EFFECTIVE SPEAKING

AND LISTENING

Claudia Odette J. Ayala, PhD

Aspects of Oral Communication
1. The speaker
2. The speech (ideas, organization,
language presentation)
3. The communicative act itself (voice,
articulation of sounds and body idiom)
4. The audience (listeners and observers)
5. The speaking situation (location, time
and place)
The International Phonetic
Alphabet (IPA)
A pronunciation alphabet in which every
speech sound is represented by a symbol
(Stemple & Holcomb, 1988)

A guide on how to articulate the English

sounds correctly
THE VOWEL SOUNDS

/ i / as in beat / ə / as in about
/ I / as in bit / З / as in world
/ e / as in bait / u / as in pool
/ ε / as in bet / U / as in pull
/ æ / as in bat / o / as in loan
/ ʌ / as in cup / Ↄ / as in lawn
/ a / as in bath / α / as in psalm
/ i / as in beat / I / as in bit

adhesive ego biscuit palace

cathedral Eden business pretty
liaison penal embryo lettuce
receipt aegis preface villain
legal Caesar women Thursday
/ u / as in pool / U / as in pull

boulevard nougat look good

tomb mousse cook woman
souvenir stewardess push mistook
loose bruise butcher foot
canoe drew wolf stood
/o/ as in loan / Ↄ / as in lawn

bowl sew abroad fought

poultry whole audit pause
plateau don’t law thought
brooch go sauce warn
mauve omit audience dawn
The Schwa Sound
\ ə \ a - among
e - label
i – pencil
o – some
u – but
 \∂r\ or \ɚ\ pillar, teller, firm, armor, blur
The Schwa Sound
under mother data other
one soda about balloon
vista oven love zebra
asleep done arena such
alarm again anew America
away appear adult annoy
afoot ajar gallop circus
The [æ] sound (short a)

at map Adam jazz

batch am has Advil
tab craft ask bag
math tack mask add
had grass yam jack
as that jam mash 
Drill on Sound Substitution

sleep slip peach pitch

creep crib cheap chip
leap lip each itch
heat hit eat it
sheep ship feet fit
seal sill beat bit
ease is meet mitt
deep dip neat knit
steel still meal mill
Troublesome Consonants
[th] vs [d]
their dare
those doze
they day
then den
though dough
this dismiss
that drat
[th] vs [d]

three tree
them team
wrath rat
thought taught
bath bat
booth boot
TONGUE TWISTER PRACTICE

The thirty-three
thieves thought that
they thrilled the throne
throughout Thursday.
There those thousand
thinkers were thinking
how did the other three
thieves go through.
 
An economical young fellow named
Beebee wished to marry a lady named
Phoebe.
“But,” he said, “I must see about the
minister’s fee before Phoebe can be
Phoebe Beebee.”
How much wood would a woodchuck
chuck if a woodchuck could chuck
wood?
He would chuck, he would, as much
as he could, and chuck as much wood
As a woodchuck would if a
woodchuck could chuck wood.
Word Endings
Phrases with Verbs Ending in Voiceless
Plosives
 
stopped and shopped
checked if they were marked
pricked to see if it was cooked
knocked and then looked at it
swooped on those who escaped 
Phrases with Verbs Ending in Voiced
Plosives
 
grabbed and stabbed him
disturbed because they snubbed her
clogged when plugged
bragged that he slugged
hugged even while she nagged
described how they bribed him
 
Phrases with Verbs Ending in Plosives
t, d
 

attended and presided

recommended it be raided
decided it was needed
instructed they be transported
indicated he had collaborated
contacted and alerted them
 
Now, try this speaking exercise

I’m a modern young woman

The whole world can see
That no masculine creature
Can subjugate me.
I can earn my own money
I smoke and I vote
I’ve no time to sew buttons
On my man’s coat.
With man-made limitations
And shackles I’m done,
Who dares to deny me
My place in the sun?

But there’s one little weakness

That will not be gone!
I still like a man’s shoulder
For crying upon.
ENGLISH RHYTHM

Stress
Phrasing
Blending
Intonation
 WORD STRESS

the accent given to a syllable to give it more

importance than the other syllables and to
make it stand out among them

Example:

COM TER
for de
table mine
STRESS
Word type Where is the Examples
stress?
center
Nouns on the first syllable object
flower
Two syllables
release
Verbs on the last syllable admit
arrange

Nouns desktop
pencil case
(N + N) on the first part
(Adj. + N) bookshelf
greenhouse

Compound well-meant
Adjectives hard-headed
(Adj. + P.P.)
old-fashioned
on the last part (the
verb part)
understand
Verbs
(prep. + verb) overlook
outperform
 STRESS

turn off
Phrasal Verbs on the particle buckle up
hand out
thirty
ending with -ty on the first syllable sixty
ninety
Numbers
ending with thirteen
-teen on the last syllable sixteen
nineteen
increase
Noun on the first syllable survey
Word with may permit
either be used
as noun or verb on the second increase
Verb survey
syllable permit
 STRESS

Intensive-reflexive pronouns on the last syllable myself

themselves

technician
-tion, -cian, graduation
-sion, -ic, -ical, the syllable before cohesion
-ity the ending biological
nationality
Word with
added ending
-phy, -gy, -try, -cy, photography
-fy, -al biology
the third from the geometry
last syllable
-meter parameter
thermometer
 Words Accented on the First
Syllable

accuracy allergyamicable Aristotle

ancestor argue attribute(n.) Arabic
candidacyceremony charitablecategory
delicacy eligible February favorable
formidable govern honorable infamous
interview irritable memorable menu
 Words Accented on the Second
Syllable

alleviate appreciate associate bamboo

cashier champagne Chinese committee
condolence considerable depreciate dessert
distinguish duet distribute enamel
judiciary naïve negotiate percentage
professor semester tribunal utensil
Words Accented on Either the First
or Second Syllable

adult adverse
affluent arsenic
colleague decadent
kilometer preparatory 
Words Accented on the Third
Syllable

adolescent antecedent beneficiary

cigarette continuity debonair
documentary democratic differentiate
education elementary guarantee
hospitality parliamentary penicillin
premature reminiscent trigonometry
supervisory therapeutic
Words Accented on the Fourth
Syllable

abbreviation administrationalleviation
appreciation appropriation assimilation
association communication congratulations
disciplinarian enunciation enthusiastic
environmentalist evacuation fertilization
Interpretation preliminary perpetuation
pronunciation realization
*Words which may be used either as nouns or verbs are
accented differently to show the distinction in usage.
Nouns are accented on the first syllable while verbs are
accented on the second.

NOUN VERB NOUN VERB

address address comment comment

present present conduct conduct
progressprogressconflict conflict
project project content content
protest protest contest contest
rebel rebel digest digest
record record subject subject
insult insultsuspect suspect
Sense or Sentence Stress

the stress that falls on certain words in a

sentence

the emphasis given to word or words

within a phrase that most effectively bring
out the thought of the phrase
What Words to be Stressed
In general, content words are stressed, while
function words are unstressed, unless the speaker
wishes to call special attention to them. 

Content words - those that have meaning in themselves like

mother, good, forget
– nouns – Joaquin, school, radio, baby, university
– verbs – (except linking and auxiliary verbs) visit, jump, write, construct, study
– adjectives – beautiful, dark, dirty, famous, interesting
– adverbs – fast, slowly, very, lazily, often, carefully
– demonstratives: this, that, these, those
– interrogatives: who, when, why, etc.
Function words - those that have little or no
meaning in themselves as words but perform
grammatical functions in relation to other words in a
sentence
– articles: a, an, the
– prepositions: to, of, in, etc.
– personal pronouns: I, me, it, they, etc.
– possessive adjectives: my, his, your, etc.
– relative pronouns: who, what, etc.
– common conjunctions: and, but, as, if, while, etc.
– the word one as a noun-substitute (as in: “the red pencil and the blue
one”)
– auxiliary verbs and linking verbs EXCEPT when:
they come at the end of the sentence (“She is wiser than he is.”)
they are used in reiterative formulas (“Aren’t they?” “Isn’t it?”)
– determiners: some, a few
Phrasing
Phrase - the basic unit of speaking and of interpretation. It
is the grouping together of words that convey a thought.

– Phrases are separated from each other by pauses which

are longer than those ordinarily found between words
(oral punctuation).
– When one pauses, the tone as well as articulation is
stopped momentarily. It is during this time that the
person generally inhales. Within the phrase, the sounds
are continuous.  
Pauses are made in a sentence for
the following reasons:

a. to make the meaning clear

You can’t be a good speaker / unless you have a
good voice. //

b. to emphasize a particular idea

The term / intelligibility / means distinct
articulation.//
 Pauses are made in a sentence for
the following reasons:

c. for a special effect such as suspense

And then they heard a strange sound / which
seemed to come closer / closer / and closer. //
As I turned the doorknob / I heard footsteps
approaching from behind the door // then
stop.
 Pauses are made in a sentence for
the following reasons:

d. to catch breath when saying a long sentence

Breathe for the next phrase / while you pause
after the last one.//
He forgot about the quiz / and there was no
more time to study / so he decided to be
absent.//
 General Guides in the Grouping of Words in
Sentences
 

1. The article is attached to a noun.

e.g. a family the university
an umbrella
2. Adjectives are joined to nouns, adverbs to
verbs.
e.g. excellent work frequent encounter
done peacefully
 General Guides in the Grouping of Words in
Sentences
 

3. A prepositional phrase as well as conjunctive and

disjunctive phrases are said without a break or pause.
e.g. in a moment at a garage
wear and tear touch and go

4. Idiomatic noun phrases are grouped together in one breath

stream.
e.g. a fish out of water the pros and cons
Blending
Blending is the process of forming a word by combining
parts of words.
You sound out a sound or phoneme and combine it with the next sound or
phoneme of the same word.  

More specifically, within a thought group, words should be connected together,

especially words beginning with a vowel. These in particular should be blended to
the previous word. In this way, the smooth rhythm of English can be achieved.
 
Example:

  The evening is almost over.

Some guides to blending

1. Personal pronouns it, he, him, her, them are

generally linked to preceding verbs in rapid speech,
and except for it, undergo sound reduction.

is it [IzIt] does he [d∂zI]

tell him [tεlIm] show her [∫oɚ]
give them [gIv∂m] did it [dIdIt]
Some guides to blending

2. A preposition used in a context of measurement is

linked with the preceding word.
 glass of water [glæs∂vwↃtɚ]
ton of sugar [tʌn∂v∫ugɚ]
cup of tea [kʌp∂vti]
pint of ice cream [paInt∂vaIskrim]
pound of flesh [paUnd∂vflε∫]
kilo of rice [kIlo∂vraIs]
 
 Some guides to blending

3. The definite article the is linked with the word

that follows if it begins with a vowel.
  the apple [ðIæpl] the architect [ðIαrkIt∂kt]
the earth [ðIЗθ] the orchard [ðIↃrt∫∂rd]
the insect [ðIInsεkt] the institute [ðIInstitjut]
the oracle [ðIↃr∂kl]the umbrella [ðI∂mbrεl∂]
the entity [ðIεntItI] the unknown [ðIʌnnoUn]
Some guides to blending

4. “And” is reduced to [n] in the following phrases:

  rice and fish touch and go
cream and sugar fast and loose
hot and cold bread and butter
boys and girls men and women
come and go
Some guides to blending

5. “Or” is reduced to [ɚ] or [r] in these phrases:

  do or die one or two
blue or green tea or coffee
swim or sink drunk or sober
 Intonation

 the music of the language

 the tune of what we say
 the melody pattern of a syllable, word, phrase
or sentence

In English, we use tone to signal emotion, questioning, and

parts of the sentence among many other things.
 Intonation
The basic intonation pattern of English sentences is
the rising-falling intonation. At the end of a sentence,
the voice rises above normal, then falls to low.
Example:
stu
She is a
dent. 
The high note coincides with the last sentence stress.
The unstressed syllable dent receives the low note.
Intonation

In some cases, however, the last sentence stress and its high note may
come on the very last syllable, leaving no unstressed syllable for the low
note. Then, the voice makes an inflection, which is a slide from high to
low note within the syllable.
Example:
The dinner is cold.

The vowel of the last syllable will be held for a comparatively longer
time. 
Four Levels of Pitch

a. Average or normal pitch (pitch level 2)

This pitch is generally used with unstressed words and
syllables.
It is indicated by a line drawn at the base of the
accented syllable.
 
I believe there is a God.
Four Levels of Pitch

b. Above average (pitch level 3)

This pitch is generally used with stressed syllables.
It is indicated by a line above the stressed syllable.

I believe there is a God.

Four Levels of Pitch

c. Below average pitch (pitch level 1)

This pitch is generally used at the end of a
sentence with a downward intonation.
It is indicated by a line far below the syllable.

Just sit down and relax.

Four Levels of Pitch

d. High pitch (pitch level 4)

This pitch generally indicates great emotion like suspense and fear.
It is indicated by a line that is some distance above the syllable that
receives the sense stress.
 
What a catastrophe!
Basic Intonation Patterns

1. The rising-falling pattern or the 2-3-1 tune is used at

the end of:
a) a simple statement of fact
Donna likes to sing and dance.
We need to improve our English.
The dinner is cold.
Students should learn to speak effectively. 
Basic Intonation Patterns

1. The rising-falling pattern or the 2-3-1 tune is

used at the end of:
b) a simple request or command
Turn on the fan.
Stop acting like a kid.
Kindly settle all your accounts.
Come here.
Basic Intonation Patterns

1. The rising-falling pattern or the 2-3-1 tune is

used at the end of:
c) an information question
Why are you late again?
Whose work is this?
Where do you spend your vacation?
Why can’t you come with me?
Basic Intonation Patterns

2. The rising pattern or 2-3-3+ tune is used for:

a) a yes-or-no question
Are you all right?
Have you heard about the latest buzz?
Did you study your lesson?
Will you come to the movies with me?
Basic Intonation Patterns

3. The choice intonation pattern or 2-3, 2-3-1 tune is used

to state choices or alternatives.
Do you want medium or rare?
You may have either a breakthrough or a breakdown.
Are you in or out?
Was it easy or difficult?
 Basic Intonation Patterns

4. Series Intonation Pattern or the 2-3-3+, 2-3-3+, 2-

3-1 tune is used to say words or phrases in a series.
Gay speaks Filipino, French, and English.
I need some sugar, butter, and milk.
The small boat rocked, heaved, and then rolled.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and cried.
 Basic Intonation Patterns

5. The Non-Final Intonation

This is the intonation of that part of the sentence which precedes the last
important word. It varies widely from speaker to speaker; it depends on
the attitude of the speaker and also on the purpose of the utterance. It is
used:
a) when we want to call special attention of the listener
What do YOU know about politics?
You CAN’T have everything you want.
 Basic Intonation Patterns

5. The Non-Final Intonation

b) when making a comparison and contrast
The NEW house is bigger than the OLD one.
JOSHUA sings better than I do.
c) when making a direct address or nominative of address
Mr. Leynes, how’s your life?
Jillian, I am glad to see you.
 Basic Intonation Patterns

5. The Non-Final Intonation

d) when we call special attention to the
demonstratives and interrogative words
I think THAT is a good idea.
You have to tell me WHY you failed to come.
 Basic Intonation Patterns

In tag questions or reiterative formulas, you may use either

the rising-falling, or the rising intonation pattern.
When your tag question is actually statement of fact, i.e., you
are certain about the reply you will get, you use the rising-
falling pattern or the 2-3-1, 3-1 tune.
You’re an MSEUF student, aren’t you?

We need to do our assignment, don’t we?

 Basic Intonation Patterns

However, when your tag question is a genuine

question, i.e., you are not sure about the answer
you will get, you use the rising pattern or the 2-3-1,
2-3-3+ tune.
Carlos isn’t graduating this term, is he?

You have done your part, haven’t you?

EFFECTIVE LISTENING

 Informative Listening
 Critical or Evaluative Listening
 Reflective or Empathic
Listening
 Listening for Pleasure or for
Entertainment
 Characteristics of Listening

It should be done selectively

It should be done
purposefully
It should be done attentively
 Strategies for effective
listening
Get ready to listen
Be alert and relaxed
Listen willingly and actively
Be inquisitive
Temper your emotions and attitudes
Do mental calisthenics
Formulate and convey a relevant response
Marshall information and stimuli
Record the message
Roadblocks to effective listening

Internal Interference
External Interference
Language and Cultural Barriers
Speaker-Generated Variables
Thank you for listening!