jltl

The Journal of Language Learning and Teaching

2146-1732

Gazi Yabancı Diller Derneği

Pronunciation Errors of Turkish Learners of English: Conceptualization Theory as a Teaching Method

Dikilitaş

Kenan

Gediz University, Turkey Geylanioğlu

Savaş

Gediz University, Turkey

07 14 2016

2 2 38 50 07 14 2016

2011

The Journal of Language Learning and Teaching

Pronunciation of certain English words by foreign English learners is a challenging skill. The difficulty posed by pronunciation is closely related to little exposure to interaction with native speakers, distinctive phonological system of L1 as in Turkish, a shallow orthographic language. In the literature, it is claimed that most of the pronunciation problems stem not from physical articulatory but from cognitive causes. In other words, the problem is not that the person can’t physically make the individual sounds, but that they don’t conceptualize the sounds appropriately or discriminate them, organize them in their minds and manipulate them as required for the sound system of English (Fraser, 2001). This study attempts to examine oft cited sounds such as Schwa (Ə), Voiced and voiceless Th (/ ð / /θ/) and ng sound. The data were collected from 24 adult EFL students. Each student was given 10 words from schwa, th and ng sounds respectively. Their pronunciations were recorded and transcribed through IPA alphabet and compared with the phonetic transcription in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary 3rd Edition. It is found that Turkish foreign language learners of English have serious difficulties in pronouncing schwa, th and ng sounds. The study suggests that, in order to facilitate the pronunciation of these sounds, the students could be trained through conceptualization methodology.

conceptualization phonetic awareness EFL pronunciation problems

Ahmadi, M (2011). Why is Pronunciation So Difficult to Learn? English Language Teaching, 4(3), 74-83.

Baker, A. (1981). Ship or Sheep, 2nd Ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Bayraktaroğlu, S. (2008). Orthographic Interference and The Teaching of British Pronunciation to Turkish Learners. The Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 4 (2), 107-143.

Bekleyen, N. (2011). Pronunciation Problems of the Turkish EFL Learners. Electronic Journal of Social Sciences. 10 (36), 094-107.

Boran, G. (2005).Gazi Eğitim Fakültesi İngilizce ÖğretmenliğiProgramı Öğretmen Adaylarının Genel Olarak Yanlış Telaffuz Ettikleri Kelimeler Üzerine Bir Çalışma. Selçuk Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi., 13, 81-90.

Bray, E. (1995). Using Limmericks to help Japanese Students improve their pronunciation. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Japanese Association of Language Teachers, Japan, November.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary 3rd Edition. (2008). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Cresswell JW, Fetters MD, Ivankova NV. (2004). Designing a mixed methods study in primary care. Ann Fam Med. 2 , 7–12.

Demirezen, M. (2005). The [ ɔ ] and [ ow ] Contrast: Curing a Fossilized Pronunciation Error of Turkish Teacher Trainees of English Language. Çankaya Üniversitesi Fen Edebiyat Fakültesi, Journal of Arts and Sciences, 3, 183-192.

Demirezen, M. (2007) A Model to Rehabilitate a Fossilized Pronunciation Error of Turkish English Language Teachers: the English Consonant Phoneme /ŋ/ Wrongly articulated as /nk/ Through Nasal Devoicing. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 3(2), 289-303.

Derwing, T.M, Munro, M.J. & Wiebe, G.(1998). Evidence in favor of abroad framework for pronunciation instruction. Language Learning, 48, 393-410

Hişmanoğlu, M. (2007)[ ɔː ] and [ oʊ ] contrast as fossilized pronunciation error of Turkish learners of English and solutions to the problem. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 3, (1), 98-116.

Fraser, H. (2001).Teaching Pronunciation: A Handbook for Teachers and Trainers Department. Department of Education Training and Youth Affairs. (DETYA) Jones, R. (1997). Beyond Listen and Repeat: Pronunciations Teaching Materials and Theories of Second Language Acquisition. System, 25, 103-112.

Karakas, A & Sönmez, E. (2011). The Teaching of [ θ] and [ ð ] Sounds in English. 1st International Conference on Foreign Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics. May 5-7 2011 Sarajevo

Kendrick, H. (1997). Keep Them Talking. System, 25 (4), 545-560.

Kenworthy, J. (1987).Teaching English Pronunciation. London: Longman

Larsen-Freeman, D. (2000). Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Lyster, R. (1998). Negotiation of form, recasts, and explicit correction in relation to error types and learner repair in immersion classrooms. Language Learning, 48(2), 183–218.

O’Connor and Fletcher. ( 1989). Sounds English, A Pronunciation Practice Book. London: Longman

Rivers, W.M. (1986). Teaching Foreign Language Skills. Chicago: Chicago University Press. (2nd. ed.)

Roach, P. (1998). English phonetics and Phonology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Setter, J., & Jenkins, J. (2005). Pronunciation. Language Teaching, 38(1), 1–17. Şenel, M. (2006). Suggestions for Beautifying the Pronunciation of EFL Learners in Turkey. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 2(1), 111-125.