Henderson, A., Frost, D. et al., "English pronunciation teaching in Europe : Inside and outside the classroom" (original) (raw)
Related papers
The English pronunciation teaching in Europe survey: selected results
Research in Language, 2012
This paper presents a subset of findings from a European-wide, on-line survey of English pronunciation teaching practices (EPTiES). Quantitative and qualitative data from seven countries (Finland, ) are presented, focusing on teachers' comments about the training they received to teach English pronunciation, about what they do inside the classroom and about what happens outside the classroom in terms of students' exposure to English. The results of EPTiES and of follow-up interviews reveal interesting phenomena across Europe. Most of the teacher-respondents were non-native speakers of English and felt they had little or no training in how to teach pronunciation, which raises the question of how teachers are coping with this key aspect of language teaching. Differences between countries are explored, especially via replies to open-ended questions and relevant contextual factors (e.g. language policy) allowing a more nuanced picture to emerge for each country. Suggestions are made for improving teacher training and for further research.
The aim of the present paper is to reflect upon the place of pronunciation in English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching at different educational levels in Poland. To collect the data, an on-line survey was conducted among EFL professionals teaching at primary, lower secondary, and higher secondary schools in Poland. The questions focused on the respondents' beliefs about pronunciation, teachers' competences regarding pronunciation and pronunciation teaching, and the pronunciation teaching techniques they use. The results depict the most and least frequently used pronunciation teaching techniques at each of the three educational stages, and the beliefs of EFL teachers in Poland regarding pronunciation teaching.
Research in Language, 2016
The aim of the present paper is to reflect upon the place of pronunciation in English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching at different educational levels in Poland. To collect the data, an on-line survey was conducted among EFL professionals teaching at primary, lower secondary, and higher secondary schools in Poland. The questions focused on the respondents’ beliefs about pronunciation, teachers’ competences regarding pronunciation and pronunciation teaching, and the pronunciation teaching techniques they use. The results depict the most and least frequently used pronunciation teaching techniques at each of the three educational stages, and the beliefs of EFL teachers in Poland regarding pronunciation teaching.
2013
The English Pronunciation Teaching in Europe Survey (EPTiES) is an on-line survey which aims to collect information about English pronunciation teaching practices in European countries, following the work of Canadian (Breitkreuz, Derwing and Rossiter 2002) and Australian (Macdonald 2002) studies. Jointly prepared by teachers in ten European countries (Finland, ), the survey has 57 questions organised into 9 categories. Initial results for 598 respondents are briefly presented in relation to six categories: characteristics of participants (e.g. age, gender, years teaching experience); teachers' self-evaluation of their own pronunciation skills; teachers' views on the pronunciation-related training they received; assessment of pronunciation; exposure outside the classroom (e.g. subtitled TV, live interaction with native and non-native speakers,); varieties and norms inside the classroom (e.g. for receptive & productive work). Some of the advantages and drawbacks of such collaborative research projects are also addressed.
2018
The Dutch overestimate their English speaking skills. Their pronunciation is not always convincing, and certain pronunciation mistakes are easily recognized as being typical for Dutch speakers of English. Although intelligibility cannot exist without adequate pronunciation, teaching English pronunciation at Dutch secondary schools is often absent from the EFL teaching curriculum. Focusing on the most prominent pronunciation difficulties, often caused by the mother tongue (L1), will benefit the non-native speaker’s intelligibility and credibility. In order to provide teachers with a time-efficient approach to teach English pronunciation, preliminary research is needed to identify the most prominent error types in the English pronunciation of the average Dutch speaker of English (in this study represented by secondary school pupils and bachelor students in the Netherlands). Research shows that fifty percent of the subject group makes seven types of pronunciation mistakes in more than ...
2013
The gap between research and practice, as in most areas of education, is prevalent in the teaching of pronunciation. This paper reviews the factors that contribute to the gap and proposes investigating teachers’ beliefs and practices as a way to address the problem. It then provides an illustration of the gap through a case study of a group of English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers at a tertiary institution. Consistent with previous studies, the teachers’ avoidance of pronunciation teaching was found to originate from their own inability to teach the skill. Closer analysis revealed that their technical knowledge in pronunciation content and pedagogy was lacking and further impoverished by their ignorance of research. However, the teachers were also found to demonstrate practical knowledge that enabled them to negotiate certain curricular and learner constraints. This latter knowledge, although efficacious, subsequently produced teaching practices that were at odds with current ...
The English Pronunciation Teaching in Europe Survey (EPTiES) is a collaborative effort by a group of European researchers interested in the state of English pronunciation teaching in Europe. Given the lack of research-based information on the topic (cf. e.g. Foote et al. 2011, Macdonald 2002), ten researchers designed an extensive online survey, which attracted participants from all over Europe. The participants are EFL/ESL teachers from various teaching contexts. This paper concentrates on two parts of the survey that deal with teacher training and pronunciation assessment. Responses from seven European countries are analysed (n=630). We present findings concerning the contents of teacher training received by the respondents and their overall evaluation of it. In addition, we look into the respondents’ pronunciation assessment methods.