Analysis of Influence of L2 English Speakers’ Fluency on Occurrence and Duration of Sentence-medial Pauses in English Readout Speech (original) (raw)
Related papers
Pause plays important roles for the intelligibility, naturalness and fluency of speech. In order to get the fluency on target language, it is necessary for a speaker to put pause at appropriate place. This paper describes a comparative study of occurrence probability and duration of sentence-medial pauses in English readout speech of native (L1) American English and native (L1) Bengali speakers. The study indicates that nonnative (L2) (L1 Bengali) English speakers’ tendency to insert more number of sentence medial pauses than that of L1 English speakers. This is due to improper phrasing during the utterance planning of L2 English speakers. Results of this analysis also show that the occurrence probability and duration of sentence medial pause are linearly dependent on l (phrase length) and d (distance) for both speaker groups. But in case of L2 English speakers, the occurrence probability and duration of sentence medial pause is much higher compared to L1 English speakers.
2018
This research study was set out to compare filled pauses used in spontaneous speech by Thai learners of English with independent and basic user levels of English language proficiency in terms of types, distributions and functions. The data consisted of filled pauses produced in spontaneous speech. The results show that non-lexical filled pauses were produced most frequency among the speakers with basic user level, while lexical filled pauses in English were used oftentimes by the independent user group. The distributions of filled pauses were found both before and within clauses. Throughout this study, a major function of filled pauses was organization.
The Role of Fluency in Taking Pauses while Reading Aloud and During Spontaneous Speech
Scientific and social research, 2023
In this paper, the concept of pause patterns is analyzed within two aspects of speech, namely reading aloud and spontaneous speech. While reading aloud, much of the planning gets done by the speaker in preparing the text. As a result, the speaker becomes more fluent and does not need to take pauses (except at grammatical junctures). However, during spontaneous speech, pauses are much longer than reading and often more frequent because of hesitation aloud which results in disfluencies, false starts, repetition, and so on. This study explores the pause patterns in reading and spontaneous speech. The participants of this study consisted of 8 undergraduate students at Mehran University of Engineering and Technology. Data was collected through recording the students reading aloud and giving spontaneous speeches. The collected data was then analyzed. The results of the analysis showed that there is not much difference in the pattern of pauses while reading aloud and during spontaneous speech for those who are fluent in English.
Taiwan Journal of TESOL, 2020
In its descriptors for oral fluency the Common European Framework of Reference includes frequent references to the tempo of speech and the use of pausing. The present study aims to provide empirical evidence that these fluency phenomena exist; it also seeks to establish how they distinguish two different levels of proficiency (B2 and C1) among L2 English speakers as well as between these speakers and native speakers. The analysis is based on a large dataset of 50 native English speakers and 89 learners of English (derived from the LOCNEC corpus, and from the Czech and Taiwanese sub-corpora of LINDSEI); it compares their speech rates and the frequency and location of unfilled pauses in picture description tasks. Significant differences are found between all the groups showing that even between B2 and C1 levels the growth of proficiency is accompanied by an increase in speech rate and a decrease in the frequency of pausing, particularly within clauses and within constituents. By establishing the ranges of these values, the study sets possible targets which can be exploited for the purposes of language teaching and assessment.
Pauses, Pause Position, and Fluency
Reconceptualizing English Language Teaching and Learning in the 21st Century A Special Monograph in Memory of Professor Kai-chong Cheung, 2018
Pauses in speech have traditionally been seen as signs of a lack of fluency. However, some pauses are necessary and helpful to the listener, and only certain pauses create an impression of disfluency. Comparisons of different speakers have provided indirect evidence that pause location plays a key role in fluency, showing that fluent speakers pause less within clauses than those who are less fluent. However, few studies have addressed the effects that pauses of different lengths and at different locations have on the listener. That is the topic of this study, which compares objective measurements with listener perceptions of pausing in the same L2 speech samples. Using recordings and transcripts of seven Taiwanese students engaged in conversation with their teacher, pauses were measured using Praat software, while separately two listeners were asked to mark transcripts where they noticed pauses in the recordings. Comparisons between the two analyses showed a clear interaction between pause detection, on the one hand, and pause length and location on the other, with long pauses, and those occurring within clauses, being noticed more than shorter pauses and those coming between clauses. The longest undetected pauses were those occurring between clauses, while the shortest pauses to be noticed tended to be those within clauses. These findings provide direct evidence that pause location is the key to understanding how pauses affect fluency, and show why pause frequency and pause time are not valid measures of fluency if pause location is not also considered. Another important finding is that minimum length thresholds for pauses should vary according to pause location.
A comparative study of pauses in dialogues and read speech
Proceedings of Eurospeech …, 2001
This study aims to investigate the length, frequency and position of various types of pauses in three different speaking styles: elicited spontaneous dialogues, professional reading and nonprofessional reading.
Pauses and hesitation phenomena in second language production
ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 2000
This article focuses on the study of pauses in second language production by analysing the frequency of silent and filled pauses and their functions. It also examines the combination of pauses and other hesitation phenomena in second language production and it explores the relationship between pauses and language proficiency. The results confirm that pauses and hesitations are frequent phenomena in second language production and the individual variation in their occurrence. It was also found that pauses are often associated with other hesitation phenomena and that filled and silent pauses can have the same functions.
Silent Pauses in the Speech of Yemeni EFL Learners
ELS-JISH ELS Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies on Humanities, 2019
Speaking fluently is characterized not only by the speed of oral delivery but also by the absence of non-fluent pauses. This paper aims at investigating the pausing phenomena in the speech of the Yemeni learners of English. It investigated three aspects of silent pauses, the frequency, the placement and the length. The data were collected from 20 level four students enrolled in the Department English Language, Faculty of Education, Taiz University. The participants were recorded narrating the events of a short silent video immediately after watching it. Data were analyzed quantitatively utilizing the waveform spectrogram software called PRAAT. The findings showed that the Yemeni EFL learners overused non-fluent silent pauses. Additionally, they paused in the middle of the clauses rather than at the clause boundaries. With respect to the mean length of silent pauses, the speech of the EFL learners at Taiz University was full of long silent pauses which took one-third of the total speaking time. Therefore, it is highly suggested that the teachers of English should draw the learners' attention to the notion of pausing and its effect on speaking fluency in order to lessen or avoid it. Teachers should also vary their activities to help the learners speak fluently without much pausing.
A Preliminary Study on the Function of Silent Pauses in L1 and L2 Speakers of English and German
Brno Studies in English, 2011
The aim of the present paper is to provide comparative analysis regarding the functions of pauses through exploration of the similarities and differences in semantically identical utterances in micro-textual units in colloquial style produced by L1 and L2 speakers of English and German. The research study illustrates inappropriate segmentation of the discourse, inapt distribution and frequency of pause types in L2 subjects' utterances, which may be due to the fact that L2 speakers apply cognitive activities different from L1 speakers. L1 subjects' productions, on the other hand, indicate that they tend to plan and program their utterances in longer blocks.