Methods Lectures

Lecture 6 Teaching pronunciation

Objectives: SWBAT describe pronunciation problems; explain how to teach pronunciation using tasks and exercises for developing pronunciation habits

Plan

1. The importance of teaching correct pronunciation

2. Pronunciation problems

3. Content of teaching pronunciation

4. Main steps in teaching pronunciation

5. Tasks and exercises for developing pronunciation habits

6. Correction of pronunciation mistakes.

1. The importance of correct pronunciation

Work on pronunciation is important for two main reasons: to help the students understand the spoken English they hear, and to help them make their own speech more comprehensible and meaningful to others. Whenever possible pronunciation work should be integrated into the lessons and held throughout the whole period of language teaching and learning. In our schools students study English literary pronunciation which constitutes received (общепринятый) pronunciation. This is the language of radio, TV, theatres, Universities, schools. Literary pronunciation is characterized by: clear stress in all the rhythmic groups, clear pronunciation of the sounds, typical abbreviations in auxiliary words ( can’t, doesn’t).

2. Pronunciation problems

The teacher faces the following problems in teaching pronunciation to the students:

* discrimination- the students must be taught to hear differences between phonemes which are not distinguished or used in their native language, between falling and rising tones.

* articulation- students must be taught to learn to make proper lip and tongue movements to produce English sounds. Very often the students’ first language interferes with articulation. For example, p is aspirated in English, but not in Russian.

* intonation- students should be taught to make right stresses, pauses and use appropriate patterns.

* integration- students should learn to connect the sounds, for example in the, months

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