Just like the debate involving
accuracy and fluency, or whether correct grammar is more or less important than
vocabulary chunks, we face the question of pronunciation. At the beginning of
our Phonetics and Phonology module (May 3rd, 2013 – Online Week fromApril 26th to May 6th – Task 1), I didn’t think
pronunciation played a major role in communication and I’ll explain why. Since
there are so many different forms of English around the globe, native and
non-native included, we cannot consider only one model of English as the
correct one (for example, BBC English or American English.) Therefore, the
focus should not be pronunciation per se, but communication pure and simple.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t be possible for Chinese students learning English to
visit Scotland, or even for businessmen from different countries (let’s say
Saudi Arabia and Mexico for the sake of the argument) to negotiate and find
common ground in order to reach their agreements.
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| Pronunciation Cartoon - www3.telus.net |
On the other hand, we must remember
and acknowledge that those students aiming to be L2 teachers or even secret
agents must strive to sound native. In that case, I have to admit that correct
pronunciation teaching is much more important. The student must choose the
model he or she wants to learn and try to emulate it perfectly. After all, his
or her livelihood will depend on it.
However, in terms of communication
alone, not including those people who need to sound perfectly native, stress
and intonation play a role which is as important as grammar, vocabulary, and
pronunciation. Unlike Portuguese, which is a syllable-timed language, English
is a stress-timed language. It is also an intonation language. This means that
intonation in English is an important vehicle for meaning. It helps the
listener to get a clearer picture of what the speaker intends to get across.
Inappropriate use of intonation may mislead people, hinder communication, and
cause annoyance.
To make a long story short, I would
like to revisit and change my opinion about the importance of pronunciation
teaching. When we look at phonemes individually, the difference between thanks and tanks may not make a difference for listeners because the context
of the conversation will help them understand the speaker. Nevertheless, in
connected speech, stress and intonation play a crucial role. The way a person
speaks can make him sound polite, rude, friendly, or confused. It will also
separate questions from statements, for example. Therefore, I must say that
pronunciation and intonation teaching, contrary to what I initially believed,
is indeed an indispensable and fundamental tool to help students acquire
fluency, get their ideas across correctly, and improve their comprehension.
