発音1：良い発音とは

An archery target in a field

良い発音とは何か、また良い発音であるにもかかわらずテストスコアが低い理由について学びます。そして「悪い発音」という意味も理解できます。最終的には、良い発音は習得できることがわかります。

Introduction

Evaluate the Pronunciation sections of your past test scores. Why do you think the Evaluator scored you that way? 

Note that much of this lesson is discussion-based and designed to drive the rest of the course, as well as setting up the student with the right frame of mind. The notes are dense on this lesson as a consequence. Take your time with it. Get them motivated and excited! It's really worth it. They can do it! The pace of the course picks up after this lesson.

Have your student look at their past test scores with you, if applicable, and discuss their results quickly. If your student is taking the GBC, focus specifically on the Pronunciation section. If this is the student’s first time, you can ask why they chose this course as a necessary step to improving their English.

DETAILED NOTES

We need to get the student to buy into these ideas for the rest of the course to work:

  1. pronunciation is very important (if the listener does not understand the message, no communication takes place);
  2. pronunciation is a physical skill and requires practice & tuition—it will not just sort itself out;
  3. pronunciation starts with listening;
  4. clear pronunciation is attainable with work;
  5. with clear pronunciation, communication, test scores, efficiency and the ability to get things done improves massively; and
  6. you don't need to sound like a CNN or BBC anchor to have good pronunciation. 

 

Warm Up

Discuss these questions with your teacher:

  1. What does "good pronunciation" mean and what is the benefit of it? 
  2. Where do you think bad pronunciation comes from? 
  3. How do you think you can fix bad pronunciation? 

Discuss the questions. Some ideas for discussion & context for the lesson. You don't need to cover all of this, but it's important to motivate the student correctly. 

  1. What do you think having good pronunciation means? 

    1. A short, but non-exhaustive, list of the possible pronunciation challenges people have could be: unclear words; weird intonation; strange rhythm; difficulty in saying particular sounds or clusters of sounds, putting the emphasis on the wrong syllable; etc. Work with your student to think of examples of these things.

    2. If you have good pronunciation, people will understand you easily. Bad pronunciation shifts the cognitive burden onto your listener. It can be unprofessional and, in the worst instance, frustratingly inefficient for your interlocutor.

    3. It does NOT mean having no accent. Accent is identity and everyone has one. But accent reduction is a good goal to work towards. Reducing your accent makes it easier for you to be understood, which is the speaker's responsibility to a point! (See 5 below)

    4. Talk about what "good pronunciation" is in the test the student has taken. For example, GBC compares you to standard US or British English accents. By that rationale, many of the teachers at The English Farm would not be able to get a 5 for pronunciation. So put those low GBC scores into a realistic context for the student and throw yourself on your sword for the sake of your student's esteem. (Unless, of course, you do speak with a beautiful US/UK accent! In that case, throw me, Matthew, under the bus for my weird NZ accent).

    5. What might seem to be a problem with your bad pronunciation could just be that the person you are speaking to is not used to your accent. People can adjust and 'tune in' quickly when they meet someone new. But some people are just bad listeners! Don't let them demotivate you.
       

  2. Where do you think bad pronunciation comes from?
    1. Bad pronunciation IS NOT only about saying words incorrectly. This is only one part of it.
    2. Poor listening skills are the true source of bad pronunciation. People don't develop their ability to hear the words clearly and as a result, they cannot monitor their own speaking either to know if their pronunciation is even close (this can be trained—see Lesson 3!)
    3. Sometimes bad pronunciation comes from ignorance. This is that classic thing we have all experienced where you know a word from reading it, but never learned to say it. It can also be when you have a word in English that changes pronunciation depending on the part of speech it is (e.g. "elaborate" as an adjective versus a verb). Most students learn to read first, but don't read out loud, so this can be especially bad for non-native speakers (contrast the native speaker experience, which is learning to read when you know what the word's supposed to sound like). And as an added bonus, we all know how helpful spelling can be. 
    4. Pronunciation has been poorly modeled for them (teachers with heavy accents for example).
    5. People think it is impossible to speak with a reduced accent, so they give up. Notably, some of The English Farm's clients ignore pronunciation scores on tests (?!?!) because of the myth that it is impossible to have a good accent if you learn a language too late in life (rubbish!).
    6. Pronunciation is not actively learned when people learn vocabulary (they focus on translation mostly).
    7. The cognitive load of speaking another language means your attention is often elsewhere and so your pronunciation suffers. 
       

  3. How do you think you can fix bad pronunciation? It's all about mindset and then good habits. You might want to review SMART goals from Orientation 1. This will be homework in this lesson.

    1. First, set a realistic goal for yourself (e.g. accent reduction);

    2. Make it a priority and find the time;

    3. Realise that there is no magic bullet—it's time on task and practice;

    4. Make sure your timeframe is reasonable.

    5. Start with your ear—listening is the key!

    6. Practice, practice, practice!

Language

Understanding

Take a look at this map of accents in the UK alone:

What does this tell you about pronunciation in English?

This map from a non-native speaker shows how well they understand some of the major regional English accents:

What English accents do you find easiest to understand? Do you agree with this map?

Clarity

Take a look at the target and words below and follow your teacher's instructions:

  1. tough;
  2. through; &
  3. throughout.

The desired outcome here is to help the student understand:

  1. there are lots of accents;
  2. some are more universally understood than others; 
  3. a focus on clarity is key—accent reduction first and then training to sound like a native speaker comes second (and that is a lot harder); &
  4. they can do it—they already have the tools.

Understanding

Discuss the two questions:

  1. What does this tell you about pronunciation in English?
    Get your student comfortable with the idea that English is not a monolith, and that there is room for accents and identity. Make sure they realise that there is a 2 in 3 chance that the person you speak to in English is not a native speaker, so why should having a native accent get some kind of special status (but the reality is that it does!).
  2. What English accents do you find easiest to understand? Do you agree with this person?

Clarity

NOTE: We use this the target exercise here for self-evaluation in the course, so make sure you spend time with it and that the student understands the approach.

We want to prime the student to the idea that pronunciation starts with listening. We also want them to start self-assessing their own pronunciation.

    • This is a listen and repeat exercise.
    • You say something, and then the student copies.
    • You then ask them to score themselves on the target (10 being native speaker pronunciation). 
    • Then you give your score of their pronunciation.

    Work through the words and phrases.

    Set the exercise up like this:

    Look at the target. 9 or 10 means you sound like a native speaker. 7 or 8 means you sound clear, but people can tell English is your second language. 6 or lower means that you are not saying things clearly enough. First, read the three words to me.

    I want you to listen and repeat after me. Focus on copying me exactly if you can. I will then ask you to score yourself. Then I will give you a score.

    By the end of this, you should have:

    1. shown the student viscerally that they can speak clearly if they focus;
    2. helped them realise they have the tools to improve and perfect their pronunciation; &
    3. disabused them of the notion that anything less than a 10/bullseye is not good enough.

    Words to listen and repeat:

    1. tough;
    2. through; &
    3. throughout.

    These words are meant to be a challenge to say for most learners and they are deliberately classic examples of hard spelling to tie into points made later in the course. If you know your student well enough, you can choose other words. The goal is to make sure they can get there and say the words clearly.

    Here is a sample script of how this part might go:

    Teacher: OK, repeat after me, but speak slowly and as clearly as you can: "tough".
    Student: Tafu.
    Teacher: Nice one. Now give yourself a score out of 10.
    Student: Maybe a 2?
    Teacher: OK. I probably think you are a little better than that. I would give you a 5. Try again, and do your best to copy me exactly: "tough".
    Student: Taarff.
    Teacher: Much better. What score do you give yourself?
    Student: 6?
    Teacher: Don't be so harsh on yourself! I think you are about a 7 now.

    And so on. Keep going. The objective is to determine how well the student is at monitoring & mimicking. Can they hear the difference and judge fairly? Can they copy you if they try? By the end of the exercise, you should have them scoring 8s and higher. At that point, move on to the practice.

     

    The first step in your student's pronunciation journey is understanding that there is a huge range of ways to speak English, and that native speakers sometimes have a great deal of trouble understanding each other. For example, some British accents are virtually impossible to understand, even for English speakers!

    Here we want to get the student to first get away from the idea that being a native speaker means you have "good" pronunciation.

    If you speak a minor flavour of English, like me (Matthew), then you might have some story you can tell of not being understood by other native speakers because of your accent. I had a terrible time trying to order water at the Atlanta airport once.

    It's also imperative to drive home the idea that an accent is somehow bad. Everyone has one. The focus should be on clarity and making yourself understood. 

    Lastly, we want to get them used to the idea that their best chance of success is if they develop their listening skills and can hear the difference between themselves and other speakers and adjust they way they speak accordingly. 

    Practice
    1. Now that you’ve learned that good pronunciation doesn’t come from sounding like a native speaker, pick an accent you want to have. That will be your “flavor”—you want to copy that accent. 
    2. With your teacher, discuss how you want to sound. What are your goals? Your level of proficiency?

    Homework

    1. Create a SMART goal for your pronunciation; &
    2. Read why your accent may be OK.

      Your teacher in your next lesson will follow up on your homework. Remember, mastery means you cannot progress if you have not completed these tasks. 

      Practice Notes (detailed)

      Remember, SMART goals should be:

      1. specific;
      2. measurable;
      3. achievable;
      4. relevant; & 
      5. timebound.

      An example: "I want to be able to say ___ sounds clearly and consistently by the end of next month," or "I will do 10 minutes of shadowing three times a week for the next four weeks to work on my intonation."

      Note that if the student has done the Orientation Course, they should be familiar with this basic approach. If not, then maybe recommend they do the course. It will ensure they are better organised and motivated to learn. Lesson 1 in particular works on SMART goals.