What makes teaching pronunciation different from teaching other parts of the

English language?

Pronunciation is more than just listening and repeating. It also includes features of language
(vocabulary and grammar) and skills (speaking and listening).

Pronunciation is physical, as it requires us to retrain the muscles we use to speak.

Pronunciation also involves listening to how the language sounds. We can practice by focusing
on connected speech while playing fragments from speech recordings.

What role do the tongue, lips and jaw play in pronunciation?

The tongue, lips and jaw are the main articulators that shape our pronunciation.

The way we move these articulators is influenced by the speech habits we develop in our first
language.

This is why it can be difficult to learn a new language’s pronunciation, as we may be

unconsciously using the speech habits from our first language.

However, an accent is not necessarily a problem. You can still be understood with an accent.

What advice can you give to someone who wants to teach English in a country where
English is not the medium of instruction?
When teaching English in a country where English is not the medium of instruction, it is
important to focus on pronunciation that aids understanding.

Some features of pronunciation make the message clearer to the listener, such as a clear
difference between the /r/ and /l/ sounds.

You can teach or practice intelligibility with communication activities. For example, you can put
pairs of words such as correct and collect into a game in which success depends on the learner
being able to hear and say the difference.

You can also teach optional features of pronunciation to make words easier to say, such as
saying gonna instead of going to.

What are your top tips for someone looking to strengthen their language and
pronunciation skills?
Pay attention to the physical movements of your mouth, tongue, jaw, and throat when you
speak. This will help you become more aware of how you produce different sounds in your own
language and in English.

Become aware of your beliefs and prejudices about pronunciation. For example, many people
believe that they never use glottal stops, but they actually do. It’s important to be aware of
these biases so that you can work to overcome them.

Don’t focus on learning a British or American accent. Instead, focus on features of

pronunciation that could distort your message. For example, speakers of Vietnamese may miss
consonants from the ends of words, and speakers of German may confuse the /v/ and /w/
sounds.

What are the most common pronunciation issues that language learners encounter?

The most serious pronunciation issues are the ones we are not aware of.

This is because we are used to the sounds of our native language, and we may not notice the
difference between similar sounds in another language.

For example, Spanish speakers may not be aware that the English /b/ and /v/ are distinct
sounds, because these sounds are allophones in Spanish.

Teachers can help learners to notice these differences by teaching them short rhymes that
include many examples of a sound.

How can learners choose when using homonyms, homophones, homographs or

heteronyms?
English spelling is often irregular and can be challenging for learners.

Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings, such as “piece” and
“peace”.

Homographs are words that have the same spelling but different meanings, such as “row”
(line) and “row” (argument).

Heteronyms are words that have the same spelling but different pronunciations and meanings,
such as “tear” (to rip something) and “tear” (a drop of liquid).

There are many patterns and regularities in English spelling, but they can be difficult to learn.