Teaching English Pronunciation to L1 Speakers of German at Gymnasium

Term Paper , 2009 , 23 Pages , Grade: 2,0

Didactics for the subject English - Pedagogy, Literature Studies

In the course of the last three decades a whole new prominence has been granted to the significance of foreign language (FL) learning. Due to the recent development of globalization, further emerging of multi-national enterprises and the coalescence of the European Union, this appears to be the logical consequence. Because of its nowadays widely accepted status as a lingua franca (Acar 2006) the learning and teaching of English as the most frequently spoken second language has gained importance – in Germany as well as in most industrialized countries speaking prevalently another first language (L1). In the recent past, since the end of the 19th century, changing trends have focused on different methods of language teaching, such as the ability to translate texts, correct use of grammar, or wide range of vocabulary. However, the teaching of English pronunciation finally has come back into the focus of interest since the second half of the 1980s due to the mentioned economic and social changes. Nowadays the ability to (net-) work internationally – and thus reach the “ultimate goal of communication with other speakers of the second language” (Brown 1994: 226) seems to be one of the highest goals of achievement of second language (L2) learning. During the time of almost one century of pronunciation teaching the attitude towards the issue has changed as well: as Chun (1991: 179) states in her article, the development started from a segmental and comparative sound repetition learning strategy, followed by a period of simply ignoring the topic completely from the 1960s to the early 1980s, leading finally to the up-to-date approach of teaching suprasegmentals, sentence intonation as well as other aspects of connected speech. The most current approach towards second language teaching lies, according to Neri, Cucchiarini and Strik (2006: 357), in “the achievement of communicative effectiveness”. This means that learners do not necessarily have to eradicate the slightest traces of foreign accent in their productions of L2 speech but are trained to avoid serious pronunciation errors.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• Introduction
• Foreign Accent: A Practical Approach for Teaching
• Sources of Influence on Learners' Pronunciation
  • Utilization of Individual Personal Resources
    • Age
    • L1 Background and Interference
    • Gender
    • Language Aptitude
    • Personality and Motivation
  • Social and Cultural Issues
    • Interactions in the Classroom
    • Socio-Cultural Factors
• Conclusion
• References

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte

This paper aims to demonstrate the value of achieving near-native pronunciation for learners of English, particularly in the context of German Gymnasium. It focuses on the factors influencing pronunciation learning outcomes and emphasizes the importance of teachers understanding these factors to optimize their teaching methods.

• The significance of foreign accent reduction in English language teaching
• The influence of individual learner characteristics on pronunciation development
• The role of social and cultural factors in the classroom environment
• The importance of setting realistic goals and expectations for pronunciation improvement
• The need for teachers to be aware of and utilize various teaching strategies to address individual learner needs.

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel

The introduction highlights the growing importance of English as a global language and the renewed focus on pronunciation teaching in recent decades. It emphasizes the shift from traditional grammar-based approaches to a more communicative focus, where achieving communicative effectiveness is paramount.

The second chapter explores the concept of foreign accent and its measurement, contrasting objective methods using computer programs with subjective listener judgments. It emphasizes the importance of considering the context of language use and the learner's willingness to improve pronunciation.

The third chapter delves into the various factors influencing learners' pronunciation, focusing on individual characteristics such as age, L1 background, gender, language aptitude, personality, and motivation. It emphasizes the need for teachers to be aware of these factors and tailor their teaching methods accordingly.

Schlüsselwörter

The keywords and focus themes of the text include foreign accent reduction, pronunciation teaching, English as a second language (ESL), learner characteristics, individual differences, social and cultural factors, classroom interaction, and teaching strategies. The paper explores the impact of these factors on pronunciation development and provides insights for teachers to optimize their teaching methods.

• College: University of Augsburg (Phil-Hist Fakultät)
• Course: Teaching and Learning English Pronunciation
• Grade: 2,0
• Author: Michael Burger (Author)
• Publication Year: 2009
• Pages: 23
• Catalog Number: V126400
• ISBN (eBook): 9783640323425
• ISBN (Book): 9783640321438
• Language: English
• Tags: Foreign Language Teaching, Fremdsprachenunterricht, Applied English Linguistics, Englischunterricht, Phonetik & Phonologie