English Phonology and Pronunciation Teaching

by Pamela Rogerson-Revell

This book aims to provide a clear description of key aspects of English phonology in order to help teachers diagnose and prioritize problem areas in pronunciation.  It also aims to develop an awareness of current issues and relevant research in the field to inform teachers decisions, not only about what to teach, but how to teach pronunciation, particularly in EIL contexts.  Specifically, it aims to enable readers

* Understand key terms and concepts in phonology and phonetics *Become aware of current issues and debates in research and apply these to pronunciation teaching, particularly in EIL contexts *Conduct phonological analysis of learner language, including phonemic transcription *Diagnose and assess learner's pronunciation difficulties and needs *Plan a structured pronunciation syllabus

The book assumes no prior knowledge and is a key resource for both newcomers and experienced practitioners in the fields of English Language Teaching as well as students of applied linguistics.

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Vendawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic resource for EFL teachers who want to improve their knowledge of phonology. Easy to understand, good advice on what to teach and some excellent ideas on how to teach. There are also plenty of activities to practice what is being discussed to better understand segmental and super-segmental features of English.

[Michael A · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm currently studying for an applied linguistics Master's degree at the moment and I thought I would put in a good word for this book.

Unlike most of the texts I have had to read for this program, this book is very good at providing essential information about RP pronunciation (as well as much information about general phonology related to English teaching). It helps you to learn the basics about the IPA, consonant sounds, vowel sounds, word stress, intonation, phonotactics, and other information that is useful to know for EFL or ESL teaching. It also provides a reasonable overview about the debate between taking a Jenkins-like approach to comprehensibility vs. more thorough "native" speaker pronunciation teaching.

There are also good teaching ideas and exercises at the end of each chapter that will help you learn and think about how to apply what you have learned in each chapter.

It isn't as comprehensive about RP like Gimson is, but it's a good starting point for learning about basic English phonology and getting some ideas to teach pronunciation better (especially in EFL settings). Ultimately, you'll need to consult several pronunciation books as it is if you're in this field like I am.

[Nguyen Thi · Rating 5 out of 5]

very well