The perceptual saliency of spoken English is often reduced creating variation in the way English is spoken in very formal contexts from more naturally occurring English. Reduced forms refer to basic elements of this naturally occurring spoken English, integral and pervasive elements of spoken English, that are seriously neglected in both research and materials development. Reduced forms occur in all registers and styles of speech with pragmatic and syntactic constraints inherent in their use. This study provides an overview of the current literature and a survey of ESL teachers’ perspectives on reduced forms instruction. This paper also calls for more research into the role of reduced forms and the development of more authentic teaching materials that support the teacher in a systematic and effective approach to reduced forms instruction
