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Input and context-related factors identified by research as key success variables in L2 pronunciation development in immersion contexts play a very modest role in instructed foreign language (FL) learning environments. Scarce L2 exposure and use and L1-accented input make pronunciation learning extremely challenging. Current L2 speech learning models attribute difficulties in L2 speech acquisition to L2-to-L1 perceptual sound mappings guided by L1-based perception and poor phonological awareness and noticing of cross-language phonetic differences, which are typically not adequately addressed in instruction through pedagogic tasks. Explicit and incidental pronunciation teaching methods have been found effective at improving learners’ pronunciation, but ways to integrate them into communicative approaches to language teaching are still largely unexplored. Thus, language education practices currently lack a research-informed pedagogical approach that incorporates principles of L2 speech learning and task-based language teaching (TBLT) into pronunciation instruction. This article (1) presents an outline of new avenues for research and practice in L2 pronunciation instruction and (2) reports on the findings of an empirical study that implemented a task-based pronunciation teaching (TBPT) approach to teaching a difficult L2 vowel contrast through computerized collaborative map tasks that could be easily integrated into communicative FL classrooms.

This study explores the effect of explicit pronunciation instruction on enlarging listening vocabulary size. 115 learners of English as a foreign language were recruited and received ten-week explicit pronunciation instruction on segments and four pronunciation skills (reduction, elision, intrusion and assimilation). How the instruction was carried out was described in details and pre-test and post-test were carried out in the form of Listening Vocabulary Levels Test. It was found that after the explicit pronunciation instruction, learners’ listening vocabulary size displayed a remarkable increase, smaller individual differences were displayed and significant difference was found between the scores of two tests. Possible reasons were provided for these changes. The result indicated that explicit pronunciation instruction could be an effective way to help students enlarge listening vocabulary size and it might be more effective for students with lower proficiency level. Pedagogical implications in terms of course design, teaching practices, and teacher development were also provided to improve future listening vocabulary acquisition and instruction.

To ascertain whether pronunciation instruction can help adult Korean learners of English improve their intelligibility, this study conducted a quasi-experimental study by teaching ten pronunciation rules in Yoo (2011) to two groups of students taking a conversation class in a two-year college in Seoul. The results of the study revealed that the progress made by participants was statistically significant, albeit the increase in intelligibility was relatively small. Of the ten rules, the reduction of unstressed vowels to schwa was perceived to be most helpful for both speaking and listening, while the least helpful was the deletion of /h/ and /v/ in have in sentences such as I should have done that. The flapping rule was perceived to be most helpful for speaking, followed by the pronunciation of /tr/ and /dr/ in words such as truck and dry and the deletion of /n/ after /t/ in words such as international. As for pronunciation instruction in general, participants seem to possess a conflicting attitude for improving their pronunciation. On the one hand, they are eager to improve their pronunciation, even to the degree of native-like pronunciation; on the other hand, they recognize that improving pronunciation may be difficult because of their age.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays an increasingly important role in language education; however, the trends, research issues, and applications of AI in language learning remain largely under-investigated. Accordingly, the present paper, using bibliometric analysis, investigates these issues via a review of 516 papers published between 2000 and 2019, focusing on how AI was integrated into language education. Findings revealed that the frequency of studies on AI-enhanced language education increased over the period. The USA and Arizona State University were the most active country and institution, respectively. The 10 most popular topics were: (1) automated writing evaluation; (2) intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) for reading and writing; (3) automated error detection; (4) computer-mediated communication; (5) personalized systems for language learning; (6) natural language and vocabulary learning; (7) web resources and web-based systems for language learning; (8) ITS for writing in English for specific purposes; (9) intelligent tutoring and assessment systems for pronunciation and speech training; and (10) affective states and emotions. The results also indicated that AI was frequently used to assist students in learning writing, reading, vocabulary, grammar, speaking, and listening. Natural language processing, automated speech recognition, and learner profiling were commonly applied to develop automated writing evaluation, personalized learning, and intelligent tutoring systems.

The current study presents two meta-analyses to explore what underlies the assessment and teaching of comprehensible and nativelike pronunciation among English-as-a-Second-Language speakers. In Study 1, listener studies (n = 37) were retrieved examining the influence of segmental, prosodic, and temporal features on listeners’ intuitive judgements of comprehensibility and nativelikeness/accentedness as per different listener backgrounds (expert, mixed, L2). In Study 2, training studies (n = 17) were retrieved examining the effects of segmental, prosodic, and temporal-based instruction on ESL learners’ pronunciation. The results showed that (a) comprehensibility judgements were related to a range of segmental, prosodic, and temporal features; (b) accentedness judgements were strongly tied to participants’ correct pronunciation of consonants and vowels; and (c) instruction led to larger gains in comprehensibility than in nativelikeness. Moderator analyses demonstrated that expert listeners were more reliant on phonological information. Greater effects of instruction on comprehensibility than nativelikeness became clearer, especially when the treatment targeted prosodic accuracy. The findings suggest that ESL practitioners should prioritize suprasegemental practice to help students achieve comprehensible L2 pronunciation. The attainment of nativelike pronunciation, by contrast, may require an exclusive focus on the refinement of segmental accuracy, which is resistant to the influence of instruction.

This study aims to find out the effect of the using Spotify application, using English songs and podcasts, affects students' pronunciation at SMP Negeri Model Terpadu Madani Palu. The research used a quasi-experimental design with two groups: an experimental class that used Spotify and a control class that used traditional methods. The sample consisted of two eighth-grade classes chosen using purposive sampling. Data was collected through pre-tests and post-tests to measure students' pronunciation before and after the treatment. The results showed that the average score of the experimental class improved significantly from 14.58 to 24.77, while the control class increased from 20.83 to 38.89. The Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test confirmed that the experimental class had a significant improvement (Z = -3.963, p = 0.000). However, the Mann-Whitney test showed no significant difference between the experimental and control classes (p = 0.677). This means that while Spotify helped improve students’ pronunciation, it was not proven to be more effective than traditional teaching methods. In conclusion, using the Spotify application can help students improve their pronunciation, especially for the consonant sounds /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /θ/, and /ð/. Even though the improvement was not greater than the conventional method, Spotify still made learning more interesting and interactive for students.

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper was to examine the extent of non-verbalizable knowledge L1 Brazilian Portuguese (BP) learners of English possess about the segmental inventory of the L2. The study had two aims: i) to determine to what extent L1 BP EFL learners are aware of contrastive and non-contrastive L2 segments, ii) to determine which type of segments present the lowest level of awareness. To the date, little research has been carried out about the non-verbalizable aspect of L2 phonological awareness, most studies having relied on participants’ verbalization of the acquired knowledge (e.g., KENNEDY & TROFIMOVICH, 2010; WREMBEL, 2011). Whereas language learners are frequently taught grammar explicitly, pronunciation of the L2 is rarely addressed in the foreign language classroom. Moreover, phonology is in nature less susceptible to conscious processing than other aspects of L2 learning, making the noticing, and especially the explicit explanation, of phonological aspects difficult. Nevertheless, high L2 phonological awareness is beneficial for L2 pronunciation (KIVISTÖ-DE SOUZA, 2015), making its examination a priority in the foreign language classroom context. The participants of the study were 71 advanced EFL learners and 18 native speakers of American English. Participants performed a perception test which presented English segments spoken by native and non-native speakers. The ability to identify pronunciation deviations in the non-native speaker trials was taken as a measure for phonological awareness. The results showed that the L1 BP participants manifested a significantly lower sensitivity to English segmental phonology than the native English speakers (F[1, 87] = 40.56, p <.001, η2=.31). Pronunciation deviations involving consonants were identified to the greatest extent (52%), whereas the trials involving short-lag VOTs were identified the poorest (33%). The results reveal a need for explicit pronunciation instruction and the employment of consciousness-raising activities in the Brazilian EFL classroom. RESUMO Este trabalho investiga a consciência fonológica em LE de aprendizes brasileiros de inglês. O estudo teve dois objetivos: i) determinar o grau de consciência de aprendizes brasileiros de inglês sobre os segmentos contrastivos e não contrastivos de LE, ii) determinar que tipos de segmentos apresentam o nível mais baixo de consciência. Pouca pesquisa tem sido conduzida sobre o tipo de consciência fonológica em LE que não está acessível para reflexão consciente. Na maioria dos estudos tem sido solicitado dos participantes a verbalização do conhecimento adquirido (e.g., KENNEDY & TROFIMOVICH, 2010; WREMBEL, 2011). Enquanto o ensino da gramática é frequentemente explícito, a pronúncia de LE é raramente ensinada na sala de aula. Além do mais, a fonologia é menos susceptível ao processamento consciente do que outros aspetos da LE, fazendo que o noticing, e especialmente a elaboração explícita, de aspectos fonológicos seja difícil. No entanto, um alto nível de consciência fonológica é benéfico para a pronúncia de LE (KIVISTÖ-DE SOUZA, 2015), fazendo o seu estudo uma prioridade na sala de aula delíngua estrangeira. Os participantes foram 71 alunos de nível avançado em inglês e 18 falantes nativos de inglês americano. Os participantes completaram um teste de percepção que apresentou segmentos de inglês produzidos por falantes nativos e não nativos. A capacidade de identificar pronúncias inadequadas nos estímulos não nativos foi usada como a medida de consciência fonológica. Os resultados mostraram que os participantes brasileiros manifestaram uma sensibilidade significativamente mais baixa à fonologia segmental do inglês que os falantes nativos de inglês (F[1, 87] = 40.56, p <.001, η2=.31). Erros de pronúncia envolvendo consoantes foram identificados com a precisão mais alta (52%), enquanto os estímulos com VOT zero foram identificados com mais dificuldade (33%). Os resultados revelam necessidade de instrução explícita de pronúncia na sala de aula de inglês para brasileiros.

This systematic review maps the trends of computer-assisted pronunciation training (CAPT) research based on the pedagogy of second language (L2) pronunciation instruction and assessment. The review was limited to empirical studies investigating the effects of CAPT on healthy L2 learners’ pronunciation. Thirty peer-reviewed journal articles published between 1999 and 2022 were selected based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were collected about the studies’ contexts, participants, experimental designs, CAPT systems, pronunciation training scopes and approaches, pronunciation assessment practices, and learning measures. Using a pedagogically informed codebook, the pronunciation training and assessment practices were classified and evaluated based on established L2 pronunciation teaching guidelines. The findings indicated that most of the studies focused on the pronunciation training of adult English learners with an emphasis on the production of segmental features (i.e. vowels and consonants) rather than suprasegmental features (i.e. stress, intonation, and rhythm). Despite the innovation promised by CAPT technology, pronunciation practice in the studies reviewed was characterized by the predominant use of drilling through listen-and-repeat and read-aloud activities. As for assessment, most CAPT studies relied on human listeners to measure the accurate production of discrete pronunciation features (i.e. segmental and suprasegmental accuracy). Meanwhile, few studies employed global pronunciation learning measures such as intelligibility and comprehensibility. Recommendations for future research are provided based on the discussion of these results.

Tasks are frequently used to elicit learner language in second language (L2) research. The purposes for doing so, however, vary widely, covering a range of theoretical models, designs, and analyses. For example, task-based researchers have examined a range of linguistic and interactional features (e.g., accuracy, language-related episodes) that are found in learner production and that vary as a function of task conditions (e.g., +/− complex), modes (oral, written, computer-mediated), and settings (second vs. foreign language). This article presents a synthesis of substantive interests and methodological practices in this area. We first collected a sample of 85 primary studies of task-based language production published from 2006 to 2015. Each study was then coded for the target features it analyzed as well as other contextual and demographic variables. We also coded for methodological features related to study designs, sampling, analyses, and reporting practices. The results indicate a strong preference toward analyses of grammar, vocabulary, accuracy, and different features of L2 interaction, and very little interest in task-induced pronunciation, pragmatics, and the quality of task performance. More fundamentally, this domain may be hindered by a lack of theoretical and operational consistency. The data also point to a number of concerns related to research and reporting practices (e.g., low statistical power; missing data). Based on our findings, we outline a number of pointed recommendations for future research in this domain.

In recent years, learners worldwide have expressed increasing interest in mobile learning and the utilization of mobile devices for language learning purposes. However, few research synthesis studies have focused on pronunciation development in relation to employing MALL (mobile-assisted language learning). This review article contributes to the discourse on how mobile learning aids in acquiring and practicing EFL (English as a foreign language) pronunciation since it is this language system that is both a crucial and frequently neglected aspect of English language learning. With the emergence of e-generation, it is necessary to investigate the influence of MALL on pronunciation acquisition. This paper provides a systematic literature review of the findings of 15 empirical studies published between 2015 and 2022, which is based on PRISMA 2020. The aim of the review is threefold: to investigate the effect of mobile devices on L2 learners’ pronunciation performance, examine learners’ attitudes toward employing mobile learning for pronunciation practice and development, and identify which mobile devices and apps are present in the process. The results indicate that overall, mobile learning exerts a beneficial impact on L2 pronunciation and that participants in the reviewed studies demonstrate positive attitudes toward MALL. Moreover, smartphones appear to be at the center of attention as the primary mobile device, and it was revealed that a variety of mobile apps and platforms have been employed in the studies. The article concludes with pedagogical implications and recommendations for potential research exploration in the future.