Pronunciation acquisition patterns of learners with different starting levels

Abstract

This study described the results of an investigation into the effect of an intensive 12-week pronunciation course in British English which 30 Dutch female 1st year university students of English students took. They were split up into three groups on the basis of their starting level. They read out the same text before and after the course. Eleven phonemes that were produced this way before and after the course were investigated by means of auditory and acoustic analysis: /æ, ɒ, ɔː, ʌ, ʊ, ð, θ/, medial /t/, coda /r/, and syllable-final /d, v/. Four degrees of success (or lack thereof) were defined. The results show that the consonants caused the least effort, as they were already relatively acceptable before the course started. This was true for students with a high, intermediate and low starting level. The three levels of students are mutually mainly distinguishable mostly on the basis of the development of the consonants during the course. The weaker students’ consonants in particular benefitted from the course. The research revealed that initial level can be used to predict the trajectory of improvement. A general conclusion is that teachers may recognise types of students before the course starts and subject them to different types of teaching.