The present study aims at determining whether instruction in the form of explicit phonetic training and of implicit exposure to native input impacted Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) ...students’ phonological awareness of the occurrence of English
in unstressed syllables of content words (
). Four intact CLIL groups were administered a perception task immediately before and after an intervention period of one month in which two groups underwent explicit instruction on the incidence of reduced vowels versus full vowels in English disyllabic words while another group was exposed to native input in their CLIL sessions. A fourth CLIL group with neither explicit intervention nor native teacher input served as control group. All four groups tended to judge both
and full vowels as correct in the pre-test, indicating that they were not knowledgeable of the general pattern of vowel reduction occurrence in unstressed syllables in English prior to intervention. In the post-test, the three experimental groups significantly improved their ability to identify full vowels as incorrect, the groups receiving explicit instruction exhibiting higher gains than the group which was implicitly exposed to native input.
This study aims at testing the benefits of CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) on oral skills in English by comparing a group of secondary school CLIL learners to two Non-CLIL groups ...matched for amount of instruction – a two-year-ahead group and a peer group. This sampling design is an attempt to tease the effects of exposure, age and CLIL variables apart, something which has not been addressed in most previous CLIL research. The analyses (holistic evaluation, amount and density of production, and use of compensatory strategies) of participants’ story tellings indicate that CLIL learners’ oral abilities are superior to those of Non-CLIL groups, especially to those of their exposure-matched peer counterparts. Overall, CLIL learners produce denser and richer oral narrations characterized by better content, vocabulary, grammar and fluency, and a marginal use of the first language. These results could be read as indicative of the beneficial effect of CLIL instruction itself on oral production when intervening variables such as amount of exposure and age are managed. In addition, particular attention is given to the lack of positive effect of CLIL on pronunciation.
This study investigated the effect of two distinct computer-based phonetic training procedures administered in an English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) classroom with young learners. Students' ...perceptual awareness of the occurrence of an English schwa in an unstressed position in content words was tested in two experimental groups, which underwent differentiated training regimes (auditory discrimination/identification practice and listen-and-repeat practice), and a control group, which received no phonetic treatment. A training effect was shown by the significant improvement in the perception abilities of the two experimental groups only. In addition, both experimental groups exhibited comparable improvement in all the variables analyzed. Training effects were also found for the word-familiarity variable, which was mitigated after treatment. Results suggest a positive impact of both aural and imitation computer-based phonetic training on L2 sound perceptual awareness in classroom settings with young learners.
The present study explored pronunciation views, learning actions and anxiety in two differentiated English learner groups: one group which was studying English in an engineering degree and another ...group enrolled in an English major degree. The results from a questionnaire and focus group sessions revealed that the groups share some views such as a wish to improve their English pronunciation and adherence to native pronunciation references as well as pronunciation learning actions such as watching series or talking to native speakers. However, we also observed significant differences between the groups as the English major students tended to view pronunciation learning as a discipline, while the engineering students saw it as a communicative skill. The English majors also exhibited more pronunciation anxiety, specifically fear of ridicule and worry of making mistakes. They also revealed more anxiety-related themes in the focus group discussions such as worry about their pronunciation, pronunciation shame or unease because they do not know how to pronounce a word or cannot understand. Finally, the English major group was also more demanding of lecturers’ accurate pronunciation. These results suggest that differences regarding English pronunciation anxiety between different learner profiles may need to be considered during their English language learning progress.
This study aims at testing the effectiveness of additional CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) exposure on the oral production of secondary school learners of English as a Foreign ...Language. CLIL learners, who had received a 30% increase in exposure by means of using English as a vehicular language, were compared to mainstream English students in a story-telling task. Analyses indicated that CLIL learners’ productions were holistically perceived to exhibit better fluency, lexis and grammar while no differences were found as regards content and pronunciation. Besides, although Non-CLIL learners’ productions were larger in quantity and longer in time, CLIL learners produced denser and more fluent narrations, as attested by their higher number of different words over total number of words, of words over turn, and of utterances over turn. Additionally, CLIL learners resorted to their first language to a lesser extent and demanded fewer vocabulary clarifications. Our findings thus go along with previous research which has revealed advantages of additional CLIL exposure on oral English production.
The capacity of non‐native evaluators to perform foreign accent (FA) judgments has been questioned. This study explores differences between linguistically trained non‐native judges (NNJs) who are ...teachers of English familiar with the students' L1s and naïve native judges (NJs) who do not speak the students' L1s. Both groups were compared in their global evaluation of FA and its potential communicative effects (comprehensibility and irritation) in two groups of language learners (more and less experienced). Results show striking similarities between the two groups of judges. NNJs were as able as NJs to assess FA despite finding it more comprehensible than the NJs did. It is suggested that NNJs' linguistic training promotes a more analytic approach to FA evaluation, which can compensate for the lack of native intuitions.
La capacidad que tienen los evaluadores no‐nativos para realizar juicios de acento extranjero (AE) ha sido cuestionada. Este estudio explora las diferencias a la hora de efectuar juicios de AE entre jueces no‐nativos (NNJs) con formación lingüística que son profesores de inglés y comparten las primeras lenguas de los estudiantes y jueces nativos (NJs) sin formación lingüística que no hablan las primeras lenguas de los estudiantes. Se hizo una comparación de ambos grupos con respecto a su evaluación global del AE y sus efectos comunicativos potenciales (comprensibilidad e irritación) en dos grupos de aprendices de segunda lengua (más y menos experimentados). Los resultados señalan notables similitudes entre los dos grupos de jueces. Los NNJs mostraron una capacidad similar a la de los NJs a la hora de evaluar el AE a pesar de encontrarlo más comprensible de lo que lo hicieron los NJs. Sugerimos que la formación lingüística de los NNJs promueve un enfoque de la evaluación del AE más analítico, lo que puede compensar la falta de intuición nativa.
Few studies have gauged the effects of Computer Assisted Language Learning –CALL– on the verbal accuracy of students. The current study explores the use of Hot Potatoes JCloze-type exercises as ...supplementary classroom work to enhance the English tense accuracy of university students enrolled in three EFL proficiency level courses -high-intermediate (B2) and advanced (C1 and C2). Tense marking was measured before and after a period of autonomous, self-paced CALL work in which students could access theoretical information and practiced with Hot Potatoes exercises. The comparisons revealed that the experience was mainly beneficial for the C1 level course group, the other two experimenting non-significant gains. Results only partially support a boosting effect of CALL additional practice. They also suggest that proficiency should be taken into consideration as it can affect the effect of treatment as not all the proficiency level courses experienced advantages. Alternatives to improve effectiveness are then suggested.
This study examines the ability to identify the English phonological contrast full vowel-schwa by Spanish learners of English after two different types of training: auditory and articulatory. ...Perceptual performance was measured in isolated words in order to investigate the effect of training and in sentences to study the robustness of acquisition in generalizing to a context which was not used during training. Subjects were divided into three groups: two experimental groups, one undergoing perceptual training and one undergoing production based training, and a control group. Both experimental groups' perception of the reduced vowel improved significantly after training. Results indicated that students were able to generalize their reduced vowel identification abilities to the new context. The control group did not show any significant improvement. Our findings agree with studies that have demonstrated positive effects of phonetic training (Derwing. Munro & Wiebe, 1998; Rochet, 1995; Cenoz & García Lecumberri, 1995, 1999). Interestingly, the results also support the facilitating view between perception and production since production training proved beneficial in the development of perceptual abilities (Catford & Pisoni, 1970; Mathews, 1997). Finally, our data showed that training resulted in robust learning, since students were able generalize their improved perceptual abilities to a new context.
El presente trabajo versa sobre la enseñanza de las vocales inglesas a estudiantes españoles. En la introducción se analiza la importancia que tiene abordar la pronunciación en el aula de lengua ...extranjera en la persecución del logro de un acento nativo o de una pronunciación inteligible, se enfatiza el papel tan importante que juega el sistema de sonidos de la primera lengua a la hora de adquirir la pronunciación de un segundo idioma y se revisa el papel del profesor en la enseñanza de la pronunciación. La segunda parte presenta un estudio comparativo de los sistemas vocálicos del inglés y del castellano que ayuda en la comprensión de las diferencias y similitudes existentes entre ambos sistemas a fin de poder entender muchos de los fenómenos presentes en la pronunciación de las vocales inglesas por parte de los hablantes de español. La última sección incluye una serie de recursos didáctico-pedagógicos para la instrucción formal de la pronunciación del inglés, con especial referencia al componente vocálico.
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