Some techniques to improve english intonation for students in grade 11

THANH HOA EDUCATIONAL AND TRAINING SERVICE HAM RONG HIGH SCHOOL INITIATIVE EXPERIENCE SOME TECHNIQUES TO IMPROVE ENGLISH INTONATION FOR STUDENTS IN GRADE 11 Author: Trinh Thi Ly Job title: Teacher Group: English INDEX Raise an issue 1.1 Reasoning base 1.2 Practical base 1.3 Scope of studying special subject 1.4 Study objects 1.5 Study techniques 2 Table of content 2.1 Identifying English intonation 2.1.1 Definition 2.1.2 Reasons to use English intonation 2.2 The techniques of English intonational tone…………………………… .5 Technique 1: Falling intonation………………… a Statements b Commands c Wh-questions d Exclamations e Tag questions (confirmation) Technique 2: Rising intonation a.Yes-No questions b Tag questions (real questions) c Echo questions 10 Technique 3: Rise-Fall intonation…………………………………… 11 a Alternative questions 11 b Lists (rising, rising, rising, falling )……………………………………… 12 c Unfinished thought 13 d Conditional sentences………………… .14 Technique 4: Fall-Rise intonation……………………………… .14 a Hesitation/ Reluctance 14 b Politeness- Doubt- Uncertainty………………………… 15 2.3 The limitation and measures of the special subject 16 2.3.1 The limitation of the special subject 16 2.3.2 The measures of the special subject 16 2.4 The result of practical teaching 17 Summary and suggestions 18 Raise an issue 1.1 Reasoning base We know that communication is very keen role in any field, whether it is business, medicine, transportation, technology, trade or marketing Language has a great impact on the division of the different traditions and cultures of different people We learn more about the traditions, cultures and customs of different people around the world through travel and learning For this effective communication is a necessity English language empowers people from around the world The internet also plays an important role in promoting English as the standard language Through the pages of various social networks people connect with each other from anywhere in the world, mostly through English This is because this language is accepted worldwide English is also essential for air traffic control and flight crews English is globally accepted and known by all Globalization covers all aspects of life Deep understanding is very important in every field Without proper communication it is not possible to be in connection Millions of people consider English as their first language; two thirds of them prefer it as a second language In addition, billions of people are in the process of learning English has become the most popular international language in the world nowadays It is used as the official one in many different countries In Vietnam, English is also considered as an indispensable language in all domains, especially in education Therefore, it has been taught in primary, secondary, high schools, colleges and universities and has become a compulsory subject during study process so far In order to be more authentic and sound like a native speaker of English, it is important that upper secondary school students should learn how to use intonation In today’s world, English is the most widely spoken language and it is gaining more and more importance every other day because of the technological developments and diplomatic reasons It is also beneficial for upper secondary school students to be familiar with intonation in that, knowing about usage of intonation in English makes it easier to understand a communication between native speakers of English I have chosen “intonation” as the subject of my study because I think it is one of the most important aspects affecting the pronunciation of upper secondary school students In fact, most students of a foreign language transfer their native intonation patterns “i.e the melody of speech utterances” to the new language and retain them even after they have improved in other aspects Consequently, though most students may have exposed to English for quite some time, their English is usually far from authentic Intonation is closely interrelated with other factors- not only grammar and vocabulary, but also non- linguistic factors like the roles of the speaker and hearer (who is talking to whom, in what capacity and in what type of situation) This means that a given sentence can have different intonation patterns in different situations This problem with intonation is quite common in Vietnam because English is not so widely used and there are not that many native speakers of English living there Another reason is that nearly most of the English teachers in Vietnam are getting their education in the country and they are not given the chance to spend some time in UK or any other European countries Teaching of intonation gains more importance in countries like Vietnam because there is not a natural environment for acquiring the intonation of English Thus, we, English teachers, should explain every aspect of intonation to our students to make the best of it My aim is to draw out the rules in which English intonation is prefered In this experience, I also hope to apply these rules to a few exercises which are not mentioned in upper secondary schools 1.2 Practical base From the reality of teaching English, I find that students always have a great need for English precise pronunciation In order for negotiation of meaning be present in a communication, being understood by an English speaker is as important as understanding him/her This makes another reason showing that, apart from grammar and vocabulary, intonation is among the crucial things to be learned by upper secondary school students Mastering and using the rules of English intonation effectively will help students diversify English expressions to serve communicative goal 1.3 Scope of studying special subject I can say that intonation is a wide term covering important aspects of a language and a framework of English intonation should include four major intonational features: intonation units, stress, tones, and pitch range In this experience, I only focus on the phenomena of intonation in English with “tones” 1.4 Study objects I study the phenomenon of intonation in English with “tones” aiming at students in upper secondary schools 1.5 Study techniques 1.5.1 Statistical technique I use this technique to list some special rules, exercises of the phenomenon of intonation in English with “tones” 1.5.2 Analysed technique I use this technique to clarify the rules used in exercises of the phenomenon of intonation in English with “tones” 1.5.3 Compared technique I use this technique to distinguish the rules of used in exercises of the phenomena of intonation in English with “tones” TABLE OF CONTENT 2.1 Identify English intonation 2.1.1 Definition Intonation is about how we say things, rather than what we say, the way the voice rises and falls when speaking, in other words the music of the language Just as words have stressed syllables, sentences have regular patterns of stressed words In addition, the voice tends to rise, fall or remain flat depending on the meaning or feeling we want to convey (surprise, anger, interest, boredom, gratitude, etc.) Intonation therefore indicates the mood of the speaker A unit of speech bounded by pauses has movement, of music and rhythm, associated with the pitch of voice This certain pattern of voice movement is called “tone” A tone is a certain pattern, not an arbitrary one, because it is meaningful in discourse By means of tones, speakers signal whether to refer, proclaim, agree, disagree, question or hesitate, or indicate completion and continuation of turntaking, in speech In other word, when we speak, we constantly vary the pitch of our voice Tone is overall behaviour of pitch in a syllable Tones Simple tones Level tones (⎯) Complex tones Moving tones Falling tones Fall-rise tone Rising tones (∨) Rise-fall tone (∧) (↘) (↗) It appeared in the our teaching experience that only four types of tones can be efficiently taught to non-native speakers of English: Falling intonation Rising intonation Rise-Fall intonation Fall-Rise intonation 2.1.2 Reasons to use English intonation We can say that intonation is a wide term covering important aspects of a language and it has a big impact on the pronunciation of students Although this subject is taught in primary, secondary and high schools in Vietnam, Vietnamese students are more likely to have problems in sounding like native speakers of English Furthermore, they have difficulty in understanding native English speakers with whom they have never had a chance to communicate before Also, as Vietnamese students are not exposed to the language during their daily life, it is not likely that they grow a sense of awareness about how it is like to pronounce words like native speakers So, as language teachers, we had better give explicit information about intonation patterns and concentrate on communicative aspects of language and try to make students be active during the classes The more they use the language, the better they pronounce The term intonation refers to a means for conveying information in speech which is independent of the words and their sounds Central to intonation is the modulation of pitch, and intonation is often thought of as the use of pitch over the domain of the utterance However, the patterning of pitch in speech is so closely bound to patterns of timing and loudness, and sometimes voice quality, that we cannot consider pitch in isolation from these other dimensions The interaction of intonation and stress — the patterns of relative prominence which characterise an utterance — is particularly close in many languages, including English For those who prefer to reserve ‘intonation’ for pitch effects in speech, the word ‘prosody’ is convenient as a more general term to include patterns of pitch, timing, loudness, and (sometimes) voice quality In this study, however, intonation will be used to refer to the collaboration of all these dimensions, and, where necessary, the term ‘melody’ will be used to refer specifically to the pitch-based component Intonation is used to carry a variety of different kinds of information It signals grammatical structure, though not in a one-to-one way; whilst the end of a complete intonation pattern will normally coincide with the end of a grammatical structure such as a sentence or clause, even quite major grammatical boundaries may lack intonational making, particularly if the speech is fast Intonation can reflect the information structure of an utterance, highlighting constituents of importance Intonation can indicate discourse function; for instance most people are aware that saying ‘This is the Leeds train’ with one intonation constitutes a statement, but, with another, a question Intonation can be used by a speaker to convey an attitude such as friendliness, enthusiasm, or hostility; and listeners can use intonation-related phenomenon in the voice to make inferences about a speaker’s state, including excitement, depression, and tiredness Intonation can also, for instance, help to regulate turn-taking in conversation, since there are intonational mechanisms speakers can use to indicate that they have had their say, or, conversely, that they are in full flow and don’t want to be interrupted Intonation is not the only linguistic device for which pitch is recruited by languages; many languages use pitch to distinguish words In languages around the world as diverse as Thai, Hausa (Nigeria), and Mixtec (Mexico), words are distinguished not only by vowels and consonants but also by the use of one of a limited set of distinctive pitch patterns or heights on each syllable Such languages are called tone languages A number of other languages, such as Swedish and Japanese, make a more limited use of pitch to distinguish words These languages might best be called lexical accent languages All tone languages and lexical accent languages also have intonation, but in general the greater a language’s use of pitch for distinguishing words, the less scope it has to develop an elaborate intonation system English, on the other hand, is not a tone language or lexical accent language, and is generally agreed to have relatively complex intonation Here are some reasons why we need to use intonation patterns correctly: ✔ Using intonation will make sound more friendly, approachable and empathetic ✔ Using intonation will enable you to ask questions clearly and effectively ✔Using intonation will enable to speak with a pace that sounds natural to the listener 2.2 THE TECHNIQUES OF ENGLISH INTONATIONAL TONE Technique 1: Falling intonation (↘) A falling tone is by far the most common used tone of all It signals a sense of finality, completion, belief in the content of the utterance, and so on A speaker, by choosing a falling tone, also indicates to the addressee that that is all he has to say, and offers a chance (turn-taking) to the addressee to comment on, agree or disagree with, or add to his utterance However, it is up to the addressee to either of these This tone does in no way solicit a response from the addressee Nonetheless, it would be polite for the addressee to at least acknowledge in some manner or form that he is part of the discourse The pitch of the voice falls at the end of the sentence Falling intonation is the most common intonation pattern in English It is commonly found in statements, commands, Wh-questions, exclamatory sentences, and tag questions a Statements : Examples: *They expected me to finish my work early ↘ *My mother likes me to my homework ↘ *Nice to meet you *I’ll be back in a minute *We should work together more Exerc ises and keys of state me nts: ↘ ↘ often ↘ Put the symbol “↘” at the end of each sentence and practise reading aloud these sentences : My friends expected him to buy a new house …………………………………………………………… ↘ (My friends expected him to buy a new house.) She likes her parents to pay money ……………………………………………………………↘ (She likes her parents to pay money.) She doesn’t live here anymore ………………………………………………………………↘ (She doesn’t live here anymore.) Dad wants to change his car ……………………………………………………………… ↘ (Dad wants to change his car.) Here is the weather forecast ……………………………………………………………… (Here is the weather forecast.) ↘ b Commands: Examples: *Write your name here *Leave it on the ↘ desk *Show me what you’ve writt en ↘ * Take that picture *Throw that Exerc ises and keys of comma nds: ↘ ↘ out down ↘ Put the symbol “↘” at the end of each sentence and practise reading aloud these sentences : Put your books on the table …………………………………………………………… ↘ (Put your books on the table.) Take your hands out of your pockets ……………………………………………………………↘ (Take your hands out of your pockets.) Go and see a doctor ………………………………………………………………↘ (Go and see a doctor.) Take a seat ……………………………………………………………… ↘ (Take a seat.) Hand in your assignment ………………………………………………………………↘ (Hand in your assignment.) c Wh- questions: Examples: ↘ *What country you come from? ↘ *Where you work? ↘ ↘ * bought? How many books have you * *Which of them you prefer? When does the shop open? ↘ Exercises and keys of Wh-questions: Put the symbol “↘” at the end of each question and practise reading aloud these questions : What people often to prepare for Tet? …………………………………………………………… ↘ (What people often to prepare for Tet?) How many solutions did the expert offer? ……………………………………………………………↘ (How many solutions did the expert offer?) Why can’t women in the world limit the size of their family? ………………………………………………………………↘ (Why can’t women in the world limit the size of their family?) Where can you find these scenes? ……………………………………………………………… ↘ (Where can you find these scenes?) When did he become the first official female champion? ………………………………………………………………↘ (When did he become the first official female champion?) d Exclamations: Examples: *How nice of you! *That’s just ↘ ↘ *You don’t say ! *What a ↘ ↘ *That’s a ↘ of Exclamations: Exercises Put the symbol “↘” at the end of each exclamatory sentence and practise reading aloud these sentences : Watch out! …………………………………………………………… ↘ (Watch out!) What a wonderful holiday! ……………………………………………………………↘ (What a wonderful holiday!) What pretty girls! ……………………………………………………………… ↘ (What pretty girls!) How well he swims! ………………………………………………………………↘ (How well he swims!) what I beautiful need! voice! surprise! and keys How thick is the book! ……………………………………………………………… ↘ (How thick is the book!) e Tag questions: Tag questions are statements requesting confirmation or inviting agreement rather than questions, in which case we use a falling tone at the end Examples: *He thinks he’s so clever, doesn’t *She’s such a nuisance, isn’t ↘ *I failed the test because I didn’t revise , did she? ↘ he? I? ↘ *It doesn’t seem to bother him much, does *You like it, don’t you? it ? ↘ Exerc ises and keys of tag questi ons: ↘ Put the symbol “↘” at the end of each tag question and practise reading aloud these questions : You live here, don’t you? …………………………………………………………… ↘ (You live here, don’t you?) No one likes snakes, they? ……………………………………………………………↘ (No one likes snakes, they?) Human beings have made efforts to protect the environment, haven’t they? ……………………………………………………………… ↘(Human beings have made efforts to protect the environment, haven’t they?) People are killing endangered animals for fur, skin and food, aren’t they? ……………………………………………………………… ↘ (People are killing endangered animals for fur, skin and food, aren’t they?) The competition was sponsored by the Students’ Parents Society, ↘ wasn’t it? ……………………………………………………………… (The competition was sponsored by the Students’ Parents Society, wasn’t it?) Technique 2: Rising intonation (↗) This tone is used in genuine “Yes/No” questions where the speaker is sure that he does not know the answer, and that the addressee knows the answer Such Yes/No questions are uttered with a rising tone The pitch of the voice rises at the end of a sentence Rising intonation invites the speaker to continue talking a Yes/no questions: (Questions that can be answered by “yes” or “no”.) Examples: *Do you like your new *Have you finished *May I borrow Exerc ises and keys of “Yes/no- questi ons”: already? dictionary? ↗ your Do you have any * Do you sell * ↗ teacher? ↗ magazines? stamps? ↗ ↗ Put the symbol “↗” at the end of each question and practise reading aloud these questions : Have you talked to her? …………………………………………………………… ↗ (Have you talked to her?) Do you like this picture? ……………………………………………………………↗ (Do you like this picture?) Are you going to celebrate your wedding anniversaries in the future? ……………………………………………………………… ↗ (Are you going to celebrate your wedding anniversaries in the future?) Did you take a gift for the host? ………………………………………………………………↗ (Did you take a gift for the host?) Were there any decorations? ………………………………………………………………↗ (Were there any decorations?) b Tag questions: (Tag questions that show uncertainty and require an answer [real questions]) Examples: *We have met already, *You like fish, don’t you? *You are a new student, aren’t you? ↗ The view is beautiful, * * He didn’t come to class for three days, Exerc ises and keys of “Tag questi ons”: ↗ ↗ haven’t we? ↗ isn’t it? did he? ↗ Put the symbol “↗” at the end of each question and practise reading aloud these questions : You have talked to her, haven’t you? …………………………………………………………… ↗ (You have talked to her haven’t you?) You like this picture, don’t you? ……………………………………………………………↗ (You like this picture, don’t you?) You are going to celebrate your wedding anniversaries in the future, aren’t you? ……………………………………………………………………………… ↗(You are going to celebrate your wedding anniversaries in the future, aren’t you?) You took a gift for the host, didn’t you? ………………………………………………………………↗ (You took a gift for the host, didn’t you?) There were some decorations? ………………………………………………………………↗ (There were some decorations,weren’t there?) c Echo questions: Echo question is a type of direct question that repeats part or all of something which someone else has just said We use echo question because we have not heard or understood what they said or because we are surprised by what the speaker has told us Examples: *A: I got a full mark in my last test B: Oh! Did you? *A: John has ↗ got married B: Has he? *A: I met ↗ Brad Pitt B: You met who? ↗ A: Brad B: You don’t say! Exercises and keys↗ of “Echo questions”: Put the symbol “ ” at the end of each question and practise reading aloud these questions : A: I’m going to Turkey this summer B:Are you? That’s great A: …………………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………………… (A: I’m↗going to Turkey this summer B:Are you? That’s great.) Pitt 10 A: I went to Iceland to visit the volcanoes B: You went where? To visit what? A: …………………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………………… (A I went to ↗Iceland to visit the ↗volcanoes.) B: You went where? To visit what?) A: My new iphone cost me $800 B: Your new iphone cost you how much? A: …………………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………………… (A: My new iphone cost me $800↗ B: Your new iphone cost you how much?) A: What you want? B: What I want? I just want a cup of coffee A: …………………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………………… (A: What you↗ want? B: What I want? I just want a cup of coffee.) A: I’m quitting school B: You are quitting school? A: That’s right B: That’s an interesting thing to A: …………………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………………… A:…………………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………………… (A: I’m quitting school↗ B: You are quitting school? A: That’s right B: That’s an interesting thing to↗do↘.) Technique 3: Rise-Fall intonation () When there are two or more syllables in the tail, the syllable immediately following the tonic syllable is always higher and any following syllables are low a Alternative questions: Examples: *Are you having soup salad? or ↗ ↘↘ *Is John leaving *Does he speak ↗ Eva? ↘ *Is your name ↗ ↘ Ava on ↗ Thursday or Frid ay? German or or French? 11 *Would you like↗ some ice cream or ↘some cake? Exercises and keys↗of “Alternative↘ questions”: Put the symbol “ ” or “ ”at the end of each question and practise reading aloud these questions : Does she work in the city or in the suburb? …………………………………………………………… ↗↘ (Does she work in the city in the suburb?) Is this the front or the back of the dress? ……………………………………………………………↗↘ (Is this the front or the back of the dress?) Which you prefer, with or without salt? ……………………………………………………………… without salt ?) (Which you prefer, with or ↗ ↘ Are we eating in ……………………………………………………………… (Are we eating in or out this evening ?) ↘ Are these ↗ ……………………………………………………………… (Are these trains or buses from the airport to Belgrade ?) ↗ ↘ b Lists: (rising, Intonation falls on the last item to show that the list is finished Examples: *We have got apples, pears, bananas and oranges ↗ ↘ tennis, basketball and *The sweater ↗ ↘ *I like football, bought a t-shirt, a skirt and a handbag ↗ ↘ ↘ *You need a pen, a pencil and Exercises ↗ Put the symbol “ ” or “ ”at the end of each listing statement and practise ↗ ↘ reading aloud I enjoy playing tennis, climbing mountain and flying kites …………………………………………………………… (I enjoy ↗ playing tennis, climbing mountain and ↘ flying kites.) I would like some eggs, some milk, some cheesse and some bread ……………………………………………………………↗↘ (I would like some eggs, some milk, some cheese and some bread.) People are killing endangered animals for fur, skin and food ………………………………………………………………↗ ↘ (People are killing endangered animals for fur, skin and food.) ↗ ↘ or out this eveni ng? trains or buses from the airport to Belgrade? rising, rising, falling) *I ↗ comes in blu e, white pink and some ↘ black paper and keys of “ lists”: these listing statements : 12 At present, most of our energy comes from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas ………………………………………………………………↗ (At present,↘ most of our energy comes from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas ) Other alternative sources of energy are the sun, water and the wind ………………………………………………………………↗ ↘ (Other alternative sources of energy are the sun, water and the wind.) c Unfinished thought (partial statements): In the responses to the following questions, the rise-fall intonation indicates reservation The speaker hesitates to fully express his/her thoughts Examples: *Do you like my new handbag? Well the leather is nice…(but I don’t like it) ↗ ↘ *What was the meal like?Hmm, the fish was good… (but the rest wasn’t ↗ ↘ great) *So you both live in Los Angeles? Well Alex does… (but I don’t) Do you enjoy my new hairstyle? Well, the style is trendy… (but I don’t like * ↗ ↗ ↘ ↘ ↘ it) *Did you see the film last night? Hmm, the name of the film is attractive… ↗ Exercises and keys↗ of “unfinished↘ thoughts”: Put the symbol “ ” or “ ”at the end of each statement and practise reading aloud these questions : So you both live in London? I do…(but Mary lives in York) …………………………………………………………… ↗↘ (So you both live in London? I do…( but Mary lives in York).) What was the new teacher like? Hmm, he is young… (but his teaching method is incomprehensive) ……………………………………………………………↗↘ (What was the new teacher like? Hmm,he isyoung… (but his teaching method is incomprehensive) ) So you both got prizes in the national exam? Well, Mary did… ( but I didn’t) ………………………………………………………………↗ ↘ (So you both got prizes in the national exam?Well, Mary did… (But I didn’t).) Do you like working for the company? Well, the salary is good… (but the people don’t get on well with each other) ……………………………………………………………… (but I don’t like the action of the main character) 13 (Do you like working for the company? Well, the ↗ salary is ↘ good… (but the people don’t get on well with each other) ) Does he speak English well? Well, his voice is strong and clear… (but we don’t like his pronunciation) ………………………………………………………………↗↘ (Does he speak English well? Well, his voice is strong and clear… (but I don’t like his pronunciation) ) d Conditional sentences: The tone rises in the first clause and falls gradually in the second clause Examples: *If he calls, ask him to leave a message *Unless he insists, I’m not going to go ↗ *If you have rain, I will come to ↘ ↗ ↘ work *If it doesn’t ↘ *If I had a ↗ ↘ Exercises ↗ Put the symbol “ ” or “ ”at the end of each conditional sentence and practise ↘ reading aloud ↗ If the weather is good, we will have lunch outside …………………………………………………………… ↗↘ (If the weather is good, we will have lunch outside ) If he had listened to me, he wouldn’t have failed in the exams ……………………………………………………………↗↘ (If he had listened to me, he wouldn’t have failed in the exams.) If I had known about the job, I would have applied for it ………………………………………………………………↗↘ (I I had known about the job, I would have applied for it.) If that factory closed down, many people would be out of work ……………………………………………………………… ↗ ↘ any problems, just conta ct us car, I would drive to and keys of “ Condi ti onal sentences”: these conditional sentences : ↘↗ (If that factory closed down, many people would be out of work ) ↘ If you didn’t ……………………………………………………………… (If you didn’t come, they would be very ↘ disappointed ) ↗ Technique 4: Fall- ↗ come, they would be very disappointed Rise intona ti on () Fall-rise intonation describes how the voice falls and then rises The main function of fall-rise intonation is to show that the speaker is not certain of the answer they are giving to a question, or reluctant to reply It is also used in polite requests or suggestions a Hesitation/ reluctance: 14 Examples: *So you’d be willing to confirm that? Well….I sup pose so… ↘ ↗ *You didn’t see him on Monday? I don’t quite Exercises and keys of “ Hesitation/ ↘↗ Put the symbol “↘” or “↗”at the end of each Hesitation/ reluctance question and practise reading aloud these questions : A: Did Dan answer his question? B: I suppose that he’s busy A: ……………………………………………………………………… B: …………………………………………………………………… (A: Did Dan answer his question? B: I ↘sup↗pose that he’s busy.) Can I go out tonight? Oh, I suppose so ……………………………………………………………………………… (Can I go out tonight? Oh, I ↘sup↗pose so.) Will Gillan marry him? I believe so ……………………………………………………………………………… ( Will Gillan marry him? I ↘be↗lieve….) The project won’t be completed in three years? Well, I consider that… ……………………………………………………………………………… (The project won’t be completed in three years? Well, I ↘con↗sider that… ) I don’t agree with it, but I suppose that it’s for the best ……………………………………………………………………………… (I don’t agree with it, but I ↘sup↗pose that it’s for the best.) b Politeness- Doubt- Uncertainty: (You are not sure what the answer might be.) Examples: *Perhaps we could ↘vi↗sit the place? *Should we ↘co↗py the list? *Do you think it’s ↘al↗lowed? Exercises and keys of “ Politeness- Doubt- Uncertainty”: Put the symbol “↘” or “↗”at the end of each question Politeness- DoubtUncertainty and practise reading aloud these questions : Do you think this cause should be deleted? …………………………………………………………………… (Do you think this cause should be ↘de↗leted?) Perhaps we could discuss the matter carefully? re member… relucta nce”: 15 (Perhaps we could ↘dis↗cuss the matter carefully?) Should students repeat this sound? (Should students ↘ re↗peat this sound?) Would you held me to record some examples of everyday conversations? ……………………………………………………………………………… (Would you like to help me ↘re↗cord some examples of everyday conversations?) Should we spend a week preparing for our concert? ……………………………………………………………………………… (Should we spend a week ↘pre↗paring for our concert?) 2.3 The limitation and measures of the special subject 2.3.1 The limitation of the special subject During the process of teaching at high schools, not only teachers but all students also have trouble teaching and studying intonation Although intonation is a paralinguistic device in vocal communication and it reveals many facets of the communication process taking into consideration all factors present in the discourse context it is an indispensable part of speech in fact, the English intonation phenomena is not introduced in the textbook, which makes both teachers and students feel confused, uncertain and lack of confidence Speech without intonational features is no more than a machine output The intonational specifics of the English language is problem- causing ingredients of English for both Vietnamese teachers and students of English More importantly, the absence of studies and drilling on intonation in course book becomes a great handicap on the internationalization of target language intonation by the non-native teachers of English The absence of word-grouping is likely to result in non-fluent speech, with pauses occurring in unnatural places to facilitate the solving of linguistic problems rather than to serve the purpose of signaling information structure 2.3.2 The measures of the special subject Because incorrect intonation can result in misunderstandings, speakers losing interest or even taking offence To improve the limitation, it is important for both teachers and students to take in the rules of intonation in English Teachers: Teachers should study, discover and search for document, reference books related to intonation constantly They usually study all rules on intonation in order to classify them in the order of difficulty As a result, they will find the most suitable teaching methods and apply them to teaching students effectively 16 They should provide students with models- don’t be afraid to exaggerate their intonation They should ask students to have a 2-minute conversation in pairs as “robots” (elicit the word using a picture if necessary) with no intonation When they then go back to speaking normally, point out that the difference is made by intonation- this is what gives movement to our voices They should spend more time working on their students’ intonation as part of pronunciation learning They should apply it to both written and spoken expressions in order for considerable communicative skill Learners: To obtain intonation carefully, learners need to understand its rules Moreover, they find it necessary to as many exercises as possible and search for different kinds of reference books, information sources on internet so that they can widen , improve their knowledge and meet the need for recent exam levels They know how to classify the rules of information on their own, which helps them find the best ways to learn effectively They should store their own learning experience by exchanging with other teachers and friends to enrich English intonation and enhance the ability to speak fluently and listen correctly 2.4 The result of practical teaching When doing a research on the special subject, I carried out a practical teaching in class B6 and B8 As a consequence, the students made progress in recognising in English intonation as referred The preceding and following results applied to English intonation: Class Level The structures of special passive voice Before applying After applying Good 6.81% 13.68% 11B6 Fairly good 40.90% 52.27% Average 50% 34.05% The number Weak 2.29% 0% of students: 44 Weaker 0% 0% Good 2.27% 4.54% 11 B7 Fairly good 34.1% 47.72% Average 56.81% 45.45% The number Weak 4.54% 2.29% of students: 44 Weaker 2.28% 0% Summary and suggestions 17 3.1 Summary: Studying the rules of English intonation allows understanding semantic content and playing an important part in classifying various and complex phenomenon of English intonation Consequentially, it is the rules of English intonation that improve students’ speaking skill , help them comprehend the meaning of conversations in every situation in daily life and motivate their interest in learning English 3.2 Some suggestions: With the above experience, I suggest that Educational and Training Service apply English intonation in upper secondary school This is a practical need from both teachers and students with a view to improving both teaching and learning English effectively and meeting social demand of job markets XÁC NHẬN CỦA THỦ TRƯỞNG ĐƠN VỊ Thanh Hóa, ngày 22 tháng năm 2018 CAM KẾT KHÔNG COPY Trịnh Thị Lý 18 19 REFERENCE BOOKS English 10 English 11 English 12 Sources from internet: - Intonation from English Grammar Today https: // dictionary Cambridge.org>intonat… - Intonation- Tieng anh 123.com: https: // m.tieng anh 123.com> 8203-bai 61… - How English learners can improve intonation https: // www.britishcouncil.org>how-eng - Intonation/TeachingEnglish/British Council/ BBC https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk>int… - Intonation in English Pronunciation/ learn English today https: //www.learn-english-today.com>in… - Intonation Patterns in English- Youtube https: //m.youtube.com> watch - Introduction to Intonation/ English Pronunciation Lesson-Youtube https: //m.youtube.com>watch The Introduction systems of English by Paul Tench English Intonation by J.C.Wells Intonation and its parts by Dwight Bolinger Prosodic Systems and Intonation in English ... efficiently taught to non-native speakers of English: Falling intonation Rising intonation Rise-Fall intonation Fall-Rise intonation 2.1.2 Reasons to use English intonation We can say that intonation is... How English learners can improve intonation https: // www.britishcouncil.org>how-eng - Intonation/ TeachingEnglish/British Council/ BBC https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk>int… - Intonation in English. .. The term intonation refers to a means for conveying information in speech which is independent of the words and their sounds Central to intonation is the modulation of pitch, and intonation is