The Teaching of Pronunciation in the Efl Teachers'

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Date

2008-06

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Publisher

Addis Ababa University

Abstract

The purpose of this descriptive study was to investigate the teaching of pronunciation in the EFL teachers' training program in Addis Ababa University. The attitudes of students and teachers towards pronunciation and its teaching, the components of pronunciation the teaching materials give precedence, the aims and presentation the procedures of pronunciation lessons were the focus points of the inquiry. The attitudes of the respondents (30% of the students and all the teachers) were determined by the data collected though the questionnaire (Major tool) and the interview (supportive). The material analysis was employed to evaluate the aims, procedures and the feature of pronunciation given priority. The findings showed that the teaching of pronunciation is in adequate and 'bottom-up' or structural in its approach (i.e. it is not aimed at intelligible pronunciation). The results showed that students exhibited a great desire for pronunciation; segmental features are given more priority than prosodic features. The aims of most pronunciation lessons focus only on recognition and accurate production of features. Exposure procedure was ignored; and teachers adhere to the traditional attitude that pronunciation should be taught atomistically (structural approach). Finally possible remedial measures and similar inquiries in other settings were recommended.

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Keywords

Pronunciation in the Efl

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