PRONUNCIATION TASKS

PRONUNCIATION TASKS

1. top down processing we make assumptions about the world on what we have experienced and how our minds have organized that knowledge

   • we have seen that background knowledge, particularly cultural one, affects comprehension.
     • background knowledge has been found to be a more important factor than grammatical complexity in the ability of readers to understand a text
       • reader is constantly and actively engaged in complex cognitive processes word recognition, comprehension of meaning, reading fluently, predicting what will come next,summarizing, questioning and so forth
         • learners need frequent opportunities to read so that these processes come together smoothly. reading should be pleasurable and fulfilling
           • language learners need to build linguistic and conceptual knowledge in a variety of contexts
           • learners need to follow basic steps while reading
             • figure out the purpose for reading, activate relevant background knowledge of the topic in order to predict or anticipate contect and use appropiate reading strategies
               • pay attention to the parts of the text that are relevant to the identified purpose. this selectivity enables learners to focus on specific items in the input and reduces the amount of information they have to hold in short term memory
                 • select strategies that are appropiate to the reading task and use them flexibly and interactively. students comprehension improves and their confidence increases when they use top-down and bottom up skills simultaneously to construct meaning
                   • check comprehension while reading and when the reading task is completed. monitoring comprehension helps learners detect miscomprehension and lack of comprehension , helping them learn to use alternate strategies
                     • whether using graded readers or authentic texts,they see words repeated in different contexts and are gradually able to increase their vocabulary, see how sentences are combined to form paragraphs, to arranged to form whole texts
                       • since reading involves an enourmous amount of cultural and background knowledge the lack of the foreign culture can interrupt the comprehension of certain authentic texts
                         • choose a book that is easier but not too easy than the current textbook, learners are reading for enjoyment, not for study
                           • choose a book that appels to most of your learners, if they arent interested, they wont read
   • reading serves a communicative function, where read to do something, like reading for pleasure some novel, to know how to get somewhere, depending on the purpose
     • efficient reading begins with a clearly identified purpose. By knowing why you are reading you know what you are looking for. Our purpose in reading influences the way we read
       • reading is a highly effective means of extending learners language, so it has an important place both inside and outside the classroom
         • extensive reading is one of the best ways to expose learners to additional language input

2. being able to pronounce words comprehensibly, we need to put them together in combinations that enable us to convey the meaning we intend

   • most spoken language is produced while interacting with other people for a specific purpose to get something or to get something done, to give and obtain personal and non personal factual information and to socialize
     • spoken production tends to be given as a monologue rather than a dialogue and it is closer to written language than conversational language
       • it tends to have a recognizable format which reflects organization and sequencing (planning), is usually for an specific audience
         • create posters with basic everyday classroom expressions for begginers, introducing a different one each day

3. we need to know how the relationships between words are used to convey different meanings

   • activities must provide learners with a variety of opportunities for communicative interaction in order to develop communicative competence and not just activities that focus on a form
     • communication involves sharing information, thoughts, feelings with others and helping others understand them through the expression, interpretation, negotiation of meaning in a given context
       • many of the tasks during a class are involve with speaking, although they involve speaking and intercommunication among learners, are designed to provide grammar or vocabulary practice
   • encourage learners to focus on the topic at the beginning of the lesson

4. it is only by trying to communicate that learners realize their need for language in order to be able to express themselves

5. some of the skills that need to be developed during speaking tasks are

   • opening and closing conversations
     • turning-taking
       • reacting to what others say
         • explaining a need or intention
           • describing something
             • making suggestions
               • making comparisons

6. is the production of the sounds of speech

   • segmental features individual sounds
     • suprasegmental features word stress, rhythm or sentence stress, intonation, features of fluent connected speech
       • when describing sounds of a language linguists use a set of special symbols commonly referred to as phonetic alphabet
         • phonemes are the simplest sound elements used to distinguish one word from another, should indicate precisely the sound characteristics of the language
   • differences between british and USA english
     • word stress and rhythm
       • stressed syllables are defined as those that are longer, louder and higher in pitch
         • in english virtually any syllable can be stressed
           • stress shift
             • primary stress shift from one syllable in the base word syllable derived word
             • sentence stress and rhythm
               • refers to the various stressed elements of each sentence
                 • word and sentence stress combine to create the rhythm of the english
                   • english is a stress timed language the length of an utterance does not depend on the number syllables as it would be in a syllable timed like spanish, but rather on the number of stresses

7. factors that affect pronunciation

   • native language
   • age the oldest the hardest to learn
   • exposure quality and intensity are more important then mere length of time
   • innate phonetic ability
   • identity and language ego
     • learners are helped by having a positive attitude toward speakers of the target language and they should not be afraid of the second identity that may be merging within them
       • learners personality will also play a role for example extremely authoritarian learners may refuse to modify their pronunciation
   • motivation and concern for good pronunciation
     • motivation to improve
       • showing how,clarity in speech
         • shaping learners self image