This thesis tests the hypothesis that a whole language approach to ESL (English As A Second Language) pronunciation with emphasis on suprasegementals through the use of linguistic mimicry is more effective than a focus on segmentals in improving native speakers perceptions of accent and comprehensibility of ESL students' pronunciation of English. The thesis is organized into seven chapters. Chapter 2 is a discussion of the factors that affect the degree of foreign accent in second language acquisition. Chapter 3 gives a background on current ESL pedagogy followed by a description of the linguistic mimicry approach used in this research in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 and 6 are discussion of Materials and Methods and Conclusions and Implications.

Leung, Ming Ming Grace. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 147-150). / Abstracts in English and Chinese; includes Chinese characters in appendix. / ABSTRACT (ENGLISH) --- p.i / ABSTRACT (CHINESE) --- p.ii / ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS --- p.iii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iv / Chapter CHAPTER 1 --- INTRODUCTION / Chapter 1.1. --- Background to this Study --- p.1 / Chapter 1.2. --- Purpose and Significance of this Study --- p.2 / Chapter 1.3. --- Organization of the Thesis --- p.3 / Chapter CHAPTER 2 --- LITERATURE REVIEW / Chapter 2.1. --- Introduction --- p.5 / Chapter 2.2. --- /n/ and /l/ in English and Cantonese --- p.5 / Chapter 2.3. --- /n/ and /l/ Variation in Cantonese --- p.6 / Chapter 2.4. --- /n/ and /l/ Variation in Hong Kong English --- p.7 / Chapter 2.5. --- Language Transfer --- p.10 / Chapter 2.6. --- English Perception and Production by L2 Speakers --- p.20 / Chapter 2.7. --- Task Type --- p.34 / Chapter 2.8. --- Linguistic Environment --- p.40 / Chapter 2.9. --- Language Proficiency --- p.43 / Chapter 2.10. --- Summary --- p.45 / Chapter CHAPTER 3 --- METHODOLOGY / Chapter 3.1. --- Introduction --- p.48 / Chapter 3.2. --- Research Questions --- p.48 / Chapter 3.3. --- Research Methodology --- p.50 / Chapter 3.3.1. --- Participants --- p.50 / Chapter 3.3.2. --- Materials and Procedure --- p.50 / Chapter 3.3.3. --- Data Recording and Data Transcription --- p.56 / Chapter 3.3.4. --- "Data Coding, Data Scoring and Data Analysis" --- p.56 / Chapter 3.4. --- Summary --- p.57 / Chapter CHAPTER 4 --- FINDINGS / Chapter 4.1. --- Introduction --- p.59 / Chapter 4.2. --- General Results in Descriptive Statistics --- p.60 / Chapter 4.2.1. --- General Finding of English Production and Perception --- p.60 / Chapter 4.2.1.1. --- Production of /n/and /l/ in Different Task Types --- p.63 / Chapter 4.2.1.2. --- Production of /n/ and /l/ in Different Following Linguistic Environments --- p.66 / Chapter 4.2.1.3. --- Production of /n/ and /l/ with the Presence of a Second /n/ --- p.68 / Chapter 4.2.1.4. --- Production of /n/ and /l/ by Three Groups of Participants --- p.69 / Chapter 4.2.2. --- General Finding of Cantonese Production and Perception --- p.72 / Chapter 4.3. --- Results of VARBRUL Statistics --- p.76 / Chapter 4.3.1. --- Result of Accurate Production of /n/ --- p.81 / Chapter 4.3.2. --- Result of /n/ to /l/ Variation --- p.83 / Chapter 4.3.3. --- Result of Accurate Production of /l/ --- p.84 / Chapter 4.3.4. --- Result of /l/ to /n/ Variation --- p.85 / Chapter 4.4. --- Descriptive and VARBRUL Statistical Results regarding Four Research Questions --- p.87 / Chapter 4.4.1. --- Data for Research Question 1: To what extent does /n/ and /l/ variation of Cantonese play a role in /n/ and /l/ variation in the onset positionin English? --- p.88 / Chapter 4.4.2. --- Data for Research Question 2: How significant is English perception for English production? --- p.91 / Chapter 4.4.3. --- "Data for Research Question 3: How do Cantonese speakers of English perform in different task types (word list, passage, and natural speech) and is task type significant for English production?" --- p.94 / Chapter 4.4.4. --- "Data for Research Question 4: Which linguistic and/or non-linguistic factors, such as the linguistic environment, the presence of a second /n/ within the same syllable, and English proficiency/university major, may have an influence on /n/ and /l/ production in English?" --- p.95 / Chapter 4.5. --- Summary --- p.99 / Chapter CHAPTER 5 --- DISCUSSION / Chapter 5.1. --- Introduction --- p.100 / Chapter 5.2. --- Research Question 1: To what extent does /n/ and /l/ variation of Cantonese play a role in /n/ and /l/ variation in the onset position in English? --- p.100 / Chapter 5.2.1. --- Discussion about /n/ and /l/ Variation in Cantonese --- p.101 / Chapter 5.2.2. --- Discussion about /n/ and /l/ Variation in English --- p.109 / Chapter 5.2.3. --- Transfer of /n/ and /l/ Variation in Cantonese to /n/ and /l/ variationin English --- p.113 / Chapter 5.3. --- Research Question 2: How significant is English perception for English production? --- p.117 / Chapter 5.4. --- "Research Question 3: How do Cantonese speakers of English perform in different task types (word list，passage, and natural speech) and is task type significant for English production?" --- p.124 / Chapter 5.5. --- "Research Question 4: Which linguistic and/or non-linguistic factors, such as the linguistic environment, the presence of a second /n/ within the same syllable, and English proficiency/university major, may have an influence on /n/ and /l/ production in English?" --- p.128 / Chapter 5.6. --- Summary --- p.137 / Chapter CHAPTER 6 --- CONCLUSION / Chapter 6.1. --- Introduction --- p.142 / Chapter 6.1.1. --- Pedagogical Implication --- p.142 / Chapter 6.1.2. --- Limitations of the Current Study --- p.144 / Chapter 6.1.3. --- Suggestions for Further Studies --- p.145 / REFERENCES --- p.147 / APPENDIX A / APPENDIX B / APPENDIX C / APPENDIX D

由於普通話的語音系統與粤方言的相去甚遠，粤方言人士學習普通話語音時，來自粤方言的語音干擾對學習產生障礙，發音因而有所偏差。本研究應用多元概化理論的統計方法，分析由4位國家級普通話測試員對37名大學本科生朗讀1218個普通話帶調音節的評分數據，從而描繪香港學生朗讀普通話音節的能力面貌。 / 本研究在音節朗讀能力分析上應用概化理論，能同時估計影響分數變異的多個誤差來源，以及估計各側面的變異量及其佔總變異量的比例。通過本研究可以進一步了解來自題目、評分者的測量誤差對分數概化精確性的影響。而且，本研究採用的數據是對聲母、韻母、聲調的分項評分，把音節分解為三個變量來分析，能彌補整體性評分的不足，從而確定朗讀普通話音節時的偏誤所在。本研究對朗讀能力進行分解，首先是在音節的層面，對音節之下的子能力（聲母、韻母、聲調）進行解構分析。然後，則分別在聲母和韻母的層面探究兩者的子能力。研究發現，聲母、韻母、聲調之間的關聯程度很高，但韻母最能區分被試的朗讀能力，聲母卻最弱。各種韻母之間的協方差明顯比各種聲母之間的為大，表明各類韻母背後所隱含的共同能力相對較強。研究結果也顯示，被試能力和題目之間的交互作用是相對主要的誤差來源。 / 除了解構音節朗讀能力外，本研究還針對音節測試的實際情況進行應用研究。通過題目數量、評分者人數以及測量設計的改變，驗證不同測試條件下的概化係數等各種技術指標。結果顯示，各種改變條件的測試方案皆具相當高的測量信度，證明在實際的測試要求下，音節朗讀測試能測出被試的普通話語音能力。 / 本研究基於大量客觀數據而概括出的學習難點和規律，為普通話教與學提供客觀參照，更具針對性地教好、學好音節發音。同時，也有助本地測試機構，制定更符合粤方言者能力特質的音節題目。評分者效應的誤差則為評分者培訓提供訊息，有助提升評分的準確性，建設穩定的評分者團隊。 / As the phonological system of Putonghua is vastly different from that of Cantonese, the phonological interference from Cantonese poses critical learning obstacles to Cantonese speakers in their learning of Putonghua, which leads to various pronunciation errors. In this study, the statistical method Multivariate Generalizability Theory was used to analyze the rating data collected from 4 National Putonghua examiners' rating on the pronunciation of 1218 Putonghua syllables by 37 undergraduates at a university in Hong Kong. The purpose of this study was to examine the ability profiles and psychometric characteristics of Hong Kong students in the pronunciation of Putonghua syllables. / The application of generalizability theory on the study of the pronunciation competency of Putonghua syllables made it possible to analyze and estimate the multiple sources of errors which affected the variation of scores as well as the variance of each facet and its proportion against total variance. Through this study, it was possible to further understand the influence of measurement errors of test items and raters on the generalization of their accuracy. In the study, Putonghua syllables were divided into three variables (components: initials, finals and tones) and analytical scoring was applied in the analyses that could specify the location of errors in pronunciation, thus partly remedying the deficiency of holistic scoring. Deconstruction analysis of pronunciation competence was carried out in a 2-level hierarchy. First, the deconstruction took place at syllables in which initials, finals and tones were the sub-skills. Second, the initials and finals were also deconstructed. Research findings showed that correlations among initials, finals and tones were relatively high and that finals were the strongest in differentiating pronunciation competence while initials were the weakest. The covariances among various finals were apparently higher than those of initials. This implies that the mutual hidden competence linked to various types of finals was relatively strong. Findings also revealed that the interaction between subject’s competence and test items was the main source of errors. / In addition to the deconstruction analysis of pronunciation competence, applied research basing on the authentic situations of Putonghua tests was also conducted. Verification of technical specifications, including generalizability coefficients, was carried out under different testing conditions through changing test design and the number of test items and raters. The results showed that various testing solutions with the change in testing conditions possess high degree of measurement reliability, suggesting that syllable reading test could be used to examine pronunciation competence under authentic testing conditions. / In this study, learning difficulties and their patterns, which are derived from abundant unprejudiced data, provide objective reference to the teaching and learning of Putonghua syllable pronunciation with clear targets. These findings are also useful to local testing institutions in stipulating syllable reading tests which better suit the competence characteristics of Cantonese speakers. Furthermore, data and study results on rater errors offer reference for rater training which helps to promote the accuracy of rating, thus strengthening the quality of the rating team. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / 陳志良. / "2013年7月". / "2013 nian 7 yue". / Thesis (Ed.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2013. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 119-127). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract in Chinese and English. / Chen Zhiliang. / Chapter 第一章 --- 緒論 --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- 研究背景 --- p.1 / Chapter 1.2 --- 研究的目的、問題、預設與假設、內容、意義 --- p.2 / Chapter 1.2.1 --- 研究目的 --- p.2 / Chapter 1.2.2 --- 研究問題 --- p.3 / Chapter 1.2.2.1 --- 音節的理論探討 --- p.3 / Chapter 1.2.2.2 --- 應用研究探討 --- p.4 / Chapter 1.2.3 --- 研究預設與假設 --- p.5 / Chapter 1.2.4 --- 研究內容 --- p.6 / Chapter 1.2.5 --- 研究意義 --- p.7 / Chapter 第二章 --- 文獻綜述 --- p.9 / Chapter 2.1 --- 普通話在香港的地位 --- p.9 / Chapter 2.2 --- 普通話音節與漢語拼音 --- p.12 / Chapter 2.3 --- 普通話音節分析 --- p.15 / Chapter 2.4 --- 方言地區的普通話音節教學與學習 --- p.17 / Chapter 2.5 --- 普通話音節評分方法 --- p.22 / Chapter 2.6 --- 概化理論在普通話測試上的應用 --- p.27 / Chapter 第三章 --- 研究方法 --- p.33 / Chapter 3.1 --- 數據收集程序 --- p.33 / Chapter 3.1.1 --- 被試 --- p.33 / Chapter 3.1.2 --- 題目 --- p.33 / Chapter 3.1.3 --- 評分者 --- p.35 / Chapter 3.1.4 --- 評分方法 --- p.35 / Chapter 3.2 --- 能力分解研究 --- p.36 / Chapter 3.2.1 --- 子研究一：音節研究 --- p.36 / Chapter 3.2.2 --- 子研究二：聲母研究 --- p.38 / Chapter 3.2.3 --- 子研究三：韻母研究 --- p.39 / Chapter 3.3 --- 應用研究 --- p.39 / Chapter 3.3.1 --- 子研究一：組卷啟示 --- p.40 / Chapter 3.3.2 --- 子研究二：考試設計探索 --- p.40 / Chapter 3.3.2.1 --- G研究 --- p.40 / Chapter 3.3.2.2 --- D₁研究：改變題目數量 --- p.40 / Chapter 3.3.2.3 --- D₂研究：改變評分者人數 --- p.41 / Chapter 3.3.2.4 --- D₃研究：（P：R）× I嵌套設計（不同的評分者評不同的被試） --- p.41 / Chapter 3.3.2.5 --- D₄研究：（I：P）× R嵌套設計（不同的被試朗讀不同的音節） --- p.42 / Chapter 第四章 --- 能力分解研究 --- p.44 / Chapter 4.1 --- 子研究一：音節研究（三個因子模型） --- p.44 / Chapter 4.1.1 --- G研究 --- p.44 / Chapter 4.1.1.1 --- 測量目標p --- p.45 / Chapter 4.1.1.2 --- 測量側面i --- p.45 / Chapter 4.1.1.3 --- 測量側面r --- p.46 / Chapter 4.1.1.4 --- 各效應之間的比較 --- p.46 / Chapter 4.1.1.5 --- 交互效應 --- p.47 / Chapter 4.1.2 --- 默認D研究 --- p.48 / Chapter 4.1.2.1 --- 概化全域 --- p.48 / Chapter 4.1.2.2 --- 默認D研究中的方差與協方差分量的估計 --- p.48 / Chapter 4.1.2.3 --- 默認D研究中各效應在三個變量上的概化係數等指標 --- p.49 / Chapter 4.1.2.4 --- 全域合成分數的研究 --- p.51 / Chapter 4.1.2.5 --- 各變量對整體測試的貢獻比例 --- p.52 / Chapter 4.1.3 --- D₁研究：改變評分者人數 --- p.52 / Chapter 4.1.3.1 --- 模式設計 --- p.52 / Chapter 4.1.3.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.53 / Chapter 4.1.4 --- 小結 --- p.54 / Chapter 4.2 --- 子研究二：聲母研究（七個因子模型） --- p.56 / Chapter 4.2.1 --- G研究 --- p.56 / Chapter 4.2.1.1 --- 測量目標p --- p.56 / Chapter 4.2.1.2 --- 測量側面i --- p.59 / Chapter 4.2.1.3 --- 測量側面r --- p.60 / Chapter 4.2.1.4 --- 各效應之間的比較 --- p.60 / Chapter 4.2.1.5 --- 交互效應 --- p.61 / Chapter 4.2.2 --- 默認D研究 --- p.62 / Chapter 4.2.2.1 --- 概化全域 --- p.62 / Chapter 4.2.2.2 --- 默認D研究中的方差與協方差分量的估計 --- p.62 / Chapter 4.2.2.3 --- 默認D研究中各效應在三個變量上的概化係數等指標 --- p.62 / Chapter 4.2.3 --- D₂研究：改變評分者人數 --- p.65 / Chapter 4.2.3.1 --- 模式設計 --- p.65 / Chapter 4.2.3.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.65 / Chapter 4.2.4 --- 小結 --- p.67 / Chapter 4.3 --- 子研究三：韻母研究（四個因子模型） --- p.69 / Chapter 4.3.1 --- G研究 --- p.69 / Chapter 4.3.1.1 --- 測量目標p --- p.70 / Chapter 4.3.1.2 --- 測量側面i --- p.71 / Chapter 4.3.1.3 --- 測量側面r --- p.71 / Chapter 4.3.1.4 --- 各效應之間的比較 --- p.72 / Chapter 4.3.1.5 --- 交互效應 --- p.72 / Chapter 4.3.2 --- 默認D研究 --- p.73 / Chapter 4.3.2.1 --- 概化全域 --- p.73 / Chapter 4.3.2.2 --- 默認D研究中的方差與協方差分量的估計 --- p.73 / Chapter 4.3.2.3 --- 默認D研究中各效應在三個變量上的概化係數等指標 --- p.74 / Chapter 4.3.3 --- D₃研究：改變評分者人數 --- p.76 / Chapter 4.3.3.1 --- 模式設計 --- p.76 / Chapter 4.3.3.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.76 / Chapter 4.3.4 --- 小結 --- p.78 / Chapter 4.4 --- 綜合討論 --- p.80 / Chapter 第五章 --- 應用研究 --- p.82 / Chapter 5.1 --- 描述統計 --- p.82 / Chapter 5.1.1 --- 平均分和標準差 --- p.82 / Chapter 5.1.2 --- 被試表現分析 --- p.85 / Chapter 5.2 --- 子研究一：組卷啟示 --- p.87 / Chapter 5.2.1 --- 難度控制組卷 --- p.87 / Chapter 5.2.2 --- 組卷策略 --- p.88 / Chapter 5.2.3 --- 借助計算機程序 --- p.90 / Chapter 5.2.4 --- 組卷方式 --- p.90 / Chapter 5.2.4.1 --- 教學導向組卷 --- p.90 / Chapter 5.2.4.2 --- 測試導向組卷 --- p.91 / Chapter 5.2.4.3 --- 教學導向與測試導向結合 --- p.92 / Chapter 5.2.5 --- 小結 --- p.92 / Chapter 5.3 --- 子研究二：考試設計探索 --- p.94 / Chapter 5.3.1 --- G研究 --- p.94 / Chapter 5.3.2 --- 默認D研究 --- p.95 / Chapter 5.3.3 --- D₁研究：改變題目數量 --- p.96 / Chapter 5.3.3.1 --- 取樣模式 --- p.96 / Chapter 5.3.3.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.96 / Chapter 5.3.4 --- D₂研究：改變評分者人數 --- p.97 / Chapter 5.3.4.1 --- 取樣模式 --- p.98 / Chapter 5.3.4.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.98 / Chapter 5.3.5 --- D₃研究：（P：R）× I嵌套設計（不同的評分者評不同的被試） --- p.99 / Chapter 5.3.5.1 --- 研究設計 --- p.99 / Chapter 5.3.5.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.101 / Chapter 5.3.6 --- D₄研究：（I：P）× R嵌套設計（不同的被試朗讀不同的音節） --- p.101 / Chapter 5.3.6.1 --- 研究設計 --- p.101 / Chapter 5.3.6.2 --- 研究發現 --- p.102 / Chapter 5.3.7 --- 其他嵌套設計 --- p.103 / Chapter 5.3.8 --- 小結 --- p.105 / Chapter 第六章 --- 總結及建議 --- p.107 / Chapter 6.1 --- 結語 --- p.107 / Chapter 6.2 --- 主要結論 --- p.108 / Chapter 6.2.1 --- 音節研究 --- p.108 / Chapter 6.2.2 --- 聲母研究 --- p.109 / Chapter 6.2.3 --- 韻母研究 --- p.110 / Chapter 6.2.4 --- 評分者因素 --- p.111 / Chapter 6.2.5 --- 組卷啟示 --- p.111 / Chapter 6.2.6 --- 考試設計探索 --- p.112 / Chapter 6.3 --- 研究的不足 --- p.113 / Chapter 6.3.1 --- 被試的同質性 --- p.113 / Chapter 6.3.2 --- 題目側面的細化 --- p.114 / Chapter 6.3.3 --- 選題拼卷的聲韻覆蓋 --- p.114 / Chapter 6.4 --- 主要建議 --- p.115 / Chapter 6.4.1 --- 分項評分 --- p.115 / Chapter 6.4.2 --- 測試設計 --- p.116 / Chapter 6.4.3 --- 評分者人數與題目數量之間的關係 --- p.116 / Chapter 6.4.4 --- 音節教學和評分者培訓 --- p.117 / Chapter 6.4.5 --- 擴大研究對象 --- p.117 / Chapter 6.4.6 --- 擴大題目側面 --- p.118 / Chapter 6.4.7 --- 借助計算機程序 --- p.118 / 參考文獻 --- p.119 / Chapter 附錄 1 --- 音節與漢字對照表 --- p.128 / Chapter 附錄 2 --- 1218 個音節 --- p.136 / Chapter 附錄 3 --- 按聲母排列的音節難度表 --- p.144 / Chapter 附錄 4 --- 以聲母分類隨機選取的 100 音節試卷 --- p.156 / Chapter 附錄 5 --- 音節研究 mGENOVA程序 --- p.158

The communicative language approach (CLA) dominates pedagogical practice in second language acquisition classrooms in the US. However, this approach does not emphasize independent pronunciation instruction, leaving learners to improve pronunciation on their own. This study explored the perspectives of English language learners (ELLs) being instructed via the CLA regarding the effectiveness of the CLA in providing intelligible pronunciation skills. The intelligibility principle of language served as the theoretical foundation underlying this study guided by research questions addressing how well the CLA met ELLs' pronunciation intelligibility needs and their perspectives on receiving independent pronunciation instruction to meet these needs. Using qualitative case study methods, the research questions were addressed through an analysis of interviews of 10 community college ELL adult volunteers who received instruction using the CLA as current or former students in the intensive English program, had linguistic skill levels ranging from beginner to advanced, and were graduates of U.S. schools. A typological analysis model was followed where the data were organized by themes, patterns, and identified relationships. Participants reported wanting to improve their pronunciation and that their pronunciation had improved with the CLA instructional strategies. Although all participants desired to receive some independent instruction in pronunciation, their preferred instructional modes differed. It is recommended that ELLs' perspectives be heard and that English as a Second Language educators instruct with the CLA while also providing explicit pronunciation instruction. The results of this study indicating student satisfaction with the CLA may elicit positive social change within the ELL community by providing a voice to ELLs.

Over the past few decades, increasing research has examined the cognitions (knowledge and beliefs) of second language (L2) teachers. Such efforts have provided insight into what constitutes teachers' beliefs and knowledge about teaching, how these cognitions have developed and how they are reflected in classroom practice (see Borg, 2006). Although numerous studies have been conducted into the curricular areas of L2 grammar and, to a lesser extent, L2 literacy, far fewer have examined L2 teachers' cognitions concerning L2 pronunciation instruction. The purpose of the present study, therefore, was to explore some of the dynamic relationships that exist between L2 teachers’ cognitions and actual pedagogical practices, how these cognitions have developed over time, and what relationships exist between both students’ and teachers’ perceptions. In the study, the cognitions and practices - as they relate to the teaching of L2 pronunciation - of five experienced teachers in an Intensive English program were investigated. The teachers participated in three types of data collection procedures over one semester - three semi-structured interviews, five classroom observations, and two stimulated recall interviews. Also, their students completed questionnaires. Findings revealed that, in terms of the development of teachers' cognitions, a graduate course dedicated to pronunciation pedagogy had the greatest impact of the teachers’ cognitions. In addition, all teachers experienced some degree of insecurity about teaching pronunciation. This was especially true for teachers who had never taken a course in pronunciation pedagogy. Yet even those teacher with specific training in pronunciation pedagogy lacked confidence in certain areas, especially in how to diagnose and address problems with pronunciation. Furthermore, some of the teachers were hesitant to assess students' pronunciation, fearing that negative feedback might be damaging to the learners' identities. However, through viewing the results of the student questionnaires, the participant-teachers were surprised to learn that students favored receiving explicit feedback in class in front of their peers over other types of feedback. One final major finding was that the teachers predominantly employed controlled techniques when teaching pronunciation and that, of all the techniques used, guided techniques were used less frequently.

This thesis aims to investigate socio-psychological factors that affect foreign language learners&rsquo / pronunciation and focuses on the relationship between in-class injunctive norms for English pronunciation and Fear of Negative Evaluation (FNE). Injunctive norms are a type of social norms that define the expected behavior from the group members and sanctions for disobedience. They are evaluative in their nature. FNE is one of the three components of foreign language classroom anxiety and experienced when a person is in an evaluative situation. For this study, the quantitative data were collected through a questionnaire developed by the researcher and the qualitative data were gathered from the interviews. Freshman students at the Department of Foreign Language Education at Middle East Technical University participated in the study. v The results indicated that speaking with native like or Turkish-like English pronunciation and having some pronunciation mistakes, which are commonly observed in the classroom, are approved according to in-class injunctive norms for English pronunciation. However, if speakers cannot achieve sounding native like when they are trying to emulate native pronunciation, or if they make pronunciation mistakes which are not commonly observed in the classroom or overemphasized by the instructors, these performances are not approved. Speaking with an English pronunciation in the classroom which is not approved according to these norms triggers FNE in the learners. Therefore, learners generally prefer speaking with Turkish-like English pronunciation, which is within the frame of inclass injunctive norms. The results also demonstrated that the pronunciation rules that teachers emphasize become a part of injunctive norms / therefore, teachers have an important role in the determination of these norms.

The diploma thesis examines the space, which is devoted to the work with the phenomena of the Russian language phonetics level, both on phonemic and prosodic levels in the selected coursebooks for teaching Russian language at lower and upper secondary schools. The theoretical part deals with the main principles of phonetics didactics and its importance and goals. Next, the approaches to teaching phonetics and the ways in which phonetics can be taught are also defined. Finally, attention is paid to the issue of interference phenomena. The theoretical part of the thesis provides the basis for the practical part of the thesis. The practical part offers the characteristics of the examined coursebooks, which is followed by the results of content analysis of coursebooks. The research focuses on the quantity, i.e. the number and frequency of assignments to form phonetic literacy, and the quality of the assignments. Both textbooks and workbooks of selected coursebooks are subjected to analysis. Methodologically, this work is based on the already realized analysis of the supervisor of this diploma thesis. The results of the analysis are presented at the very end of this part of the work and are provided first for each coursebook, then the result of the comparison of coursebooks with the results of the...

Analytic knowledge about the systematic variation in a language has an important place in the description of the language. Such knowledge is interesting e.g. in the language teaching domain, as a background for various types of linguistic studies, and in the development of more dynamic speech technology applications. In previous studies, the effects of single variables or relatively small groups of related variables on the pronunciation of words have been studied separately. The work described in this thesis takes a holistic perspective on pronunciation variation and focuses on a method for creating general descriptions of phone-level pronunciation in discourse context. The discourse context is defined by a large set of linguistic attributes ranging from high-level variables such as speaking style, down to the articulatory feature level. Models of phone-level pronunciation in the context of a discourse have been created for the central standard Swedish language variety. The models are represented in the form of decision trees, which are readable for both machines and humans. A data-driven approach was taken for the pronunciation modelling task, and the work involved the annotation of recorded speech with linguistic and related information. The decision tree models were induced from the annotation. An important part of the work on pronunciation modelling was also the development of a pronunciation lexicon for Swedish. In a cross-validation experiment, several sets of pronunciation models were created with access to different parts of the attributes in the annotation. The prediction accuracy of pronunciation models could be improved by 42.2% by making information from layers above the phoneme level accessible during model training. Optimal models were obtained when attributes from all layers of annotation were used. The goal for the models was to produce pronunciation representations representative for the language variety and not necessarily for the individual speakers, on whose speech the models were trained. In the cross-validation experiment, model-produced phone strings were compared to key phonetic transcripts of actual speech, and the phone error rate was defined as the share of discrepancies between the respective phone strings. Thus, the phone error rate is the sum of actual errors and discrepancies resulting from desired adaptations from a speaker-specific pronunciation to a pronunciation reflecting general traits of the language variety. The optimal models gave an average phone error rate of 8.2%. / QC 20100901

Bakgrunden till denna undersökning är att uttal är en viktig del av språket att behärska, samtidigt som det finns indikationer på att uttalsundervisningen inom Svenska för invandrare (SFI) är eftersatt. Ändå uppnår elever inom SFI ett förståeligt uttal och därför antogs att de använder sig av självstudier i uttal och skulle ha uppfattningar om hur de lärt sig uttal. Syftet med denna undersökning var att beskriva och analysera några SFI-elevers uppfattningar av metoder för att lära svenskt uttal, för att ur detta dra slutsatser av didaktisk betydelse för uttalsundervisning inom SFI. Detta undersöktes genom tre forskningsfrågor kring metoder som eleverna uppfattar har hjälpt dem att lära svenskt uttal. Kvalitativa intervjuer med fyra SFI-elever som har gott uttal genomfördes på deras egen skola. Två elever i taget intervjuades under cirka en timme och det uppstod ett fritt samtal om hur de uppfattar att de har lärt uttal. Resultatet är en lång rad metoder som eleverna uppfattar har hjälpt dem för lärande av svenskt uttal: lyssna, läsa, syssla med korrigering, höra, repetera, titta, umgås med människor, prata, arbeta, göra läxan, kämpa, vilja samt ha rätt inställning. En förhållandevis stor del av dessa metoder nämns inte i den tidigare forskningen. Metoder som eleverna nämnde har hjälpt mest är lyssna, repetera långa ord, läsa högt, vilja lära uttal, umgås med människor, ta hjälp av sitt barn samt kämpa. Endast några få metoder från själva SFI-undervisningen nämndes av eleverna. Därför dras i diskussionen slutsatsen att det behövs mer uttalsundervisning inom SFI, särskilt undervisning i prosodi. En annan slutsats är att de metoder som informanterna nämner bör påverka SFI didaktiskt och tre exempel ges på hur detta kan ske.

Tato diplomová práce pojednává o využití algoritmu Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) pro automatické hodnocení výslovnosti anglického jazyka. Práce se zaměřuje na vylepšení již existující aplikace pro výuku výslovnosti, a to ve třech oblastech: uživatelské rozhraní, samotný algoritmus a korektivní zpětná vazba uživateli. První část se věnuje přehledu technik používaných v této oblasti, následně je představen nový design uživatelského rozhraní, popsán navržený systém a experimenty. Experimenty se zaměřují na problematiku detekce chyb na úrovni fonémů, na detekci chyb v primárním důrazu na úrovni slabik a na hodnocení intonace na úrovni slov. Všechny použité metody jsou navrženy tak, aby poskytovaly korektivní zpětnou vazbu uživateli. V poslední části je popsáno, jak byly všechny tři vylepšené oblasti aplikace otestovány.