Learner Perspective on English Pronunciation Teaching in an EFL Context

On the basis of the findings, the learners do not seem to have aspirations to native-like pronunciation, but rather aim at achieving intelligible and fluent speech. Only few reported an accent preference (British or American). The primary level learners expressed satisfaction with the amount of pronunciation teaching, whereas most of the lower and upper secondary level learners claimed that pronunciation teaching was insufficient. Despite their criticisms of their pronunciation teaching, the learners reported that they had learnt English pronunciation at school. In addition, many of the learners described learning pronunciation outside school, e.g. through media and personal encounters

WANTED: TUTKIMUSPERUSTAINEN ÄÄNTÄMISEN OPETUS

Tracey M. Derwing ja Murray J. Munro 2015.Pronunciation Fundamentals. Evidence-basedPerspectives for L2 Teaching and Research.Language Learning & Language Teaching42. John Benjamins Publishing Company.208 s

LEKTIO Kolme väitettä englannin ääntämisen opetuksesta Suomessa

Tergujeff, Elina, Jyväskylän yliopistoVäitöksenalkajaisesitelmä Jyväskylän yliopistossa 3.8.2013Soveltavan kielitieteen väitöskirjan tarkastustilaisuus 3.8.2013 Jyväskylän yliopistossaTergujeff, Elina 2013. English pronunciation teaching in Finland. Jyväskylä Studies in Humanities 207.http://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-951-39-5322-

The English pronunciation teaching in Europe survey: selected results

The results of EPTiES reveal interesting phenomena across Europe, despite shortcomings in terms of construction and distribution. For example, most respondents are non-native speakers of English and the majority of them rate their own mastery of English pronunciation favourably. However, most feel they had little or no training in how to teach pronunciation, which begs the question of how teachers are coping with this key aspect of language teaching. In relation to target models, RP remains the variety of English which teachers claim to use, whilst recognizing that General American might be preferred by some students. Differences between countries are explored, especially via replies to open-ended questions, allowing a more nuanced picture to emerge for each country. Other survey research is also referred to, in order to contextualise the analyses and implications for teaching English and for training English teacher

Desperately Seeking a Communicative Approach: English Pronunciation in a Sample of French and Polish Secondary School Textbooks

The first part of this paper analyses pronunciation exercises in a representative sample of textbooks from each country. Pronunciation exercises were classified based on the degree to which they mobilize communicative abilities, according to the five categories of a Communicative Framework for teaching pronunciation (Celce-Murcia et al., 2010, p45): Description & analysis, Listening discrimination, Controlled practice, Guided practice, Communicative practice. The first category involves little risk-taking by the learner, usually focusses on form and allows little freedom. At the other end of the spectrum, communicative practice involves a focus on meaning and interaction, with the concomitant greater freedom to make mistakes. The exercises were then analysed to see which segmental and/or prosodic features they favoured and to what extent

CITIZEN SCIENCE FOR EARTH OBSERVATION: APPLICATIONS IN ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND DISASTER RESPONSE

Citizen science is a promising way to increase temporal and spatial coverages of in-situ data, and to aid in data processing and analysis. In this paper, we present how citizen science can be used together with Earth observation, and demonstrate its value through three pilot projects focusing on forest biomass analysis, data management in emergencies and water quality monitoring. We also provide recommendations and ideas for follow-up activities. In the forest biomass analysis pilot, in the state of Durango (Mexico), local volunteers make in-situ forest inventory measurements with mobile devices. The collected data is combined with Landsat-8 imagery to derive forest biomass map of the area. The study area includes over 390 permanent sampling plots that will provide reference data for concept validation and verification. The emergency data management pilot focuses in the Philippines, in the areas affected by the typhoons Haiyan in November 2013 and Hagupit in December 2014. Data collected by emergency workers and citizens are combined with satellite data (Landsat-8, VHR if available) to intensify the disaster recovery activities and the coordination efforts. Simple processes for citizens, nongovernmental organisations and volunteers are developed to find and utilize up to date and freely available satellite imagery for coordination purposes and for building new not-for-profit services in disaster situations. In the water quality monitoring pilot, citizens around the Baltic Sea area contribute to the algae situation awareness by collecting algae observations using a mobile application. In-situ observations are compared with surface algal bloom products based on the satellite imagery, e.g. Aqua MODIS images with 500 meter resolution. As an outcome, the usability of the citizen observations together with satellite data in the algae monitoring will be evaluated

Phonetic Notation in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning: Potential Advantages and Learners’ Views

This paper focuses on the use of phonetic notation in foreign language teaching and learning. The aim of the paper is twofold: first, we review some of the potential advantages that the use of phonetic notation seems to have in language teaching and learning; and secondly, the paper reports on learner views obtained with a questionnaire anonymously filled in by EFL (English as a foreign language) learners in tertiary education who followed an English course where an extensive use of phonetic symbols was made for pronunciation work in Finland, France and Spain. The results suggest that learners were relatively familiar with phonetic notation prior to their course although there were differences between countries. Phonetic notation was perceived positively by a majority of learners, particularly in terms of its perceived potential for raising awareness of the target language’s pronunciation features and its potential to visually represent sounds. Learners’ answers were also mostly positive regarding the potential of phonetic notation for autonomous learning, as well as the perceived ease and usefulness of phonetic notation

The Role of Curriculum Design and Teaching Materials in Pronunciation Learning

This paper aims to provide insights into the role of curriculum design and teaching materials in the development of English pronunciation skills in EFL contexts. One of the main contextual factors negatively affecting the development of pronunciation abilities of EFL learners relates to the ‘often-unchanging’ curriculum design and the ‘blind’ choice of teaching materials without regard to students’ needs and goals. This study utilises structured interviews and focus group discussions (N=2 sessions) to elicit the views of a group (N=71) of third- and fourth-year English-major students at a university college in Saudi Arabia on the appropriateness of the curriculum design and teaching materials to their learning expectations in the area of English pronunciation. The results show that the great majority of students spoke unfavourably about the overall curriculum and teaching materials and considered those to be among the obstacles that they encounter in their learning of English pronunciation. This finding raises the question of curriculum design of English language teaching programs and the extent to which these curricula meet the needs of learners. The study suggests that a reformation of the structure of the curriculum in the study context is urgently needed and that more involvement of students’ perspectives on the design of curricula is of major importance

Relasphone - Mobile and Participative In Situ Forest Biomass Measurements Supporting Satellite Image Mapping

Due to the high cost of traditional forest plot measurements, the availability of up-to-date in situ forest inventory data has been a bottleneck for remote sensing image analysis in support of the important global forest biomass mapping. Capitalizing on the proliferation of smartphones, citizen science is a promising approach to increase spatial and temporal coverages of in situ forest observations in a cost-effective way. Digital cameras can be used as a relascope device to measure basal area, a forest density variable that is closely related to biomass. In this paper, we present the Relasphone mobile application with extensive accuracy assessment in two mixed forest sites from different biomes. Basal area measurements in Finland ( boreal zone) were in good agreement with reference forest inventory plot data on pine ( R-2 = 0.75, RMSE = 5.33 m(2)/ha), spruce ( R-2 = 0.75, RMSE = 6.73 m(2)/ha) and birch ( R-2 = 0.71, RMSE = 4.98 m(2)/ha), with total relative RMSE ( %) = 29.66%. In Durango, Mexico ( temperate zone), Relasphone stem volume measurements were best for pine ( R-2 = 0.88, RMSE = 32.46 m(3)/ha) and total stem volume ( R-2 = 0.87, RMSE = 35.21 m(3)/ha). Relasphone data were then successfully utilized as the only reference data in combination with optical satellite images to produce biomass maps. The Relasphone concept has been validated for future use by citizens in other locations.Peer reviewe