University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

A case study on implicit and explicit online pronunciation tutoring to Chinese international graduate students

Chen, Xinlei

Content Files
CHEN-THESIS-2021.pdf

Permalink

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/113002

Description

Title
A case study on implicit and explicit online pronunciation tutoring to Chinese international graduate students
Author(s)
Chen, Xinlei
Issue Date
2021-07-20
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
  • Franks, Suzanne Carla
  • Pierce, Lisa Renee
Department of Study
Linguistics
Discipline
Teaching of English Sec Lang
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Level
Thesis
Date of Ingest
2022-01-12T21:45:30Z
Keyword(s)
Pronunciation, SLA, Explicit teaching, Implicit teaching
Abstract
Pronunciation matters for the success of second language learners, and yet it does not receive enough attention in the language classroom (O’Brien, 2004; Sturm, 2013; Wei, 2006). Especially for the students who received their secondary and undergraduate education in China, where the negative washback from exam-driven English teaching styles is still prominent. This study compared the progress of two Chinese graduate students in a Midwestern university, one received one-on-one implicit instruction and another explicit instruction online. The measurements of progress in this case study include segmental perception and production, fluency, and intelligibility rate in both controlled and spontaneous speech. Both participants received eight weekly tutoring sessions in a semester, with one hour per session. All participants took a pre-test and a post-test the weeks before and after the instructions. The tests aimed to get and examine vowels /ʊ/, /u/, /i:/, /ɪ/, /æ/, /ɛ/ and consonants /v/, /w/, /s/, /z/, also temporal variables including words per minute (WPM) and filled-pause ratio (FPR). The results found that the explicit participant showed a slight improvement of their segmental perception and production of some back vowels and the labiodental consonant, as well as fluency and intelligibility rate, especially in spontaneous speech. But both instructed participants reported an elevated confidence in spoken English after the treatment.
Graduation Semester
2021-08
Type of Resource
Thesis
Permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/2142/113002
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 2021 Xinlei Chen

Owning Collections

Graduate Dissertations and Theses at Illinois PRIMARY
Graduate Theses and Dissertations at Illinois
Dissertations and Theses - Linguistics