A case study on implicit and explicit online pronunciation tutoring to Chinese international graduate students

Chen, Xinlei

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/113002 Copy

Description

Title

A case study on implicit and explicit online pronunciation tutoring to Chinese international graduate students

Author(s)

Chen, Xinlei

Issue Date

2021-07-20

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

• Franks, Suzanne Carla
• Pierce, Lisa Renee

Department of Study

Linguistics

Discipline

Teaching of English Sec Lang

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

M.A.

Degree Level

Thesis

Keyword(s)

Pronunciation, SLA, Explicit teaching, Implicit teaching

Abstract

Pronunciation matters for the success of second language learners, and yet it does not receive enough attention in the language classroom (O’Brien, 2004; Sturm, 2013; Wei, 2006). Especially for the students who received their secondary and undergraduate education in China, where the negative washback from exam-driven English teaching styles is still prominent. This study compared the progress of two Chinese graduate students in a Midwestern university, one received one-on-one implicit instruction and another explicit instruction online. The measurements of progress in this case study include segmental perception and production, fluency, and intelligibility rate in both controlled and spontaneous speech. Both participants received eight weekly tutoring sessions in a semester, with one hour per session. All participants took a pre-test and a post-test the weeks before and after the instructions. The tests aimed to get and examine vowels /ʊ/, /u/, /i:/, /ɪ/, /æ/, /ɛ/ and consonants /v/, /w/, /s/, /z/, also temporal variables including words per minute (WPM) and filled-pause ratio (FPR). The results found that the explicit participant showed a slight improvement of their segmental perception and production of some back vowels and the labiodental consonant, as well as fluency and intelligibility rate, especially in spontaneous speech. But both instructed participants reported an elevated confidence in spoken English after the treatment.

Graduation Semester

2021-08

Type of Resource

Thesis

Permalink

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/113002

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2021 Xinlei Chen

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