EFL teachers challenges in teaching pronunciation to young learners in phu cat district of binh dinh province

This study aims to find solutions to the challenges that EFL teachers face in teaching pronunciation to young learners.. Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English pronunciatio

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

QUY NHON UNIVERSITY

NGUYỄN CÔNG HOÀNG

EFL TEACHERS’ CHALLENGES

IN TEACHING PRONUNCIATION TO YOUNG

LEARNERS IN PHU CAT DISTRICT

OF BINH DINH PROVINCE

MASTER OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

Binh Dinh - 2022

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

QUY NHON UNIVERSITY

NGUYỄN CÔNG HOÀNG

EFL TEACHERS’ CHALLENGES

IN TEACHING PRONUNCIATION TO YOUNG

LEARNERS IN PHU CAT DISTRICT

OF BINH DINH PROVINCE

Field: Theory and Methodology of English Language Teaching

Code: 8140111

Supervisor: Trương Văn Định, Ph.D

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC QUY NHƠN

NGUYỄN CÔNG HOÀNG

NHỮNG TRỞ NGẠI CỦA GIÁO VIÊN

TRONG VIỆC DẠY PHÁT ÂM CHO HỌC SINH

Ngành: Lý luận và phương pháp dạy học bộ môn tiếng Anh

Mã số: 8140111

Người hướng dẫn: TS Trương Văn Định

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

With the tremendous guidance and assistance from professor, it has been possible for this research to be completed this thesis He has always been very helpful and dedicate with every single detail in different stages of the paper All his valuable comments and suggestions throughout the process not only helped the researcher to finish the work on time, but also brought many lessons from each time he corrected Therefore, I am very much indebted to him for all his hard work

To be able to come to this stage of the course, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to professor Truong Van Dinh whose lectures enlightened me the new concepts of English teaching and academic research

To every member of my family, who has been providing the best support during the time this research was conducted Without the love, belief, care, and encouragement from my family, this research would have not been possible Finally, I would like to extend my greatest thanks to all teachers as well

as participants, who created favorable conditions for the implementation of the study

ABSTRACT

This study is carried out on the topic "EFL TEACHERS’ CHALLENGES IN TEACHING PRONUNCIATION TO YOUNG LEARNERS IN PHU CAT DISTRICT OF BINH DINH PROVINCE" This study aims to find solutions to the challenges that EFL teachers face in teaching pronunciation to young learners In order to achieve that purpose mentioned above, the researcher had

to answer three research questions, they are "1: What are the challenges faced

by EFL teachers in teaching English pronunciation to YLs? 2: What are the causes of challenges confronted by EFL teachers in teaching English pronunciation to YLs? and 3: What are the solutions to the challenges encountered by EFL teachers in teaching English pronunciation to YLs?" The study was carried out in Phu Cat District, Binh Dinh province with the attendance of 120 teachers The researcher used a survey questionnaire and interviews to collect information from participants The researcher has also given out some important results Regarding the challenges that teachers are facing, internal and external challenges were found to cause trouble for English teachers In terms of internal challenges, lack of confidence, lack of adequate knowledge, and pedagogical problems can challenge the teaching of English pronunciation While lack of priorities; time constraints; and lack of teaching materials and resources are external challenges that teachers are facing In terms of solutions, to address these challenges, teachers also have their own ways of managing these challenges, namely seeking help from mentors, providing strategies, and helping students In general, despite certain limitations, the researcher has also solved the problems posed

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS iv

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vi

LIST OF TABLES viii

LIST OF FIGURES ix

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale of the Study 1

1.2 Aim and Objectives of the Study 2

1.2.1 Aims of the Study 2

1.2.2 Objectives of the Study 2

1.3 Research Questions 3

1.4 Scope of the Study 3

1.5 Significance of the Study 3

1.6 Organization of the Study 4

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW 5

2.1 Pronunciation 5

2.1.1 Definition of Pronunciation 5

2.1.2 Features of Pronunciation 7

2.1.3 Importance of Teaching Pronunciation 8

2.2 Young Learners and Their Characteristics 11

2.2.1 Definition of Young Learners 11

2.2.2 Cognitive Development of Young Learners 12

2.3 Challenges of Teaching Pronunciation 13

2.3.1 Teaching Pronunciation 13

2.3.2 Phonological Systems of English and Students' the first language 14 2.3.3 Challenges faced by Teachers of Teaching Pronunciation 15

2.4 Previous Studies 17

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND PROCEDURES 22

3.1 Research Methods 22

3.2 Participants 22

3.3 Data Collection Instruments 23

3.4 Data Analysis Procedure 24

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 25

4.1 Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English pronunciation to young learners 25

4.2 Causes for the challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching pronunciation to young learners 34

4.3 EFL Teachers’ Approaches to Challenges of Teaching Pronunciation 45 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 55

5.1 Summary and Implications on Teaching Pronunciation to Young Learners 55

5.1.1 Summary 55

5.1.2 Implications 55

5.2 Limitations of the Study and Suggestions for Further Study 57

5.2.1 Limitations of the Study 57

5.2.2 Suggestions for Further Study 57

REFERENCES 59 APPENDICES

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

EFL: English as a foreign language

ESL: English as a second language

YL: Young Learner

YLs: Young Learners

L1: The first language

C1: Lack of confidence

C2: Lack of pronunciation knowledge

C3: Lack of pedagogical knowledge

C4: Lack of time

C5: Lack of teaching materials and resources

C6: Lack of Priority

CC1: Afraid of making mistake to pronounce the words properly

CC2: Confusion in pronouncing the words correctly

CC3.1: Students’ reluctance to speak during the learning process

CC3.2: Pronunciation practice

CC3.3: Students’ inability to follow the pronunciation lessons

CC4: Time given for teaching English is not enough

CC5: Teaching materials are limited and not really suitable for the students CC6: Teaching pronunciation is not emphasized in school

S1: Prepare and plan for lesson by confirming the correct pronunciation of

words before class

S2.1: Asking help from mentor

S2.2: Referring to offline dictionary in mobile phone

S2.3: Watching related videos on YouTube and listening to English songs S3.1: Having one-to-one session with the students

S3.2: Selecting students randomly so that they come prepared

S3.3: Monitoring the students one by one during the practice

S3.4: Setting a rule on speaking only English during English lessons

S3.5: Using interesting and integrating suitable videos in the lesson

S3.6: Conducting more group activities

S4: Integrating pronunciation teaching in the teaching of other skills S5: Using online sources on creative ways in teaching pronunciation S6: Asking help from mentor

LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1: Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English

pronunciation to young learners 25 Table 4.2: Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English

pronunciation to young learners 26 Table 4.3: Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English

pronunciation to young learners 28 Table 4.4: Causes for the challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching

pronunciation to young learners 34 Table 4.5: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching

pronunciation to young learners 36 Table 4.6: Causes for the challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching

pronunciation to young learners 37 Table 4.7: EFL teachers’ approaches to challenges of teaching pronunciation 45 Table 4.8: EFL teachers’ approaches to challenges of teaching pronunciation 47

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1: Features of Pronunciation - Gerald Kelley (2000, p.1) 7 Figure 2.2: Various Features of English Pronunciation

- Burns (2003, p.20) 8 Figure 4.1: Internal challenges of teaching pronunciation 29 Figure 4.2: External challenges of teaching pronunciation 32 Figure 4.3: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teacher of teaching

pronunciation - Lack of confidence 39 Figure 4.4: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teacher of teaching

pronunciation - Lack of pronunciation knowledge 40 Figure 4.5: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teacher of teaching

pronunciation - Lack of pedagogical knowledge 41 Figure 4.6: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teacher of teaching

pronunciation - Lack of time 42 Figure 4.7: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teacher of teaching

pronunciation - Lack of teaching materials and resources 43 Figure 4.8: Causes of the challenges faced by EFL teacher of teaching

pronunciation - Lack of Priority 44 Figure 4.9: Solutions to the challenges of teaching pronunciation

- Lack of confidence 49 Figure 4.10: Solutions to the challenges of teaching pronunciation

- Lack of pronunciation knowledge 50 Figure 4.11: Solutions to the challenges of teaching pronunciation

- Lack of pedagogical knowledge 51 Figure 4.12: Solutions to the challenges of teaching pronunciation

- Lack of time 52

Figure 4.13: Solutions to the challenges of teaching pronunciation

- Lack of teaching materials and resources 53 Figure 4.14: Solutions to the difficulties of teaching pronunciation

- Lack of Priority 53

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale of the Study

Pronunciation plays an important role in communication process because mispronunciation can lead to misunderstanding and worsen the effect of the conversation The idea is shared by Aliaga García (2007, p.p 1-5); Martínez-Flor et al (2016, p.p 139-157); Pourhosein Gilakjani (2016, p.p 314-326) who claimed that English pronunciation is one of the most difficult skills to acquire and learners should spend lots of time to improve their pronunciation Morley (1991, p.p 51-74) indicated that understandable pronunciation is a main objective of pronunciation instruction This is a necessary component of communicative competence It is emphasized by Morley that learners should develop functional intelligibility, functional communicability, increased self- confidence, the speech monitoring abilities, and speech modification strategies Pronunciation is the process of making the sound of speech Pronunciation includes three components: stress, vocalization, and intonation Stress shows the emphasis of the syllables of a word Vocalization mention to the movement

of the teeth, lips, and tongue to change the sound produced Intonation refers to the rising or falling of a sound Pronunciation skills are linked to speaking, listening, and reading abilities Bad pronunciation can have a negative impact

on those abilities For examples, people can not understand the meaning of the words if they do not recognize the essential sounds or words from the speaker

It has also happened to students, if they do not know how to pronounce correctly, their partners or teachers will be unable to grasp what they are saying

In fact, at school, especially primary school little attention is paid to teaching pronunciation At this level, teachers only teach vocabulary, reading,

and basic grammar Sometimes, teachers overlook some words because they are not sure how to pronounce them It is for this reason that students have few opportunities to learn pronunciation They often make mispronunciation It means they cannot learn pronunciation by themselves because they are not motivated in learning English Besides, teachers lack knowledge about cognitive development, motivation and attention is also a challenge of teaching pronunciation to students

In the researcher’s observation, students still make mistakes in their pronunciation and teachers still have many challenges of teaching pronunciation Although many researchers have investigated the pronunciation issues that EFL teachers face when teaching English, no study has conducted

on challenges faced by high school teachers in Binh Dinh province For those

reasons, the researcher decides to conduct the research “EFL Teachers’ Challenges in Teaching Pronunciation to Young Learners in Phu Cat District, Binh Dinh province.”

1.2 Aim and Objectives of the Study

1.2.1 Aims of the Study

The present study aims to examine EFL teachers’ perceptions about the challenges in teaching English pronunciation to young Vietnamese learners

1.2.2 Objectives of the Study

To achieve the aim, the study focuses on the following objectives:

- To identify the EFL teachers’ challenges in teaching English pronunciation to young Vietnamese learners

- To identify the reported causes of the challenges faced by EFL in teaching pronunciation

- To identify the teachers’ suggested or reported solutions to their own

problems

1.3 Research Questions

Based on the aim and objectives of the study, this research will seek to

answer the following research questions:

1 What are the challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English pronunciation to young learners?

2 What are the causes of the challenges confronted by EFL teachers of teaching English pronunciation to young learners?

3 What are the teachers’ reported solutions to their own challenges in teaching English pronunciation to young Vietnamese learners?

1.4 Scope of the Study

The study will be conducted to find out EFL teachers’ challenges of teaching pronunciation to primary and secondary school students in Phu Cat District, Binh Dinh province Due to the limited time, ability and research conditions, the study focuses only on teaching English pronunciation with two standard accents predominantly used in English textbooks, they are British RP (Received Pronunciation) and GA (General American), not on other cases of accents like Canadian English, Indian English, and so on

1.5 Significance of the Study

Theoretically, the study not only helps to perfect the theories about theory and methodology of language teaching but also proposes some approaches to the challenges posed by the teaching of an aspect of a language

Practically, the findings of the study help teachers to be aware of challenges that they face in teaching pronunciation This study also helps them with some solutions to these problems Also, curriculum designing will be facilitated in

terms of providing appropriate tasks to assist students in the mastery of English pronunciation

1.6 Organization of the Study

The research is divided into five chapters:

Chapter 1; Introduction, presents the rationale, the aim and objectives, the

research questions, the scope, the significance, and the organization of the thesis It states the reason why the author decided to choose this study and provides the methodology for the fulfillment of the study

Chapter 2; Theoretical Background and Literature Review, synthesizes

and analyses related documents on the theory of teaching and learning pronunciation to YLs Also in this chapter, the previous researches on challenges of teaching pronunciation to YLs will be mentioned

Chapter 3; Research Methods, presents the methods that the study is

handled It also shows the research questions Additionally, this chapter supplies the research design and the participants of the study, data-collection instruments, and the procedure of data analysis of conducting the research

Chapter 4; Findings and Discussions, presents and analyzes all the

collected data to find out the answers to the research questions

Chapter 5; Conclusion, gives the result of answering the research questions

and points out limitations as well as suggestions for further research

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND

LITERATURE REVIEW

Teaching pronunciation and the challenges of teaching pronunciation have gotten a lot of attention from language teachers and researchers in the field of foreign language acquisition Investigations into language learning strategies attempt to identify, describe, and classify specific language learning strategies use by EFL learners to facilitate their own learning This literature review part will show the definition, features and the importance of pronunciation teaching The definition and characteristics of YLs are also mentioned Also, this chapter provides a thorough review of prominent theoretical background on teaching pronunciation to YLs This review is finished with the goal of showing a theoretical foundation for an investigation into teaching pronunciation challenges by teachers in Binh Dinh province, especially the solutions that help them to solve the challenges of teaching pronunciation

2.1 Pronunciation

2.1.1 Definition of Pronunciation

Although it can be said that pronunciation is not the most important aspect

of FL learning it needs to be acknowledged that without adequate or intelligible pronunciation, we would not be able to get our messages across when interacting with others in the FL There are different ways of defining

“Pronunciation”, depending on the different views of the authors

According to (Dalton & Seidlhofer, 1994, p.p784 -785) “pronunciation is the action of producing sounds of speech to communicate a message” For this reason, possessing a good pronunciation of the FL is vital in oral communication In addition, it is important to recognize that foreign language students must aim at developing a good pronunciation, but this does not mean

that they have to sound exactly like a native speaker Rather, FL speakers need

to be understood in the target language (Celce-Murcia, Brinton, & Goodwin,

1996, p 36) Therefore, the focus on pronunciation needs to be considered as a crucial aspect in FL programs since, as research has shown, some errors will probably never disappear entirely Littlewood (1984) asserts that “such errors are often described as fossilized, meaning that they become permanent features

of the learner’s speech” (p.34)

Hornby (7th edition) (2000) defines that “Pronunciation is the way in which

a language or a particular word or sound is pronounced, or it is the way in which a particular person pronounces the words of a language” (p.1209)

Yates and Zielinski (2009) point out that “Pronunciation refers to how we

produce the sounds that we use to make meaning when we speak It includes the particular consonants and vowels of a language (segments), aspects of speech beyond the level of the individual segments, such as stress, timing rhythm, intonation, phrasing, (suprasegmental aspects), and how the voice is projected (voice quality) Although we often talk about these as if they were separate, they all work together in combination when speak, so that difficulties

in one area may impact on another, and it is the combined result that makes someone’s pronunciation easy or difficult to understand” (p.11)

Richard and Schmidt (2010) defines that “Pronunciation is the way certain

sound or sounds are produced” (p.469) One of the most important factors in

determining the effectiveness of a conversation is pronunciation

Harmer (2001) emphasizes that “When we are speaking, we construct

words and phrases with individual sounds, and we also use pitch change, intonation, and stress to convey different meanings” (p.28) The author also

showed that pronunciation is the way the sounds of a language are produced,

the way of words and sentences are placed, and the way pitch and intonation are used to convey our feeling and meaning

2.1.2 Features of Pronunciation

As English becomes more widely used for international communication, it

is critical that English speakers, whether native or non-native, are able to exchange meaning efficiently

According to Gerald Kelley (2000, p.1), the main features of pronunciation include the elements shown in Figure 2.1:

Figure 2.1: Features of Pronunciation - Gerald Kelley (2000, p.1)

Figure 1 helps us to know the features of pronunciation, which allows us

to know how pronunciation works and what its constituent parts are Among these features, stress and intonation are two important features in English It also focuses on how the sounds change in connected speech

As English increasingly becomes the language used for international communication, it is vital that speakers of English, whether they are native or non-native speakers, are able to exchange meaning effectively In fact, in recent

discussions of English-language teaching, the unrealistic idea that learners should sound and speak like native speakers is fast disappearing (Burns, 2003,

p 20) As explained by Burns (2003, p.20), it is more important that speakers

of English can achieve “Intelligibility” (the speaker produces sound patterns that are recognizable as English); “Comprehensibility” (the listener is able to understand the meaning of what is said) and “Interpretability” (the listener is able to understand the purpose of what is said) The various features that make

up the production of sounds in English are illustrated in figure 2.2:

Figure 2.2: Various Features of English Pronunciation - Burns (2003, p.20)

2.1.3 Importance of Teaching Pronunciation

Pronunciation plays an important role in communication It decides the meaning that speakers want listeners to know

On the word of Tench (1981, p.1), pronunciation is not an optional extra for the language learner, any more than grammar, vocabulary or any other aspect of language is If a learner’s general aim is to talk intelligibly to others

in another language, a reasonable pronunciation in important

As stated by Elliot (1995, p.p 530-542), pronunciation is one of the most important features of an individual’s speech, but a lot of teachers do not explicitly teach it It is seldom taught by teachers in the foreign language classrooms In addition, it is one of the most difficult challenges that language teachers and learners face If teachers understand the characteristics that impact their learners’ pronunciation, they can effectively improve their instruction to increase the accuracy of their learners’ pronunciation

According to Morley (1998, p.p 20-23), when speakers talk to other persons, the first thing that can create good impression about the quality of their language ability is their pronunciation Bad and incomprehensible pronunciation will make misunderstanding for both speakers and listeners Moreover, learners with limited pronunciation skills lose their self-confidence and result in negative impact for learners to assess their abilities

As indicated by Fraser (2000, p.7), pronunciation has an impact on speakers who are judged by others, and it is the most challenging skill to learn Fraser (2000, p.7) states that pronunciation is the most important oral communication skill Miller (2004) believes that pronunciation should be balanced with all of the other communication skills Miller maintains that teachers have a big role

in developing this important skill According to Fraser (2000, p.7), being able

to speak English involves certain subskills such as vocabulary, grammar, and pragmatics However, the most important of these skills is pronunciation With acceptable pronunciation, a speaker’s speech can be understandable despite having other mistakes; with bad pronunciation, his/her speech would be very difficult to understand, despite being accurate in other areas Julia (2002, p.8) stated that pronunciation is one of the basic skills and the foundation of oral communication for EFL learners Julia (2002, p.8) continued that without pronunciation there would be no spoken language and no oral communication

Gelvanovsky (2002, p.2) declared that pronunciation has a high social value and should be linked to attributes such as intelligence, professional competence, hard work, and social benefit Pronunciation is the most essential attribute of non-native speakers since it offers information about their geographical and social qualities

Good pronunciation can make individuals understand us easily Bad pronunciation can confuse persons and lead to an unfavorable talking and misunderstanding even if we use advanced grammar or vocabulary Consequently, we can use simple words or grammatical structures to make people understand us but we cannot always use simple pronunciation (Lund, 2003)

As stated by Wei (2006, p.22), pronunciation takes a special position in English language learning; therefore, EFL learners have to improve their pronunciation since it influences directly their communicative competence He further highlights that any lack in speaking skill limits the learners‟ communicative ability because it is the first thing that is evaluated from a person’s speech

Yates and Zielinski (2009, p.19) point out that pronunciation is important because it does not matter how strong a learner's vocabulary or grammar is if

no one can hear them when they speak A learner must also have a practical knowledge of the sounds, rhythms, and cadences of English, as well as how they fit together in connected speech, to be understood Learners with good pronunciation will be understood even if they make mistakes elsewhere, but those with confusing pronunciation will stay unintelligible even if they use a large vocabulary and perfect grammar Furthermore, people are likely to conclude they don't speak English well, and even worse, that they are incompetent or unintelligent

The aim of teaching pronunciation to learners is not to ask them to pronounce like native speakers Instead, intelligible pronunciation should be the real purpose of oral communication As spoken by Pourhosein Gilakjani (2012, p 126) stated that the ability of speakers to speak English can be judged based on their own English pronunciation Pronunciation issues can have a negative impact on a person's language ability Mispronunciation causes misunderstandings and can stymie communication On the contrary, good pronunciation allows listeners to judge speakers’ language ability easily and effectively, even if they make numerous grammatical errors

According to Jones (2018, p.p 370-384), pronunciation is an important aspect of effective oral communication

2.2 Young Learners and Their Characteristics

2.2.1 Definition of Young Learners

As far as we concerned, there are many definitions regarding the young

learners Richard and Schmidt (2010) define that “in language teaching,

children of pre-primary and primary school age” (p 643) Phillips (1993, p.3)

defines that “Young Learners as those aged between five and twelve years old”

As being defined by Scott and Ytreberg (1990, p.1), they classified young learners into two groups: level one is for children aged 5-7 years old, and level

two is for children aged 8-10 years old According to Slatterly and Willis (2001,

cited in Shin 2007, p 4), YL are the students of the elementary school from the age of 7-12 years old

From the definitions of some prominent authors mentioned above, it can be seen that YL is a relatively small age group, ranging from 5-12 years old, and most of them belong to primary and secondary schools In this study, the author also conducted a study on challenges of teaching English pronunciation by

teachers to young students, YLs are students who ages range from 5 to 15

2.2.2 Cognitive Development of Young Learners

Even a few years of age difference in children means significant progress

in their physical and cognitive development “As children mature, they bring more intellectual, motor, and social skills to the classroom, as well as a wider knowledge of the world” (Philips, 1993, p.3) When we compare YLs with Very Young Learners, learners ages seven to twelve are reasonably mature with

an adult side and a juvenile side (Scott and Ytreberg, 1990, p.1)

They also pay attention to language development: “Children aged eight to ten have a language that has all of the basic pieces in place They are proficient

in their mother tongue and, as a result, are cognizant of the main rules of syntax

in their native languages” (Scott and Ytreberg, 1990, p.1) However, even when using mother tongue, teachers cannot rely on the spoken word only Their speech should be supported by various visual aids, objects, and realia

What children can or cannot do at different ages is related to both their physical and cognitive development Most of these changes occur during the

primary school years (Philips, 1993, p.3) stated that “the years at primary

school are extremely important in children’s intellectual, physical, emotional, and social development They go through a series of stages, progressively acquiring skills that are thought necessary by the society they live in”

In the book “Language and Children – Making the Match”, Curtain and Pesola

cited the statement of Wadsworth, who studied Piaget's developmental stage theory:

“The child develops cognitively through active involvement with environment, and each step-in development builds on and becomes integrated with previous steps.”

Because two of the four developmental stages usually occur throughout primary school, language teachers working with children should be aware of the features of

each cognitive stage” (Curtain et al, 1988, p.138)

According to (Curtain et al, 1988, p.138), the stage of concrete operation involves children aged seven to eleven They can gradually apply logical thinking to concrete issues throughout this time Learners may be able to work effectively with their peers, but they may be hesitant to interact with children

of the opposite gender They learn best through practical learning experience and the use of context The stage of formal operations is the final level, which comprises youngsters aged eleven to fifteen years old and older Children's cognitive structures are fully matured throughout these years, and they can apply logical thinking to a wide range of challenges At this age, having a strong self-image, positive relationships, independence, and a sense of belonging to a peer group are necessary

Piaget's cognitive development hypothesis is essential not only for language teaching but for all teaching Piaget brought us closer to children and helped us better comprehend their world by distinguishing developmental phases

2.3 Challenges of Teaching Pronunciation

Teaching English with any skills has its own initial difficulties In the field

of teaching pronunciation to YLs have attempted to help language learners and teachers identify the issues they face

2.3.1 Teaching Pronunciation

The question of how to teach pronunciation has attracted scholarly attention

in order to design methods and teaching techniques Some experts in language teaching claim that teachers have to set their learners in real communicative situations through providing students with cues from native speakers‟ speech,

so that it helps them in catching the appropriate pronunciation and develops the auditory side because many EFL learners find it difficulty in understanding

native speakers Thereby, learners move from concentrating on how to imitate the native speakers‟ accent, which is impossible to achieve at their age, into creating their own English On the other hand, some experts prefer to use the learner-centered approach The latter attempts to teach learners to practice what they need in real life situations; for this reason, teachers can depend on it to develop teaching techniques to communicate with learners in a way that can be helpful to teach them correct pronunciation Henceforth, they can develop a critical thinking in their learners that guides them to select what is appropriate

to improve their pronunciation

Accordingly, Morley (1991, p.p 51-74) observes that the ultimate goal of pronunciation is the ability to communicate in a realistic situation and being understood by other speakers, i.e., “with good pronunciation, a speaker is intelligible despite other errors; with poor pronunciation, a speaker can be very difficult to understand, despite accuracy in other areas” Fraser (2000, p.7)

In the same of view, Tench (1981, p.1) believed that pronunciation is not

an optional extra for the language learner, any more than grammar, vocabulary

or any other aspect of language is If a learner’s general aim is to talk intelligibly

to others in another language, a reasonable pronunciation in important

2.3.2 Phonological Systems of English and Students' the first language

Several works have been conducted on the influence of L1 in learning English language

Wilkins (1972, p.199) observes that when learning a foreign language, a person is already familiar with his/her mother tongue, and it is this which s/he tries to transfer The transfer may prove to be acceptable because the construction of the two languages is similar - in that case we get “positive transfer” or “facilitation”- or it may prove baseless because the structure of the

two languages is dissimilar in that case we get “negative transfer” or

“interference”

Second language learners appear to accumulate structural entities of the target language but demonstrate difficulty in organizing this knowledge into appropriate, coherent structures When speaking the target language, learners tend to rely on their native language (L1) structures to produce a response If the structures of the two languages are distinctly different, then one could expect a relatively high frequency of errors to occur in L2, thus indicating an interference of L1 on L2 Dulay et al (1982, p.25) defines interference as “the automatic transfer, due to habit, of the surface structure of the first language onto the surface of the target language.”

Bertrán (1999, p.p 103-130) indicated that English is a stress-timed language that emphasizes stress, intonation, and rhythm more than other languages Because of the various system, it is difficult for students whose L1

is a syllable-timed language - such as French, Turkey, Singaporean English, Malaysian English, and Indonesian - to follow English pronunciation

In syllable-timed language, Gilakjani and Ahmadi (2011, p.p 74-83) named

“all syllables are nearly equally stressed, vowel reduction does not occur, and all syllables appear to take the same amount of time to utter” And as we all know; Vietnamese is also called the syllable-timed language

2.3.3 Challenges faced by Teachers of Teaching Pronunciation

2.3.3.1 Teachers negative view point about teaching pronunciation

Foote et al (2011, p.p 1-22) showed that teachers do not like or neglect to give pronunciation instructions because they believe “listening-speaking, grammar, reading, and writing” are more important than pronunciation Foreign language instruction generally focuses on four main areas of development:

listening, speaking reading and writing Foreign language curricula emphasize pronunciation in the first year of study as it introduces the target language’s alphabet and sound system, but rarely continues this focus past the introductory level Lack of emphasis on pronunciation development may be due to a general lack of fervor on the part of the second language acquisition researchers, second language teachers and students, that pronunciation of a second language is not very important (Elliot, 1995, p.p 530-542) Pennington (1994, p.p 92-108) maintains that pronunciation which is typically viewed as a component of linguistic rather than conversational fluency, is often regarded with little importance in a communicatively oriented classroom (Elliot, 1995, p.p 530-542)

According to Elliot (1995, p.p 530-542), teachers tend to view pronunciation as the least useful of the basic language skills and therefore they generally sacrifice teaching pronunciation in order to spend valuable class time

on other areas of language Or maybe, teachers feel justified neglecting pronunciation believing that for adult foreign language learners, it is more difficult to attain target language pronunciation skills than other facets of second language acquisition Teachers just do not have the background or tools

to properly teach pronunciation and therefore it is disregarded (Elliot, 1995, p.p 530-542)

2.3.3.2 Lack of pronunciation materials

According to Derwing (2008, p.p 347-369), it is so difficult to obtain reference pronunciation materials that are acceptable for students’ learning It

is not difficult to get grammar or reading than pronunciation references Many pronunciation materials focus primarily on segmental characteristics (phonemes), ignoring supra segmental elements (syllable, word stress, phrasing, intonation, and so on)

Nangimah (2020, p.p 24-39) stated that “It is difficult for teachers to get suitable materials if the available textbooks only provide segmental features yet their workload is excessive Let us see a case of English teachers at Senior High School in Indonesia They have 42-hour-teaching activities and 10-hour-administration job per week They also have family and children to concern about English teachers should prepare teaching materials by themselves if they want to teach pronunciation due to the lack of its material in textbooks The English textbooks provided by the ministry of education that we used only provide word list along with its phonemes Some teachers do not have a chance

to prepare suitable pronunciation materials for students; others prefer to focus

on skills needed for final examination.”

other traditional materials are still the most commonly used by teachers, but websites are also frequently mentioned by teachers The teachers also appear

to have discovered ways to use websites that are not specifically designed for language learning According to the findings of this study, teaching phonetic symbols appears to be a contentious issue in pronunciation instruction In their responses to open-ended questions about teaching learners to recognize and write phonetic symbols, respondents expressed opposing views, with some seeing it as an essential skill for a language learner and others seeing it as a source of confusion in the learning process

Another study on the difficulties in teaching pronunciation done by Daff - Alla (2017, p.p 75-82) on the topic “Difficulties Encountered by EFL Students

in Learning Pronunciation: A Case Study of Sudanese Higher Secondary Schools”, in the study 35 students and 50 teachers were randomly selected from different schools in Northern Kordofan State to answer the questionnaire The data was collected via the questionnaire and the recording test, which were designed to provide an accurate assessment of the difficulties that EFL teachers and students have in acquiring pronunciation The findings revealed that students face numerous challenges when learning pronunciation, including stress and intonation being the most common issues, the mother tongue having

a negative impact on the pronunciation process, and the syllabus requiring numerous changes to accommodate learning pronunciation

In a conducted study by Loc & Newton (2020, p.p 1-20) on the topic

"Pronunciation Teaching in Tertiary EFL Classes: Vietnamese Teachers' Beliefs and Practices" In the authors' view, previous studies on English as a Second Language (ESL) contexts have shown that pronunciation teaching is underestimated and often overlooked even in published textbooks and classroom practice by teachers, despite growing research evidence on the

effectiveness of structured phonics instruction Therefore, Nguyen & Newton (2020, p 1-20) expanded their research on this topic to the context of English

as a Foreign Language (EFL) which has not been clearly analyzed so far, namely tertiary level EFL in Vietnam This study investigated on the beliefs and pronunciation teaching practices of six EFL teachers at a Vietnamese university The data includes nonparticipating observations and video recordings of twelve 45-minute EFL lessons taught by these teachers Classroom observations were followed by individual interviews involving stimulating recall and general questions about beliefs and attitudes related to teaching pronunciation The interviews were transcribed and translated into English for content-based analysis The results show that teachers' pronunciation teaching is often unplanned and reactive, involving corrective feedback through re-reading and/or prompting in response to learners' pronunciation errors for segmentation features Research has also shown that teachers' lack of initial training and specialized learning opportunities in pronunciation pedagogy and contextual factors seem to have limited their pronunciation teaching

More recently, in Vietnam, many studies have been carried out to find out the challenges of teaching pronunciation that teachers face both segmentally and suprasegmentally

Some studies have shown that learners' caution can pose another challenge

to pronunciation pedagogy in an Asian context like Vietnam This characteristic stems from a cultural and educational discourse where questioning older people and authority figures can be seen as socially inappropriate behavior As a result, when investigating learners' perceptions of pronunciation feedback, Phuong and Phuong (2019) found that Vietnamese learners are afraid to ask teachers for help with aspects of English pronunciation

that they are currently learning Need help And this can also be seen as a big challenge for teachers

According to Phuong (2020) in the article about "Constraints of

Pronunciation Teaching in Vietnam: Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices", In

Vietnam, English pronunciation is often avoided or poorly pronounced The factors that may contribute to this avoidance, however, have not been studied

to date The extent to which Vietnamese teachers respond to these difficulties remains low Although this knowledge is extremely important to inform educational administrators and policy makers about the support teachers should

be provided to improve pronunciation pedagogy in Vietnam and similar contexts, but teachers' reasons for this have not been considered

Typically, a study carried out by Nguyen et al (2021, p 1-11 on Vietnamese EFL learners’ pronunciation needs The data for this study was gathered through document analysis, classroom observations, and interviews with teachers and students as part of a larger research effort The study was done with 14 teachers and 24 students to join in the research The qualitative data was analyzed by using the content-based approach to collect data The finding

of the study revealed a number of problems According to them pronunciation

is the most important skill, and they pointed out the challenges in teaching and learning pronunciation faced both segmental and suprasegmental features, including intonation, final sounds, linking, sentence stress, and long and short vowels The students expressed a strong desire for pronunciation instruction to

be included as an essential component of English learning It is likely that Vietnamese EFL teachers will support from combining pronunciation into their language classrooms at all levels

Therefore, the present study will be carried out to address specific purposes such as:

- To investigate the challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching pronunciation

- To determine the causes of challenges faced by EFL of teaching pronunciation

- To figure out the solutions to the challenges that EFL teachers face of teaching pronunciation

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND

PROCEDURES

The research aims to examine the challenges that teachers face of their teaching English pronunciation to Young Learners Based on the foregoing explanation, the following research questions will be addressed:

3.1 Research Methods

A mixed methods approach was used in this study For this study, the researcher collected quantitative data from the questionnaire and then used the interview findings as qualitative data to back up the quantitative results For the interview, after completing the survey questions, a number of teachers were selected to answer an interview questions related to the solutions to the challenges of teaching pronunciation For absolute confidentiality, the answers were carefully recorded to ensure that the information provided by the interviewee is complete and accurate

A survey questionnaire was designed to collect quantitative data To collect qualitative data, the semi-interview was conducted The respondents were chosen based on their teaching experience of teaching students at schools Therefore, they were able to provide feedback on their experience in teaching pronunciation Their practical teaching experience is of benefit to this study because they help to share their thoughts and experience related to the teaching

consisted of 20 male teachers (16,7%) and 100 female teachers (83,3%), who all have Bachelor’ degrees in English Language Teaching Education and have been teaching at High School from three to thirty years

3.3 Data Collection Instruments

In this research, a survey questionnaire was designed to examine the challenges frequently faced by teachers as data collection instrument since using survey questionnaires is one of the most common methods of collecting data from a large group of participants One of the most significant advantages

of survey questionnaires is their capacity to provide researchers with a large amount of valuable data in a short period of time (in comparison with individual interview) Another advantage of utilizing questionnaires is that they may be sent in a variety of ways, including by email, phone, and hard copy, giving the researcher a lot of freedom in the data collection process Last but not least, all personal information in the survey questionnaires will be kept private so that the informants will be able to provide accurate responses As a result, the major instrument utilizes in this research will be a questionnaire, which will be determined to be the best technique to determine the challenges in teaching pronunciation in our context

The questionnaire was divided into two parts (Internal challenges of teaching pronunciation and External challenges of teaching pronunciation) The participants are asked to identify each statement related to the challenges that they face in teaching pronunciation to Young Learners These items were classified on a five-point Linkert scale like (1) strongly disagree; (2) disagree; (3) undecided; (4) agree; (5) strongly agree In order to create the best possible questionnaire for the survey, The 5-point 6-item questionnaire, which were adapted from the study by Hayati A Majid (2008) and Norbazila Mohd Asikin (2020) was conducted

The questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data and semi-structured interviews are used to gather qualitative data The researcher conducted interviews with the participants The interviews were semi-structured and informal The questionnaire was designed in the respondents’ native language During the interview, the researcher used the participants’ mother tongue to provide the participants with the opportunity to express their own ideas

A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the validity of the interview questions and the questionnaire in answering the study's stated research question Additionally, it was done to make sure that the respondents could understand the questions on the questionnaire and in the interview In the pilot study, ten teachers were given the questionnaire and conducted interviews After receiving feedback from the respondents, changes were made to the questions to further improve their clarity The changes mostly focused on the appropriateness of the language used in the questionnaire and interview questions

3.4 Data Analysis Procedure

After the survey questionnaire was collected, the answers were analyzed with the help of a software package, the “Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) With the interview, the researcher used digital tools to record the participants’ answers or take note in a notebook, and the data were analyzed by using qualitative data analysis

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Challenges faced by EFL Teachers of Teaching English Pronunciation

to Young Learners

Through the analysis of the collected data, the author finds that teachers face a number of identified challenges and the magnitude of these challenges

is shown in table 4.1.1; table 4.1.2 and table 4.1.3 below

Table 4.1: Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English pronunciation to

22 59 14 10 15 120

3 Lack of pedagogical knowledge

22 15 25 22 36 120

6 Priority in teaching 32 38 16 17 17 120

Table 4.2: Challenges faced by EFL teachers of teaching English pronunciation to

in pronouncing words properly

n knowledge

2.1 Confusion in pronouncing words correctly

3.1 Students’

reluctance to speak during lessons

%

4.1 Time given for teaching English is not enough

5.1 Teaching materials are limited and not really suitable for students

6.1 Teaching pronunciation is not emphasized in schools