The teaching and learning of pronunciation in the language classroom and the use of modern technology

Abstract

Is pronunciation taught adequately in the language classrooms? How can the full potential of modern technology for learning and teaching pronunciation be exploited? What materials are available today? Pronunciation teaching is an area receiving a great deal of attention worldwide in different languages, and the present study was undertaken in this intriguing area of linguistics in relation to the educational scene in Cyprus. It concerns public secondary schools, i.e. Gymnasia. The purpose of this study was to investigate views and practices in the area of English Language Teaching (ELT) with respect to Pronunciation Teaching and the use of modern technology to achieve this. For this reason, six sources of data were reviewed. Firstly, a questionnaire was administered to teachers of English in order to see how they viewed pronunciation in relation to the other language skills and how they approached it in class. Furthermore, syllabi and the curriculum for teaching English were collected and reviewed on the basis of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. The information included was compared and contrasted with the content of an interview which the Ministry of Education provided to the present author. The actual textbooks taught at public Gymnasia were also examined in order to acquire a general idea of how the area of pronunciation is viewed and practised in Gymnasia of Cyprus. The findings generally viewed pronunciation as a generally neglected area in Cyprus, and stressed the need for producing a curriculum with special reference to pronunciation and technology. The final part of the paper discusses practical applications and suggestions on using new technologies in the classroom to practice pronunciation, following current research in the area that proves its effectiveness in pronunciation instruction: CAP (Computer Aided Pronunciation), pronunciation software available today, teaching-learning pronunciation websites, Web 2.0 for pronunciation and finally electronic pronunciation dictionaries.