza i Ocena Wymowy Słuchaczy NKJO w Rzeszowie. In: Zeszyt Naukowy Instytutu Neofilologii 2. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Koninie. 1/2003 2. pp. 46–55.
Google Scholar

Nowacka, M. 2008. How far is ‘Hanover’ from ‘Hangover’? Misperception of Polish ear. In: E. Waniek-Klimczak (ed.) Issues in accents of English. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, pp. 272-303.
Google Scholar

Nowacka, M. 2015. Phonetic inspirations in authentic materials: stimulating students’ phonetic awareness. In: Proceedings of 4th International Conference on English Pronunciation: Issues and Practices (pdf version).
Google Scholar

Ponsonby, M. 1988. How Now, Brown Cow? A Course in the Pronunciation of English, with Exercises and Dialogues. London: English Language Teaching Prentice Hall.
Google Scholar

Porzuczek, A. 2002. Problemy Organizacji Kursu Fonetyki Języka Angielskiego. In: W. Sobkowiak, E. Waniek-Klimczak (eds.), Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Płocku.
Google Scholar

Porzuczek, A. and Rojczyk, A. 2010. Przegląd interaktywnych programów internetowych wspomagających autonomię ucznia w nauce wymowy angielskiej. In: Droździał-Szelest, K. (ed.) Materiały Edukacyjne w Nauczaniu Języków Obcych: Teoria i Praktyka. Gorzów Wielkopolski: Wydawnictwo Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Gorzowie Wielkopolskim, 235-245.
Google Scholar

Porzuczek, A. and Rojczyk, A. in press. …………………. In: Gabryś-Barker, D. (ed.) Challenges of Foreign Language Instruction in a University Context.
Google Scholar

Porzuczek, A., Rojczyk, A. and Arabski, J. 2013. Praktyczny Kurs Wymowy Angielskiej dla Polaków. Katowice: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego.
Google Scholar

Puppel, S. 1996. A Concise Guide to Psycholinguistics. Poznań: Bene Nati.
Google Scholar

Rashtchi, M. 2011. Teaching Authentic English Pronunciation, Journal of Edupress, 1, pp. 119-124, retrieved from http://eprints.utm.my/15933/1/JOE-1-2011-016.pdf.
Google Scholar

Reszkiewicz, A. 1981. Correct Your English Pronunciation. Warszawa: Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe.
Google Scholar

Rivera-Gaxiola, M., Silva-Peyrera, J. and Kuhl, P.K. 2005. Brain Potentials in Native and Non-native Speech Contrasts in 7- and 11-month-old American Infants. Development Science 8, pp. 162-172.
Google Scholar

Roach, P. 2013. English Phonetics and Phonology. A Practical Course. Fourth Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Google Scholar

Rojczyk, A. 2010a. Forming new vowel categories in second language speech: The case of Polish learners' production of English /ɪ/ and /e/. Research in Language 8, pp. 85-97.
Google Scholar

Rojczyk, A. 2010b. Production and perception of vowel 'ash' by Polish learners of English. In: K. Dziubalska-Kołaczyk, M. Wrembel, M. Kul (eds.) Proceedings from the Sixth International Symposium on the Acquisition of Second Language Speech [CD ROM version].
Google Scholar

Rojczyk, A. 2011. Wykorzystanie Programu do Analizy Mowy w Nauce Wymowy Języka Obcego. Nagłosowy Kontrast Dźwięczności w Języku Angielskim. In: Pawlak, M. and Wolski, B. (eds.) Wykorzystanie Nowoczesnych Technologii w Dydaktyce Jezyków Obcych. Konin: Wydawnictwo Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Koninie, pp. 65-74.
Google Scholar

Sawala, K., Weckwerth, J. and Szczegóła, T. 2009. Say It Right. Multimedialny Kurs Wymowy Angielskiej. Poznań: Oficyna Wydawnicza Atena.
Google Scholar

Schwartz, G., Balas, A., Rojczyk, A. 2014. External Sandhi in L2 Segmental Phonetics – Final (De)voicing in Polish English. In: Concordia Working Papers in Applied Linguistics. 5. pp. 637–649.
Google Scholar

Scovel, T. 1969. Foreign Accents, Language Acquisition and Cerebral Dominance. Language Learning. 19. pp. 245–254.
Google Scholar

Scrivener, J. 2011. Learning Teaching. The Essential Guide to English Language Teaching. London: Macmillan
Google Scholar

Setter, J. and Jenkins, J. 2005. Pronunciation. Language Teaching. 38. pp. 1–17.
Google Scholar

Sobkowiak, W. 2002. English Speech in Polish Eyes: What University Students Think about English Pronunciation Teaching and Learning. In: Waniek-Klimczak, E. and P.J. Melia (eds.), Accents and Speech in Teaching English Phonetics and Phonology, Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang 177-196.
Google Scholar

Sobkowiak, W. 2003. Materiały Ulotne Jako Źródło Metakompetencji Fonetycznej. In: Sobkowiak, W. and Waniek-Klimczak, E. (eds.), Zeszyt Naukowy Instytutu Neofilologii Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej w Płocku Vol. 5, Dydaktyka Fonetyki Języka Obcego. Płock: Wydawnictwo Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Zawodowej, pp. 151-166.
Google Scholar

Steinbrich, P. 2014. Podcasts as a Tool for Facilitating Incidental Acquisition of Pronunciation. Paper presented at Accents 2014: Pronunciation Research in Action, 8th International Conference on Native and Non-Native Accents of English, Łódź, Poland, December 11-13, 2014.
Google Scholar

Sundberg, R. and Cardoso, W. 2015. A musical application to aid second language learners’ development of pronunciation features. Proceedings of 4th International Conference on English Pronunciation: Issues and Practices (pdf version).
Google Scholar

Szpyra-Kozłowska, J. 2003. Miejsce i rola fonetyki w międzynarodowych egzaminach Cambridge, TOEFL i TSE. In: Sobkowiak, W. and E. Waniek-Klimczak (eds.) Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Płocku, 181-192.
Google Scholar

Szpyra-Kozłowska, J. 2008. English Pronunciation Pedagogy in Poland – Achievements, Failures and Future Prospects. In: E. Waniek-Klimczak (ed.) Issues in accents of English. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing: 212-234.
Google Scholar

Szpyra-Kozłowska, J. 2015. Pronunciation in EFL Instruction: a Research-Based Approach. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Google Scholar

Szpyra-Kozłowska, J., Frankiewicz, J., Gonet, W. 2002. Aspekty Fonetyki Angielskiej Nauczane w Polskich Szkołach Średnich. In: W. Sobkowiak, E. Waniek-Klimczak (eds.), Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Płocku. 2002. pp. 9–28.
Google Scholar

Tarone, E. 1978. The Phonology of interlanguage. In: Richards, J. ed., Understanding Second and Foreign Language Learning. Rowley, MA: Newbury House, 15-33.
Google Scholar

Vaughan-Rees, M. 2011. Test Your Pronunciation. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.
Google Scholar

Waniek-Klimczak, E. 2002. Context for Teaching English Phonetics and Phonology. In: Waniek-Klimczak, E. and P.J. Melia (eds.), Accents and Speech in Teaching English Phonetics and Phonology, Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang 139-152.
Google Scholar

Waniek-Klimczak, E. 2006. Fonetyka w kształceniu nauczycieli: analiza wybranych aspektów ‘teacher talk’ na przykładzie języka angielskiego polskich nauczycieli praktykantów. In: Sobkowiak, W. and E. Waniek-Klimczak (eds.) Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Płocku, 247-250.
Google Scholar

Waniek-Klimczak, E. and Dłutek, A. 2003. Ocena języka mówionego – aspekt fonetyczny. In: Sobkowiak, W. and E. Waniek-Klimczak (eds.) Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Płocku, 243-266.
Google Scholar

Wrembel, M. 2002. Miejsce fonetyki języka angielskiego w szkole – implikacje dla kształcenia nauczycieli. In: Sobkowiak, W. and E. Waniek-Klimczak (eds.) Dydaktyka fonetyki języka obcego. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Płocku, 29-40.
Google Scholar

Wysocka, H. 2003. Czy/Jak Uczyć Fonetyki Języka Obcego?. In: Zeszyt Naukowy Instytutu Neofilologii 2. Zeszyty Naukowe PWSZ w Koninie. 1/2003. 2. pp. 159–184.
Google Scholar

Wysocka, M.S. 2007. Symptoms of fossilization in advanced learners and users of English. In: J. Arabski, D. Gabryś-Barker and A. Łyda (eds.) PASE Papers 2007: Studies in Language and Methodology of Teaching Foreign Languages. Katowice: PARA: 96-105.
Google Scholar