(SKKN 2022) DRAWBACKS OF THE TENTH- GRADE STUDENTS AT YEN DINH 2 HIGH SCHOOL ON PRONOUNCING SOME ENGLISH FINAL SOUNDS AND HOW TO ENHANCE THEIR PRONUNCIATION SKILL THROUGH PRONUNCIATION PARTS IN LANGUAGE FOCUS LESSON

Vietnamese effort to pronounce English word- final consonants will be towards omitting, adding schwa or replacing by sounds closer to those existing in their mother-tongue.. That’s the r

TABLE OF CONTENT

1.2 Objectives and research questions of the study 1

2.5 What are drawbacks when students

pronounce English final sounds

5

I INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale

Learning another language is not easy and English is a difficult language tolearn as it is a mixture of many different languages Vietnamese learners canhave a hard time trying to learn it as there are not many similarities between

the two languages One of the biggest challenges that Sts have met is

pronunciation Vietnamese Sts have many difficulties in pronouncing English.Theoretical phonological research about final consonants in the Vietnameselanguage and English has been carried out to characterize the difficulties Datafrom Vietnamese informants were collected and analyzed, then synthesized tothe most significant problems Vietnamese effort to pronounce English word-

final consonants will be towards omitting, adding schwa or replacing by sounds

closer to those existing in their mother-tongue Results of native speakers’evaluation of Vietnamese-accented final consonants are also concluded toclarify how comprehensible informants’ pronunciation is That’s the reason I

would like to present the thesis title “Drawbacks of the the tenth-grade students

at YD2HS on pronouncing some English final sounds and how to enhance their pronunciation’s ability through pronunciation parts in language focus lessons”.

With the thesis I hope that I will contribute my little experience to help

my students like and boost their pronunciation skill in the next courses and inthe future

1.2 Objectives and research questions of the study

The major objective of the study was to solve problems of the tenth-gradestudents at YD2HS in pronouncing English final sounds This present studyaddressed these matters below:

The way students self-study on their own

The most common problems they encounter

The strategies which enhance them to get over and succeed in pronouncing English final sounds

c) What are some solutions to improve their English final pronunciation?

1.3 Scope and objects of the study

The study was designed to boost the students’ English finalsounds and change the students’ opinions of pronunciation by

encouraging them to pronounce correctly through someeffective techniques.

The study was carried out in 11 periods and the participants ofthis study were 34 students from class 10A8 at YD2HS duringthe academic year 2021-2022

1.4 Methodology of the study

Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods are used

Firstly, the study established on teacher's main activities: teaching time inthe class

Secondly, class observation has been made to catch on obstacles amongsts while they are pronouncing English final consonants Qualitative thematicanalysis was used for the examination of the data collected For observationdata, this process involved identifying and categorizing all classroom events thathappened in pronunciation classes observed, such as how the teacher instructedstudents on a new sound, how the teacher asked students to practice theirpronunciation skills, and so on The researcher transcribed and read thetranscripts to find out themes and subthemes in terms of interview data Throughthese steps, initial themes and subthemes emerged, and then they were refinedmany times before having the final framework Based on what I have collected,

I would like to give some effective ways to improve this problem

Other sources of data come from pronunciation parts from the textbooks The analysis of the data wishfully will create reliable results for theteaching of pronunciation to students at YD2HS

I also use some related thesis and books or some related information onthe Internet and from my fellows

II DEVELOPMENT 2.1 Overview of pronunciation

Pronunciation is more than 'listen and repeat' Pronunciation includesfeatures of language (vocabulary and grammar) and skills (speaking andlistening) Like vocabulary and grammar, we pronounce by noticing andunderstanding rules and patterns which lie beneath the surface of speech Forexample, if an English word has two syllables, the stress is usually on the firstsyllable for nouns and adjectives, and the second syllable for verbs Sincepronunciation is part of speaking, it is also physical To pronounce a newlanguage, we need to re-train the muscles we use to speak And pronunciationinvolves listening to how the language sounds We can practise by focusing onconnected speech while playing fragments from speech recordings

2.2 Definition of pronunciation

Pronunciation is the way in which a word or a language is spoken Thismay refer to generally agreed-upon sequences of sounds used in speaking agiven word or language in a specific dialect or simply the way a particularindividual speaks a word or language

Contested or widely mispronounced words are typically verified by thesources from which they originate, such as names of cities and towns or theword

A word can be spoken in different ways by various individuals or groups,depending on many factors, such as: the duration of the cultural exposure oftheir childhood, the location of their current residence, speech or voicedisorders, their ethnic group, their social class, or their education

2.3 Ending sounds

2.3.1: Grammar meaning

Ending sounds are the grammatical items and parts of the statement whichmake the speech clear and persuadable Grammatically, plural form, possessive,ton of tenses of verbs for the most part, merely need an addition of endingsounds Awareness of grammar or structure of language can result in moreefficient speaking Pronouncing without ending sounds, we may supersedeplural form of a noun or possessive

2.3.2 Importance and significance of pronouncing the ending sounds for both EFL learners and ESL speakers

A common error that ESL speakers make when speaking English andlearning English pronunciation is to leave out consonant sounds at the end ofwords The reason for this is simple -some languages have different rules forusing final consonants and in many languages there are fewer final consonantsused than in English In Mandarin (basic language in China) for example, the

only sounds used in final position of words are n and ng So when a Mandarin

speaker learns English, it is often difficult for them to produce the finalconsonants in words Teaching people to say the final sounds is a important forboth English pronunciation and accent reduction

Leaving out final consonants in English can make it very difficult tounderstand what we are saying, and it is also one of the major factors in makingEnglish sound heavily accented Some of the main consonant sounds speakers

leave out include: p, t, k , b, d, g, and f So, for example, if you say the word

“seat” without the final t sound, the word is changed to “see” This will

contribute to an accent and can also lead to significant misunderstandings sincethe final consonant sound is often critical to the meaning of the English word

2.3.3 Types of final sounds

a Ending Blends: -ct, -ft, -lb, -ld, -lf, -lk, -lp, -lt, -mp, -nd, -nt, -pt, -sk,

-sp, -st, & -xt

Many final blend lists you’ll find include “r-blends” like -rd and -rk

These are not included on this chart, as I believe it’s more beneficial

to teach these as bossy r vowel patterns instead

b Ending Welded Sounds: -am, -an, -all, -ang, -ank, -ing, -ink, _ong,

_onk, _ung, & _unk

c Floss Endings: ff, ll, & –ss (You could also have learners write in

-zz here, too.)

d Final /k/ Endings: –ck for short vowel words, -ke for silent e long

vowel words, -k for consonant + -k, -k for vowel team words, and –

c on the end of two-syllable words

e Digraphs, Trigraphs: ck, tch and dge for short vowel words,

-ch and -ge for vowel team or long vowel words (te-chnically –

ge would be a soft g ending, but I felt it needed to go with dge),

-ph, -sh, and -th.

f Silent Letters: silent b in lamb, silent l in half, silent l in palm, and

silent l in yolk.

2.4 The setting of the study

2.4.1 The setting of the study

This study was carried out at YD2HS Here, English is taught inclassrooms with five parts: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing and languagefocus within 37 weeks

Generally, it is normal that there are about 30 to 45 students in peerclassroom at high school They are different individuals in a class Differentindividuals may have different learning styles and different kinds of work Theywant to get different degrees of care and attention from the teacher It means thatthere are different reactions from students toward pronunciation tasks.Moreover, duration we use to teach pronunciation is very short in each lesson(only 10-15 minutes for the whole unit including all skills (listening, speaking,reading, writing and language focus) From those If teacher realizes thedifferences among individuals in the class when they create an activity, thestudents will take part in the lesson actively

2.4.2 The students’ English background and their English levels

It stands to reason that YD2HS is situated in Yen Truong commune, YenDinh district Most residents here have medium living condition even low livingcondition, so most Sts learn English with very simple ways They only learnEnglish from their teacher at school These students have medium level, fewalso have low level Others, but not large amount of Sts with good livingcondition from their parents, find out some extra ways for learning English such

as learning outside the school, using cassette, computer and cell phone to learnonline or in an English center This group of the Sts has good knowledge Itmeans that students' language level is different Therefore, teacher may havesome difficulties in choosing a suitable teaching method, language and activitywhich are used in a class

Besides, most of their families live on agriculture so that they do not havethe best conditions to learn English Moreover, they don’t have the habit ofpracticing pronunciation skill to improve their communication It is grammarthat is focused so that Ss can pass the exams

2.5 What are drawbacks when students pronounce English final sounds?

Vietnamese phonology seems to be more complicated than English, but inthe long run, this system becomes simpler and more acquisitive than English Itmay take a non-native speaker of Vietnamese two months to learn Vietnamesephonology profoundly Vietnamese is supposed to be easy to phoneticallyacquire when speakers have an efficient input, especially of the tones That isone of the reasons why Vietnamese native speakers have to deal with manyobstacles to learn foreign languages which are not relatively close to and as easy

as their language, for instance, Russian, French, English or Spanish

There has been quite a number of studies about Vietnamese’s difficulties

in pronouncing English consonants and clusters Some researcher showed thatthe data were from numerous informants, is unilateral, containing only problems

of people from the North by the confusion most obviously between /s/ and /ʃ/,/tr/ and /tʃ/, / ʒ/ and /z/ Those findings, which were mentioned in the table byCenter of Applied Linguistics (Neumann, 2007), are applicable for everyVietnamese learner as it contains all the errors that Vietnamese speakers of anyregions of the country can make They are also persuasive to linguists who havecertain knowledge about Vietnamese dialects Taking final consonants intoconsideration, for example, /t/ and /d/ at word-finally are commonly confusedwith /t/ and /d/ everywhere, whereas /p/ sound in /pop/ pop is oftenmispronounced as /bop/ Bob by Southern people and /ʃ/ sound in /push/ pushbecomes /pus/ puss by northerners It is easily seen from this data that Englishhas a number of consonants, especially final consonants and clusters that do not

exist in Vietnamese rather than vice versa As a result, pronouncing Englishfinal consonants and consonant clusters properly is one of the most difficultthings that learners have to face from the very beginning.

Vietnamese English speakers struggle with pronouncing the English

“z”, “s”, “t”, “v”, “ed”, “ks”, and “st” sounds because they have noequivalent in their native language Unfortunately, these sounds oftenappear at the end of an English language word As a result, manylearners frequently make the following errors when pronouncingEnglish ending sounds:

Not pronounce the ending sounds

The majority of English words have a final sound However, whenspeaking quickly, learners frequently cut off or forget to pronounce the endingsounds during the communication process

For example, the words /laf/ (life) and /lak/ (like) both begin with thediphthong /a/, the sound /l/

To distinguish the meanings of these two words, learners shouldemphasize the ending sound /f/ in “life” and the ending sound /k/ in “like.”Listeners may misunderstand the word lie /la/ if the final consonant is notpronounced (lie)

Not pronounce the ending /s/

This is one of the most common errors in English ending soundpronunciation In English, the “s” sound is used to express quantity as well as todistinguish the meaning of words (For plural nouns, add s, es.)

Example: pig /pɪg/- pigs /pɪgz/

Adding the final sound /s/ at random

In contrast to the second error, many learners randomly add endingsounds, particularly the /s/ sound, to the end of words This is a common erroramong new learners and those who are unfamiliar with ending sounds, becauseadding /s/ at the end makes them sound more like Westerners, more like nativespeakers

Don’t know how to read the complex of ending consonants

In addition to the ending sounds, there are more complex consonants inEnglish, such as /ks/ in the word “box” or /sts/ in the word “list,” which causelearners to twist their tongues Most learners “unintentionally” forget topronounce these complex ending consonants in order not to affect their speakingspeed when communicating

2.6 Suggestions for Sts

Consider dedicating more time to your knowledge, understanding andpractice of the physical skills necessary for good English pronunciation

So exactly how can you improve your English pronunciation? Well,

there are no quick fixes, but there certainly are some highly effective exercisesand some important points to bear in mind

Below are some tips that help Sts start using today to set them on the path

to perfect pronunciation specially the final sounds

2.6.1 Listen carefully

You can of course listen to radio broadcasts and podcasts too, butobserving mouth movements and facial expressions via visual media can reallyhelp to improve your understanding of the way words are pronounced

Also, be mindful of who you are watching Try to watch ‘good’ Englishspeakers, or speakers who are considered fluent native speakers Otherwise, youcould be learning bad or incorrect pronunciation

2.6.2 Strengthen your pronunciation skills by recording yourself

It is very important to listen to yourself when you speak By doing so, youwill pick up on words that you may be mispronouncing

The best way to do this is to make regular recordings of yourself readingdifferent texts and critique yourself to see where there is room for improvement.Admittedly, this can be challenging as it is not always easy to hear your ownvoice Try to appreciate, however, that you’re not alone – it is the same foreveryone

2.6.3 Shadowing a Foreign Language

Shadowing is a terrific language learning technique not just for practicingand improving your English pronunciation, but for any foreign language Thetechnique involves listening to and repeating individual words, phrases andsentences of native foreign speakers

One resource that is particularly helpful for this technique is ted.com,

where you can watch videos with good quality subtitles and transcripts

2.6.4 Get physical

Pronunciation is a physical skill You’re teaching your mouth a new way

to move and using different muscles Focus on difficult sounds each day Havingtrouble with ‘th’? Put your tongue between your teeth (don’t bite down) andblow air out of your mouth Feel the air move over the top of your tongue

2.6.5 Slow Down

Whenever you speak, take a deep breath and try to speak slowly.Obviously, not so slowly that you sound boring, but give your mouth the time toform each syllable and word separately

2.6.6 Practice English alone

Pronunciation problems persist because we’re afraid to make mistakes.Create scenarios – meeting someone for the first time, ordering at a restaurant,asking for directions – then act out the dialogue by yourself Don’t be shy

2.6.7 Picture it

Close your eyes and think about how to make a sound before saying it.visualize the positioning of your mouth and face If you have studied with thephonemic chart, think about the sound you are making and how it relates toother English phonemes If you have used diagrams of the mouth and tongue,think about the shape you need to make inside your mouth if you want to makethe sound correctly

2.6.8 Oral gymnastics – be aware of how your mouth moves when you speak

Try to be mindful of the way your mouth, tongue, lips, jaw and even yourface move in order to produce different sounds

Look in the mirror or take a video of yourself while speaking

Observe the shape of your mouth when specific sounds are produced.Compare these to the shape of the mouth of an English speaking personand you will soon see which shape produces the best pronunciation

Search for online guides or videos that show you the optimal mouth shapeand lip movement to produce specific sounds

Your lips and tongue are primarily concerned with consonants whereasyour mouth shapes the vowel sounds If you are struggling with vowels(a,e,i,o,u), pay more attention to the shape of your mouth when speaking Ifconsonants are your problem, watch how your lips are creating sounds

2.6.9 Constructive criticism will boost your English Pronunciation

Take constructive criticism well When somebody corrects your

mistakes, it is not meant to hurt your feelings but rather to help you

Take the moment as an opportunity and ask the person correcting you to repeat it until you get it right Most English speakers are only too happy to help you as long as you are trying and as long as you are asking them for help

Remember that the best way to learn is to imitate and then to repeat the correct pronunciation

2.6.10 Learn with the best English pronunciation dictionaries online

Here are some of the best pronunciation dictionaries you can find and useonline

2.7 Suggestions for teachers

Given the importance of pronouncing the final sounds well to maximizesuccess in and out of school, you might wonder if there are any guidelines forteaching it Here are some tips for ESL teachers to incorporate pronunciationinto the classroom