Background

Mastery of correct pronunciation or pronunciation is an important component in

learning English. Good pronunciation not only helps in effective communication but also
increases students' confidence in using English orally. One of the main challenges in mastering
pronunciation is fricative sounds, such as /θ/ in "think" and /ð/ in "this". These sounds are often
not found in many other languages, including Indonesian, so students have difficulty mastering
them.

This difficulty is increased due to lack of exposure and less effective teaching methods
in teaching these sounds. Traditional pronunciation exercises often do not produce satisfactory
results because students need more structured and repetitive practice to master difficult
sounds. According to the Optimal Input theory proposed by Piske et al. (2020), students need
optimal exposure to correct language input to internalize the sounds of the target language.
This theory emphasizes that sufficient exposure and appropriate guidance are essential in
language learning. Pronunciation drills provide repeated exposure to correct pronunciation
models, which can help students master fricative sounds. With structured practice, students
can hear and imitate the correct sounds consistently, thereby improving their ability in
pronunciation.

Previous research shows that pronunciation drills can improve students' pronunciation
abilities (Smith, 2019; Johnson, 2021). However, there is still little research that specifically
focuses on the effect of this exercise on the mastery of fricative sounds by middle school
students in Indonesia. Therefore, this study attempts to fill this gap.

Based on observations I made at the secondary school where I teach, around 42.86%
or 15 out of 35 students had difficulty pronouncing fricative sounds. This data was obtained
through a pronunciation test involving words with fricative sounds, where students were asked
to read the words aloud. Test results showed that most students replaced /θ/ with /t/ and /ð/
with /d/, indicating that they need more effective teaching methods to help them master these
sounds. As a solution, I apply pronunciation drills in learning. This exercise involves repeating
fricative sounds in a structured and consistent manner. Initial results show an increase in
students' ability to pronounce fricative sounds correctly. This shows that pronunciation drills
can be an effective method to overcome these pronunciation difficulties.

I am interested in this topic because of the importance of correct pronunciation in

English communication. As an English teacher, I see firsthand how difficulties with
pronunciation can hinder a student's ability to communicate and express themselves. Through
this research, I hope to find effective methods to help students overcome these difficulties and
improve their ability in English. It is also hoped that this research can make a significant
contribution to the field of language teaching and help other teachers overcome similar
challenges.