An investigation into english consonants problematic to non english majored preshmen at vien dong college of advanced technology

VIETNAMESE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LINGUITICS AND LITERATURE AN INVESTIGATION INTO ENGLISH CONSONANTS PROBLEMATIC TO NON-ENGLISH MAJORED FRESHMEN AT VIEN DONG COLLEGE OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY A thesis submitted in a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master Of Arts (TESOL) By NGUYEN THI XUAN CHI Supervised by NGUYEN HUYNH DAT, M.A Ho Chi Minh City, 2012 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby certify that this thesis entitled “An investigation into English consonants problematic to non-English majored freshmen at Vien Dong College of Advanced Technology” is my own work This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any institutions Ho Chi Minh City, July, 15th, 2012 NGUYEN THI XUAN CHI i RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS I hereby state that I, NGUYEN THI XUAN CHI, being the candidate for the degree of the Master of TESOL at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and the use of Master’s thesis deposited in Library In terms of these conditions, I agree that the original of my thesis deposited in the Library should be accessible for the purposes of the study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by Library for the care, loan or reproduction of the thesis Ho Chi Minh City, July, 15th, 2012 NGUYEN THI XUAN CHI ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, NGUYEN HUYNH DAT, M.A., who offered me valuable guidance and comments to the completion of the thesis Without his encouragement and assistance, this work would not have been done I would like to send sincere thanks to all my colleagues at Vien Dong College of Advanced Technology for their help with support and encouragement for my study as well as all my students who were willing to answer the questionnaire and to take part in the diagnostic tests I would particularly like to thank to Ms Duong My Tham and Mr John Smith who helped me with the assessment of the data from the students’ recordings Last but not least, my special thanks go to my mother, who has taken good care of my young baby and to my husband, who has given me great support so that I could have time to concentrate on my work iii ABSTRACT This thesis aims at (1) investigating contrast pairs of English word-initial and word-final consonants problematic for non-English majored freshmen at VIDOCAT to perceive aurally; (2) identifying English discrete word-initial and word-final consonants difficult for the students to produce orally A questionnaire was delivered to 104 non-English majored freshmen to get information on the reality of the learning and teaching English pronunciation at their previous schools Two diagnostic tests were carried out with 24 students chosen randomly from the population of 104 students The purpose of the listening test was to figure out what contrast pairs of English word-initial and word-final consonants problematic for the students in aural perception while the oral test aimed at diagnosing what English word-initial and word-final consonants difficult for the students in oral production The study revealed that (1) the contrast pairs, namely word-initial /d//ð/; word-final /k/-/g/, /t/-/d/, /f/-/v/, /s/-/z/; word-initial and word-final /ʧ/-/ʤ, /θ//t/, /s/-/ʃ/, /p/-/b/ were considered to be difficult for the students to perceive aurally; (2) the discrete consonants such as initial and final voiceless plosives /p/, /t/, /k/; final voiced plosives /b/, /d/, /g/; final alveolar sibilants /s/, /z/; initial and final alveo-palatal sibilant /ʃ/; initial and final dentals /ð/, /θ/; final labio-dentals /f/, /v/; initial and final affricates /ʧ/, /ʤ/ and final lateral /l/ proved to be the group of consonants problematic for the students to produce orally Based on the findings of the thesis and the researcher’s own teaching experience, some recommendations were made to help the students foster their ability in perceiving and producing these problematic consonants iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY i RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS .ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT iii ABSTRACT iv TABLE OF CONTENTS v LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF FIGURES xi Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the study 1.1.1 English consonants: the role and problems in communication 1.1.2 English consonants in the syllabus for non-English majors at VIDOCAT 1.2 Rationale for the study 1.3 Aims of the study 1.4 Limitation 1.5 Delimitation 1.6 Organization of the study Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Pronunciation of English consonants 2.1.1 Pronunciation acquisition of English consonants: perception and production 2.12 Factors affecting EFL learners’ intelligibility in pronunciation of English consonants 2.2 English and Vietnamese systems of initial and final consonants 12 2.2.1 English initial and final consonants 12 2.2.2 Vietnamese initial and final consonants 13 2.2.3 Vietnamese and English initial and final consonants in comparison 15 v 2.2.3.1 Contrast pairs of English initial and final consonants predicted possibly difficult in aural perception 15 2.2.3.2 English initial and final consonants predicted possibly problematic in oral production 20 2.3 Sources of pronunciation errors of English initial and final consonants 24 2.4 Guidlines for pronunciation error diagnosis 25 2.5 Summary 26 Chapter 3: METHODOLOGY 27 3.1 Research question 27 3.2 Research design 27 3.2.1 The characteristics of the subjects 27 3.2.1.1 The student subjects 27 3.2.1.2 The researcher 28 3.2.2 The instruments 29 3.2.2.1 The questionnaire for students 29 3.2.2.2 The tests 29 3.3 Data collection procedure 31 3.3.1 Data collection of the sample 31 3.3.2 The process of assessing the tests 32 3.4 Summary 33 Chapter 4: DISCUSSIONS AND FINDINGS 34 4.1 Students’ responses to questionnaire 34 4.1.1 Students’ comparison in the pronunciation teaching and the teaching of other skills at their high schools 34 4.1.2 Students’ confirmation on the situation of pronunciation teaching and learning at their previous schools 36 4.2 Students’ diagnostic tests 38 4.2.1 The listening test 38 4.2.1.1 Misperceived contrast pairs of English initial consonants 38 vi 4.2.1.2 Misperceived contrast pairs of English final consonants 40 4.2.1.3 Summary 43 4.2.2 The oral test 44 4.2.2.1 Mispronounced English initial and final consonants and the errors in their production 44 4.2.2.2 Summary 70 4.3 Summary of the findings 72 4.4 Summary 74 Chapter 5: CONCLUSIONS AND TEACHING IMPLICATIONS 75 5.1 Conclusions 75 5.2 Implications for teaching 77 5.2.1 The syllabus 77 5.2.2 The supplementary/reference materials 80 5.2.3 Techniques in teaching English initial and final consonants 81 5.2.3.1 Minimal pairs and related activities 81 5.2.3.2 Visual aids 82 5.2.3.3 Sound-spelling correspondences of English consonants 82 5.2.4 Teachers of English 86 5.3 Suggestions for further studies 87 BIBLIOGRAPHY 88 Appendix 1: Questionnaire for students (Vietnamese version) 92 Appendix 2: Questionnaire for students (English version) 95 Appendix 3: Listening test 98 Appendix 4: Reading for Recording Test 100 Appendix 5: Error Diagnosis Profile 101 Appendix 6: Feedback Sheet for the Reading Test 103 Appendix 7: Distinction between English /ð/ and /d/ 105 Appendix 8: Distinction between English /θ/ and Vietnamese /tʰ/ 106 Appendix 9: Distinction between English /θ/ and /t/ 107 vii Appendix 10: Distinction between English /s/ and /ʃ/ 108 Appendix 11: Distinction between English /f/ and /p/, /v/ and /p/ 109 Appendix 12: Distinction between English /ʤ/ and /z/ 110 Appendix 13: Distinction between English /ʧ/ and /ʤ/ 111 Appendix 14: Distinction between English /l/ and /n/ 112 Appendix 15: Sound-Spelling Correspondences of English Consonants 113 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1: Apportion of pronunciation aspects in Know How Student Book Table 2.1: The system of English initial consonants 12 Table 2.2: The system of English final consonants 13 Table 2.3: The system of Vietnamese initial consonants 14 Table 2.4: The system of Vietnamese final consonants 14 Table 2.5: Test contrast pairs of English initial and final consonants 16 Table.2.6: Common pronunciation errors with English consonants 22 Table 3.1: Personal information of the students 28 Table 3.2: Tested contrast pairs of English initial consonants 30 Table 4.1: Misperceived contrast pairs of English initial consonants and their misperception frequencies 38 Table 4.2: Misperceived contrast pairs of English final consonants and their misperception frequencies 41 Table 4.3: Types of errors in the production of /p/ and their frequencies 45 Table 4.4: Types of errors in the production of /t/ and their frequencies 47 Table 4.5: Types of errors in the production of /k/ and their frequencies 50 Table 4.6: Types of errors in the production of /b/, /d/, /g/ and their frequencies 51 Table 4.7: Types of errors in the production of /ʃ/ and their frequencies 53 Table 4.8: Types of errors in the production of /s/ and their frequencies 54 Table 4.9: Types of errors in the production of /z/ and their frequencies 56 Table 4.10: Types of errors in the production of /f/ and /v/ and their frequencies 57 Table 4.11: Types of errors in the production of /θ/ and their frequencies 59 Table 4.12: Types of errors in the production of /ð/ and their frequencies 61 Table 4.13: Types of errors in the production of /ʧ/and their frequencies 63 Table 4.14: Types of errors in the production of /ʤ/ and their frequencies 65 Table 4.15: Types of errors in the production of /l/ and their frequencies 68 Table 4.16: Types of errors in the production of /m, /n/, /ŋ/ and their frequencies 69 Table 5.1: Supplements of pronunciation aspects into English teaching 77 ix Task 1: It’s an old  cap  cab What a lively  pup  pub Task 2: That’s a nice cart  card  Can he  write well?  ride She’s got a strong  back  bag There is a green  frock  frog Task 3: Task 4: Look at that  ash  ass Task 5:  “push” he shouted  “puss” I hear a bus  buzz  what’s the price  prize  Task 6:  Save here  Safe Task 7:  Half the apple  Halve The knife was hidden in the sheet  sheath  The mouth  is very small mount  I want a larch  tree large  Do I write ‘H’  here? 'age’  Task 8: 99 APPENDIX 4: ORAL TEST (READING FOR RECORDING TEST) LIST 1 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 hurt pond harm met zone lent heat then rent yes yet way thumb ban sip chip vat Joan wait tick me rate hate just those den sat cheap fast good zeal she jewel nine doze see share boat they zoo push cherry view first LIST shy gap van tie bet test very went yoke coat pest goat mine lake bear lay fat yard guard late thank card could wake Nile thigh shin dare thin knee ray rake zip than taste chalk cap sing net pace joke day ferry mile 100 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 foam tab ripe mope kick ball time luck chip road wish Liz mash watch age math sang dad thing bus cake loose soon lob kill Jim can piss bridge love breathe leave teethe read serve buzz tosh hat life pole bean leg nine robe rug roof tube mouth oath song made ache let coat soothe large bathe bag rise safe home stroke oil cap pig surf date save size cloth larch huge rush rich rung maze APPENDIX 5: ERROR DIAGNOSIS PROFILE LIST 1 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Words in isolation hurt hate shy pond just gap harm those van met den tie zone sat bet lent cheap test heat fast very then good went rent zeal yoke yes she coat yet jewel pest way nine goat thumb doze mine ban see lake sip share bear chip boat lay vat they fat Joan zoo yard wait push guard tick cherry late me view thank rate first card Substitution Articulation Omission could wake Nile thigh shin dare thin knee ray rake zip than taste chalk cap sing net pace joke day ferry mile 101 LIST Words in isolation Substitution Articulation Omission foam bus life bag tab cake pole rice ripe loose bean safe mope soon leg home kick lob nine stroke ball kill robe oil time Jim rug cap luck can roof pig chip piss tube surf 10 road bridge mouth date 11 wish love oath save 12 Liz breathe song size 13 mash leave made cloth 14 watch teethe ache larch 15 age read let huge 16 math serve coat rush 17 sang buzz soothe rich 18 dad tosh large rung 19 thing hat bathe maze 102 APPENDIX 6: FEEDBACK SHEET FOR THE READING TEST LIST 1 /p/ push pond pest pace /4 /b/ bear bet ban boat /4 /t/ test tick tie taste /4 /d/ dare day den doze /4 /k/ could coat cap card /4 /g/ goat good guard gap /4 /ʧ/ chalk chip cheap cherry /4 /ʤ/ joke just jewel Joan /4 /s/ sip sat see sing /4 10 /z/ zip zoo zeal zone /4 11 /ʃ/ shy she share shin /4 12 /f/ fast ferry fat first /4 13 /v/ very view vat van /4 14 /θ/ thigh thumb thin thank /4 15 /ð/ they those than then /4 16 /h/ hurt harm hate heat /4 17 /l/ lake lay lent late /4 18 /m/ met mine mile me /4 19 /n/ net Nile nine knee /4 20 /j/ yet yard yoke yes /4 21 /w/ way went wait wake /4 22 /r/ rent ray rate rake /4 103 LIST /p/ cap chip ripe mope /4 /b/ tab lob robe tube /4 /f/ life surf roof safe /4 /g/ bag pig leg rug /4 /k/ kick cake luck stroke /4 /l/ ball kill pole oil /4 /m/ time Jim home foam /4 /n/ nine can bean soon /4 /ŋ/ thing rung sang song /4 10 /s/ bus piss rice loose /4 11 /t/ hat let coat date /4 12 /v/ leave love serve save /4 13 /z/ Liz buzz maze size /4 14 /ʃ/ mash wish tosh rush /4 15 /ʧ/ watch rich ache larch /4 16 /ʤ/ age large bridge huge /4 17 /θ/ math oath mouth cloth /4 18 /ð/ bathe breathe soothe teethe /4 19 /d/ dad made read road /4 104 APPENDIX (adopted from To Minh Thanh (2008)) English /ð/ English /d/ Distinction between English /ð/ and /d/ 105 APPENDIX (adopted from To Minh Thanh (2008)) English /θ/ Vietnamese /tʰ/ Distinction between English /θ/ and Vietnamese /tʰ/ 106 APPENDIX (adopted from Kelly (2000: 50) /θ/ /t/ Distinction between English /θ/ and /t/ 107 APPENDIX 10 (adopted from Kelly (2000: 50) /s/ /ʃ Distinction between English /s/ and /ʃ/ 108 APPENDIX 11 (adopted from Kelly (2000: 50) /f/ and /v/ /p/ Distinction between English /f/ and /p/, /v/ and /p/ 109 APPENDIX 12 (adopted from Kelly (2000: 50) /ʤ / /z/ Distinction between English /ʤ/ and /z/ 110 APPENDIX 13 (adopted from To Minh Thanh (2008)) /tʃ/ /ʤ/ Distinction between English /ʧ/and /ʤ/ 111 APPENDIX 14 (adopted from Kelly (2000: 50) and To Minh Thanh (2008)) /l/ /n/ Distinction between English /l/ and /n/ 112 APPENDIX 14: SOUND-SPELLING CORRESPONDENCES OF ENGLISH CONSONANTS (Adopted from To Minh Thanh’s handouts for Phonetics and Phonology (2008)) Consonant Spelling sounds Example Spelling (initial position) Example (final position) /k/ c, k, ch cat, kite, check ck, que neck, technique /b/ b ban b rob /p/ P pan p rope, chop /t/ t top t cut, pot /d/ d dad d did /g/ g good gue colleague /f/ f fine f, fe, gh shelf, wife, laugh /v/ v very ve five /θ/ th thank th mouth, bath /ð/ th the th bathe, breathe /s/ s, sc, c bus, city, science ss, se, ce kiss, case, choice, /z/ z zoo, ze, se, s freeze, choose, is /ʃ/ sh, s, ch36 shoe, sure, sh wash champagne /ʧ/ ch, chin ch, tch church, watch /ʤ/ j, g (before i job, general, ginger ge, dge change, judge or e) /m/ m mine m arm, comb, name /n/ n nose n garden, nine ng sing l cool, file /ŋ/ /l/ l line /r/ r rain /j/ y, u yet, union /w/ w wall 36 The letters ‘ch’ is pronounced as /ʃ/ in words of French origins e.g., Champion, Chicago, champagne 113 ...STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby certify that this thesis entitled ? ?An investigation into English consonants problematic to non -English majored freshmen at Vien Dong College of Advanced Technology? ??... pairs of English word-initial and word-final consonants problematic for non -English majored freshman at VIDOCAT to perceive aurally, (2) indentifying English initial and final consonants problematic. .. is the failure in perception and production of English consonants The situation of non -English majored freshmen at Vien Dong College of Advanced Technology (VIDOCAT in short) is a good case in