Incorporating The Phonemic Chart Into Teaching Pronunciation To Young Adolescents An Action Research Project At A Suburban Language Center In Ho Chi Minh City Ma .Pdf

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE INCORPORATING THE PHONEMIC CHART INTO TEACHING PRONUNCIATION TO YO[.]

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE INCORPORATING THE PHONEMIC CHART INTO TEACHING PRONUNCIATION TO YOUNG ADOLESCENTS: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AT A SUBURBAN LANGUAGE CENTER IN HO CHI MINH CITY A thesis submitted to the Faculty of English Linguistics & Literature in partial fulfillment of the Master’s degree in TESOL By LÊ HOÀNG KHA Supervised by CAO THỊ PHƯƠNG DUNG, Ph D HO CHI MINH CITY, JULY 2022 Table of contents Table of content i Abstract v Statement of originality vi Retention of use vii Acknowledgements viii List of abbreviations ix List of tables x List of figures xi Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Background of the study 1.2 Statement of the problems / Rationale for the study 1.3 Aims of the study 1.4 Research questions 1.5 Significance of the study 1.6 Structure of the thesis Chapter 2: Literature review 2.1 The phonemic chart 2.1.1 Origin and importance 2.1.2 Phonemic transcription versus phonetic transcription i 2.1.3 Sounds in the phonemic chart 2.2 English pronunciation 2.2.1 Definition of pronunciation 2.2.2 Features of pronunciation 10 2.2.2.1 Segmental features 10 2.2.3 The importance of pronunciation 13 2.2.4 Teaching and learning pronunciation 14 2.2.4.1 Factors that affect teaching pronunciation 14 2.2.4.2 Factors that affect learning pronunciation 15 2.2.4.3 Approaches to teaching pronunciation 17 2.2.4.4 Common pronunciation problems of Vietnamese learners 22 2.3 Young adolescents 23 2.3.1 Definition of young adolescents 23 2.3.2 Characteristics of young adolescent EFL learners 23 2.3.3 Stages in teaching pronunciation and teaching it to young adolescent learners 28 2.3.3.1 Stages in teaching pronunciation 28 2.3.3.2 Teaching pronunciation to young adolescent learners 30 2.3.4 Young adolescent learners’ perceptions of learning pronunciation 32 2.3.5 Learners’ attitudes towards learning the phonemic chart 33 2.3.6 Aspects of and strategies to teaching young adolescents 33 ii 2.4 Previous studies 36 2.5 Conceptual framework of the study 40 Chapter 3: Methodology 42 3.1 Research Design 42 3.2 My Action Research 43 3.3 Context of the study 45 3.4 Research Participants 46 3.4.1 Learner Participants 46 3.4.2 Teacher Researcher 47 3.5 Research Instruments 47 3.5.1 Students’ Pronunciation Recordings 47 3.5.2 Teacher Journal 49 3.5.3 Focus Group Interview 50 3.6 Data Collection 51 3.6.1 Students’ Pronunciation Recordings 52 3.6.2 Teacher Journal 52 3.6.3 Focus Group Interview 52 3.7 Teaching Plans 53 3.7.1 First Intervention Meeting 54 3.7.2 Second Intervention Meeting 55 iii 3.7.3 Third Intervention Meeting 56 3.7.4 Fourth Intervention Meeting 57 3.7.5 Fifth Intervention Meeting 58 3.7.6 Sixth Intervention Meeting 59 3.8 Data Analysis 60 3.8.1 Students’ Audio Recordings 60 3.8.2 Teacher Journal 60 3.8.3 Focus Group Interview 61 Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion 63 4.1 Result of first recordings 63 4.2 Result of second recordings 66 4.3 Changes in young adolescent learners’ pronunciation after the intervention 69 4.4 Young adolescent learners’ attitudes towards the phonemic chart 70 4.5 Reflection 70 4.6 Discussion 77 4.7 The validity of my research 79 Chapter 5: Conclusion 81 5.1 Summary of the research 81 5.2 Implications of my study 81 5.3 Limitations of my study 82 iv 5.4 Recommendations for further research 83 References 85 Appendices 96 Appendix A Students’ Recording Results 96 Appendix B Teacher Journal Combined with Observation 98 Appendix C Transcripts of the Focus Group Interview 101 Appendix D An entry in my Teacher Journal 105 v Abstract This is an account of an unforgettable experience that I had while conducting my thesis As a first-person narrator, I recounted the whole research process of the thesis conducted for the purpose of helping my students improve their pronunciation using the phonemic chart and figuring out their attitudes towards using the phonemic chart in learning pronunciation To conduct my thesis, I employed the design of qualitative action research To be more specific, I had my students record their pronunciation at the beginning of their course so that I could find out what pronunciation problems they were having Then, I implemented an intervention to help my students improve their pronunciation By the end of the course, they students recorded their pronunciation again and took part in a focus group interview The second recordings provided me with their pronunciation progress after the intervention The interview gave me a better insight into their attitudes towards the phonemic chart Even though the students were unable to correct all of their mistakes by the end of the course, their pronunciation had improved; moreover, their attitudes towards the phonemic chart were very positive Keywords: phonemic chart, pronunciation, effectiveness, attitudes vi Statement of originality I hereby certify my authorship of the Master’s thesis submitted today entitled “Incorporating the phonemic chart into teaching pronunciation to young adolescents: An action research project at a suburban language center in Ho Chi Minh city” is the result of my independent work, except where otherwise stated Other sources are acknowledged by explicit references This thesis has not been submitted in substance for any other degree or award at this or any other university or place of learning, nor is being submitted concurrently in candidature for any degree or other award ………………………………… Lê Hoàng Kha (186014011114) July 2022 vii Retention of use I, Lê Hoàng Kha being a candidate for the Master’s degree in TESOL, accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of theses deposited in the Library I agree that the original of my thesis deposited in the Library should be accessible for purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the Librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of theses I agree to abide by any general conditions established by the University for the care, loan or reproduction of theses and any special conditions of usage in relation to this thesis entitled – “Incorporating the phonemic chart into teaching pronunciation to young adolescents: An action research project at a suburban language center in Ho Chi Minh city” ………………………………… Lê Hoàng Kha (186014011114) July 2022 viii Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr Cao Thị Phương Dung, for her excellent guidance and unwavering support; I could not have asked for a better supervisor I would also like to thank the board of directors at the language center where I was working during my research process for granting me permission to conduct my research there Their kindness and thoughtfulness are sincerely appreciated My thesis could not have been completed without the enthusiastic participation of my beloved students who always supported me through thick and thin I am also grateful to Phát, Hương Lan, and Đình Sang, three of my classmates, for their timely advice, opinions, and moral support throughout the process Two of the people whom I cannot leave out are none other than my parents Everything I that have and everything I that am, I owe it all to you Thank you so much for loving and supporting me unconditionally Finally, I am forever grateful to my partner for his constant support and faith in me There were times when I thought all hope was lost, but his encouragement pointed me in the right direction again Thank you for being there every step of the way ix Manning, L (2002) Developmentally appropriate middle level schools (2nd ed.) 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Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall Wright, S (2002) Language education and foreign relation in Vietnam In J W Tollefson (Ed.), Language policies in education: Critical issues (pp 225-244) Mahwah, New Jersey, London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Yates, L (2001) Teaching pronunciation in the AMEP: Current practice and professional development AMEP Research Centre Yates, L., Zielinski, B., & Pryor, E (2011) The assessment of pronunciation and the new IELTS pronunciation scale IELTS Research reports, 12, 1-44 http://teachenglish.org.uk 95 APPENDICES APPENDIX A The following tables present the results from my students’ audio recordings before and after the intervention which were compared and contrasted by native teachers and me to determine which sounds my students were struggling with Here is the one before the intervention 96 And here is the one after the intervention 97 APPENDIX B This is what my teacher journal combined with observation in each meeting looks like Time: December 27th 2020 (sixth Sunday meeting) Setting: IELTS Preparation Class – 14 students aged 12 to 14 Observer: Lê Hoàng Kha Role of Observer: Observer as participant Length of Observation: 30 minutes Descriptive Notes Reflective Notes Part 1: Introduction (6 minutes) _ I decided to introduce the remaining three _ Again, I decided on Sounds of Speech sounds, namely /ʃ/, /s/, and /ʒ/, to the because it is effective and the students students due to their similarities in terms of really enjoyed it place of articulation Sounds of Speech was also employed _ I gave the students a real demonstration _ This was necessary because they were of these three phonemes right after Sounds more of Speech familiar with my voice and pronunciation compared to those presented by Sounds of Speech, which would help further consolidating their newly learned knowledge more easily Part 2: Development (10 minutes) _ To bring the three new sounds closer to _ The students already knew what these the students, I had them choral drilling words mean making it easier for them first and individual drilling later using the following words: “see & she”, “sake & 98 shake”, “sue & shoe”, “genre”, “garage”, “massage” _ I was quite happy with the progress they _ The majority of the students who first had had made But something still bothered me problems with /ʃ/ and /s/ could make the because they could not fully grasp the right sounds when asked to pronounce /ʃ/ pronunciation of this sound pair and /s/ in separate words; nevertheless, they still mixed these two phonemes up quite frequently when they had to pronounce these words one right after another _ As for words with the /ʒ/ sound, the _ I was disappointed There was only one students’ collective performance was also sound to work on Sounds of Speech did an problematic, if not worse compared to /ʃ/ amazing job bringing it to them I also gave and /s/ Ten of the eleven students whose them a real life version of this sound mispronunciation was detected from the through my own demonstration Drilling first recording kept making the sound /z/ was done in a logical manner I had done instead of /ʒ/ One of them even switched all I could The remaining question that I to the /ʃ/ sound when pronouncing needed to ask myself was: “What actually “garage” went wrong that I didn’t know of?” Part 3: Consolidation (13 minutes) _ For this part, I employed one game that _ I wanted to use TPR or Total Physical was followed by a twist This game Response (developed by doctor James involved me reading out loud words with Asher) because I wanted these three sounds the sounds /ʃ/, /s/, and /ʒ/ in no particular to be engraved on their mind order and the students had to listen 99 carefully to determine what to once they heard a sound because each sound was assigned with an action, for example /ʃ/ was “stand up”, /s/ was “sit down”, and /ʒ/ was “put your hands up” _ About two thirds of the students were _ This is a good sign for the progress they able to distinguish the three sounds and were making responded rather quickly and accurately to my utterances _ As for the twist mentioned above, I randomly chose three of them to take my _ I wanted them to take control of their position and the reading learning and, hopefully, learn how to deal with unfamiliar situations _ The students who did the reading tried their best but were still having a hard time _ This was probably far ahead of their time making the right sounds Therefore, their or beyond their capabilities Maybe I had peers responded with mostly wrong expected too much from them actions Those who responded with the right actions just happened to be lucky Part 4: Conclusion (1 minute) _ In order to conclude this meeting, I asked the students to practice saying these _ Homework is an indispensable part when sounds at home using Google Cloud API it comes to pronunciation practice Speech-to-Text 100 APPENDIX C Transcripts of the Focus Group Interview Interview Participant 01 (IP01) Teacher researcher: Alright everyone Let’s begin Teacher researcher: IP01, first question, how has your pronunciation of separate words changed by the end of the course? IP01: It has improved a lot Teacher researcher: How many percent would you say it has become better? IP01: I think it’s about 70% Teacher Researcher: What about you, IP02? IP02: It has become better I like the way I sound now more than before Teacher researcher: And how many percent would you say it has become better? IP02: About 60 or 70% Teacher researcher: IP03, could you share your progress with us? IP03: I can feel improvement in my pronunciation (of separate words) Teacher researcher: Could you put your improvement into percentage? IP03: Yes, maybe 80% Teacher researcher: Great IP04, what about you? IP04: I also see improvement and I am more confident when speaking English now And the percentage is about 50 to 60% Teacher researcher: That’s nice Okay, next question: which is/are the most difficult sound(s) for you? IP02, would you like to go first? IP02: Yes, that’s fine The sounds /θ/, /ð/, and /ʒ/ Teacher Researcher: What you think is the reason for that? 101 IP02: I don’t know They are just difficult for me I keep mixing them up with /th/ and /d/ in Vietnamese As for the remaining sound, I still can’t control my mouth Teacher researcher: Are there any other sounds? IP02: No Teacher researcher: IP04, what is your answer to this question? IP04: The sounds that I still find difficult? Oh, the ones that are written exactly the same as the /th/ sound in Vietnamese Teacher researcher: You mean /θ/ and /ð/? IP04: Yes, that’s right Teacher researcher: Why you think they are the hardest for you? IP04: First of all, they look exactly the same without their phonemic transcription, which is very difficult to tell which is which Second of all I still can’t control my tongue the way I want to Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t Teacher researcher: Thank you IP04 What about you, IP01? What are the sounds that you find most difficult? IP01: I agree with IP04 I also find this sound pair very difficult Teacher researcher: How so? IP01: I’ve been making the wrong sounds for a long time, so I think it has turned into something similar to a bad habit which is very difficult to break Teacher researcher: I see What about you, IP03? IP03: It’s the /ʒ/ sound Teacher researcher: Why is that? IP03: I’m not sure I know how to make the sound, but I keep replacing it with /z/ Maybe I need more time to practice Teacher researcher: Okay, any other sounds? All IPs: No 102 Teacher researcher: Which sound or sounds you still have trouble with? IP03, why don’t you go first this time? IP03: Okay I still have trouble with the /ʒ/ sound Teacher researcher: What about you, IP04? IP04: I still have trouble with /θ/ and /ð/ Teacher researcher: What about you, IP01? IP01: The sounds with the tongue sticking out and the sound in the word “nhà để xe” in Vietnamese IP02: I agree with IP01 I have the same answer Teacher researcher: Ok Next question: was the incorporation of the phonemic chart into learning the pronunciation of separate words effective? IP02, you go first, please IP02: Yes Teacher researcher: Why you think that is? IP02: That is because my pronunciation (of separate words) is better now Teacher researcher: Alright IP01, what about you? IP01: Yes, it was very effective and fun at the same time And I think it was because I got to learn something completely new to me, which brought more excitement and effort Teacher researcher: That’s nice Another question for you IP02 Do you think the phonemic chart should be used in your school? IP02: Yes, the sooner the better If I had been exposed to the (phonemic) chart sooner, I would not have made so many (pronunciation) mistakes Teacher researcher: IP01, what you think about IP02’s answer? IP01: I agree with them However, I think that it should be split into smaller modules so that learners won’t feel overwhelmed Moreover, knowing how to read words phonemically would make me feel more confident when I use my dictionary or pronunciation-related homework 103 Teacher researcher: Oh, I’, sorry IP03 and IP04 I almost forgot you Same question: was the incorporation of the phonemic chart into learning the pronunciation of separate words effective? IP03, would you like to go first? IP03: Yes, very effective My pronunciation (of separate words) is much better now and that’s proof Teacher researcher: Thank you IP04, what about you? IP04: Yes, I find it effective, too Teacher researcher: Last question: you think the phonemic chart should be used in your school? IP04, what you think? IP04: Yes, that would be great Teacher researcher: IP03, what’s your opinion on this? IP03: Yes, I think it should Thanks to the (phonemic) chart, students like myself can improve our pronunciation, which can boost our IELTS Speaking band score Teacher researcher: Alright everyone That was the end of the interview Thank you so much for being part of it 104 APPENDIX D An entry in my Teacher Journal 105