Pronunciation

"If it weren't for the hands, the clock would be useless" (Polish proverb). A detailed description of the phonology of English is of no use in pronunciation teaching if it is not combined with a consideration of learners' needs, especially in a world where English is a global lingua franca. In this talk, we will explore the implications of this idea. Download the slides below - 2 PDF files.

Tonic stress is a speaker’s use of emphasis to focus a listener’s attention. It’s an aspect of the speaking skill which is often neglected, but is crucial signalling the connections between ideas in both monologues and dialogues. Here’s a quick example:

To be // or not to be

Moderator: IATEFL Pronunciation SIG Co-ordinator Wayne Rimmer

Presenters: Robin Walker, Heather Hansen, Mark Hancock

Tonicity is a speaker’s use of stress to focus a listener’s attention. It’s an aspect of pronunciation which is often neglected, but is crucial in getting meaning across. In this session we will look at ways of presenting and practicing this important skill in the language class. The slides can be downloaded below. See more about Mark's books here.

Pronunciation teaching can be fun, but in a world where English is a lingua franca, we need to take a flexible approach. We can’t simply preach a single ideal target model, instead, we must teach learners to be adaptable, both receptively and productively. In this session, I will demonstrate this. Download the slides from the talk below.