L2 pronunciation teaching and assessment A crosslinguistic study with brazilian listeners and argentinian speakers.

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Pedro Luchini
Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7692-8361
Ubiratã Kickhöfel Alves
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6694-8476

Abstract

For a long time, the teaching of the pronunciation of English as a foreign language has been marginalized from the Applied Linguistic agenda. However, driven by globalization and technological advances, pronunciation has retaken its place, as it constitutes the central focus of oral speech. To ensure effective communication, L2 pronunciation instruction has become an indispensable requirement. The purpose of this paper is to verify the extent to which L2 speech in English, produced by Argentine speakers with different levels of proficiency, affects the perceived comprehensibility of Brazilian listeners. In addition, this paper seeks to determine the degree to which pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary and discourse are related to the construct of comprehensibility. A group of Brazilian listeners assessed speech samples from Argentine speakers with different levels of linguistic competence in English, and subsequently identified the linguistic factors that had influenced their perception of comprehensibility. Significant differences among the productions of the speakers, as well as correlations between comprehensibility and pronunciation were found. Finally, some pedagogical implications are discussed and new lines of research are offered.

Item information
Published: Jun 22, 2022
Issue: No. 62 (2022): UCMaule
Section: Estudios
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29035/ucmaule.62.35
Keywords: L2 pronunciation teaching, assessment, comprehensibility, linguistic factors

Article Details

How to Cite
Luchini, P., & Alves, U. K. (2022). L2 pronunciation teaching and assessment: A crosslinguistic study with brazilian listeners and argentinian speakers. UCMaule, 62, 35-61. https://doi.org/10.29035/ucmaule.62.35
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