The role of phonetics and phonology in English language methodologies
![INTRODUCTION
Delivery of each subject to students using new innovative pedagogical
technologies is one of the main requirements of today's education. The President of
the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev on May 19, 2021 “A measure to
bring the popularization of learning foreign languages in the Republic of
Uzbekistan to a qualitatively new level” In accordance with the State Program
“Year of Youth Support and Public Health Strengthening”, the development of
foreign language teaching as a priority of education policy, in this direction to
fundamentally improve the quality of education, to attract qualified pedagogues to
the field, and to improve the quality of the population special importance is
attached to increasing their interest in learning foreign languages. A new stage, a
new era has begun in the teaching of foreign languages in our country [1, 115]. The
use of advanced pedagogical technologies, interactive, innovative methods,
communicative and informational tools is required in the process of teaching
foreign language classes.
In our republic, new methods and requirements have been developed in
accordance with the European framework recommendations (CEFR) and
International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for foreign language
teaching and assessment of knowledge and skills of foreign language teachers.
According to it, textbooks were created for students of general education schools
and vocational schools. In accordance with these requirements, classrooms were
equipped with new information and communication techniques. Foreign language
science is divided into four aspects (reading, writing, listening and speaking), and
separate concepts and skills are given for each of them.
“It's time to establish a new system for teaching foreign languages in our
country, which will be a solid foundation for the future. Since we have set
ourselves the goal of building a competitive country, from now on, graduates of
schools, lyceums, colleges and universities must have a perfect knowledge of at
least two foreign languages. This strict requirement should become the main
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![CHAPTER I. ROLE OF PHONETICS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE
TEACHING
1.1. Phonetics: The production and function of speech sounds
How can we produce speech? In this section we will study the production of
speech sounds from an articulatory point of view in order to understand better
subsequent sections about vowel and consonant sounds.
Articulatory phonetics. We have three goals in this section. First, we introduce
you to the ways in which the sounds of English are produced. Second, we develop
a system for classifying speech sounds on the basis of how they are produced.
Simultane ously we introduce an alphabet approximating that developed by the
Inter national Phonetics Association (IPA), which will allow us to refer to sounds
quite precisely. When we want to indicate that letters are to be interpreted as
phonetic symbols, we enclose them in square brackets, [ ], and when we want to
indicate that letters are to be interpreted as letters from an ordinary spelling system,
we enclose them in angled brackets, < >. The phonetic alphabet uses many of the
letters of the English alphabet, but their pronunciations are very restricted and are
not always the ones you might expect. In this system, there are no “silent” letters—
every phonetic symbol represents an actual sound. Every letter always has the
same pronunciation regardless of its context, no letter has more than one
pronunciation, and no sounds are represented by more than one letter. To make
fine distinctions, phoneticians add special symbols, called diacritics , to the basic
letters. For some English sounds and for languages other than English, symbols not
from the English alphabet have been devised. (You might visit the IPA web site for
a full listing of the symbols.) In the sections to follow, we describe the sounds
represented by these symbols and how these sounds are made. As we go through
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![following characteristics: (a) whether or not the vocal folds are vibrating ( voicing );
(b) whether the sound is made with a fully stopped or merely constricted airstream
(its man ner of articulation ); (c) where in the mouth the stoppage or constriction
is made (its place of articulation ); (d) whether or not air is flowing through the
nasal cavity ( nasality ); and (e) whether or not the lips are pursed ( lip-rounding ).
Voicing. As a warm-up exercise, make the sound fffff, and keep it going for a
count of five. Now make the sound vvvvv, and keep it going for a count of five.
Now alternate these two: fffffvvvvvfffffvvvvv. You probably noticed that vvvvv
had a “buzz” that fffff did not have. That “buzz” is caused by the vibrating of your
vocal folds—which you can check by putting your fingers on your throat or by
covering your ears as you alternate fffff and vvvvv. Now try the same exercises
with the first sounds of the following words: thigh , thy ; sip , zip . You should be
able to feel the vocal folds vibrate as you make the second sound of each pair.
Sounds produced with vibrating vocal folds (see Figure 1) are said to be voiced ;
those produced without vocal cord vibration are voiceless . Table 1 lists the voiced
and voiceless consonants of English. The letters in [ ] are the phonetic symbols for
the sounds.
Voiced: b y [b] m y [m] w et [w] v ie [v] th y [ ] d ie [d] n igh [n] zip [z] l ie [l] r ye [r].
Voiceless. p ie [p] f ie [f] th igh [T] t ie [t] s ip [s]
Nasality. Make the sound represented by <m> in the word Pam and continue it for
some seconds. As you continue it, pinch your nose and observe what happens to
the sound. It should stop immediately. This shows that air was flowing through
your nose as you produced this sound. Now try the same little experiment with the
<n> of pan and the <ng> of pang . You should find that the air flows through the
nose in these two cases also. Sounds in which air flows through the nose are called
nasal sounds. The air is allowed into the nose by lowering the velum , the soft
palate at the back of the mouth (see Figure 1). English has three main nasal sounds:
[m] Pa m cla mm y mat, [n] pa n cla nn ish Nat, [N] pa ng cli ng y ----.
Manner of articulation. By manner of articulation we mean the kind of closure
or constriction used in making the sound. We classify English consonants
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![according to three manners of articulation: stops (full stoppage of the airstream
some where in the oral cavity between the vocal folds and the lips, as in [p], [b],
[m]); fricatives (constriction of the airstream in the oral cavity produc ing
turbulence and noise, as in [f], [v]); affricates (full stoppage of the airstream
followed immediately by constriction, as in [tS], [dZ]). Such as: Stops [p] p ad [b]
b ad [m] m at [t] t ad [d] d a d [n] N at [k] c ad [g] g ad [N] ta ng.
Fricatives [f] f ie [v] v ie [T] th igh [D] th y [s] S ue [z] z oo [S] sh oe [Z] j us (au jus)
[h] h ow.
Affricates [tS] ch in [dZ] g in.
Place of articulation By place of articulation we mean the area in the mouth at
which the con sonantal closure or constriction occurs. English uses only seven
places of articulation (see Figure 1) which we describe and illustrate below.
Bilabial sounds are made by bringing both lips together to stop the air stream: [p]
p ie cu pp ing cu p [b] b y clu bb ing cu b [m] m y co m ing co m e.
Labiodental sounds are made by bringing the top teeth into contact with the
bottom lip and forcing air between the two to create the fricatives: [f] f eel ra ff le
tou gh [v] v eal ra v el do v e.
Interdental sounds are made by placing the tip of the tongue between the top and
bottom teeth and forcing air through. Again, these are both fricatives: [T] th igh
e th er mou th ba th (noun) [ ] th y ei th er mou th ba the (verb).
Alveolar sounds are made by bringing the tongue and the alveolar ridge (the bony
ridge just behind the top teeth) together to create either a stop or fricative: [t] t ub
boa t ing boa t [s] s ip fu ss y gra ce [d] d ub bo d ing bo d e [z] z ip fu zz y gra z e [n] kn it
bo n ing bo n e [r] r ip te rr or tea r.
(Alveo-)palatal sounds are made by bringing the blade of the tongue to, or close
to, the alveo-palatal area of the roof of the mouth to create fricatives and
affricates:95 [S] s ure vi ci ous ru sh [Z] g enre vi si on rou ge [tS] ch in ca tch er e tch
[dZ] g in e dge r e dge .
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![Velar sounds are created by stopping the airstream by bringing the back of the
tongue into contact with the velum: [k] c ould ba ck er tu ck [g] g ood ba gg er tu g [N]
------ ba ng er to ng ue.
Glottal sounds are created by either narrowing the vocal folds sufficient ly to create
a fricative or closing them to create a stop: [h] h at ca h oots [?] bu tt er (some
varieties of English).
Approximants Approximants are sounds made by narrowing the oral cavity but
not enough to cause turbulence in the airstream; the airstream is said to be smooth.
The beginning sounds of lye and rye are approximants. The narrowest point in the
airstream is wider in approximants than in fricatives, but is not as wide as it is in
vowels. Approximants are more sonorant ( resonant , i.e., naturally loud) than
consonants, but less so than vowels. They are like consonants in that they typically
occur before or after the vowels of syllables (see below). English has three kinds of
approximants.
Lateral approximants are made by touching the tongue to the alveolar ridge while
allowing the air to pass along one or both sides, as in [l]—in lack , call , and callow .
Central approximants are made by raising the sides of the tongue so that the air
flows along the center of the tongue, as in [r]—in rock , roll , and Rory . [r] is
regarded as an alveolar sound.
Glides ( semivowels ) come in two kinds: palatal and labio-velar.
Palatal glides are made by raising the tongue toward the hard palate, close to
where the vowel in eat is made. The first sound of yet , yolk , and y’all is a palatal
glide, represented phonetically as [j].
Labio-velar glides are made by rounding the lips and simultaneously raising the
back of the tongue toward the velum, close to where the vowel sound of ooze is
made. Labio-velar glides thus have two places of articulation—they are both labial
and velar. The first sound of wet , wall , and wink is a labio-velar glide, represented
phonetically as [w]. Lateral [l] l et Central [r] Rh ett Glides Labio-velar [w] w et
Palatal [j] y et.
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![Articulatory description. An articulatory description of any consonant or
approximant must specify (at least) its place and manner of articulation, whether it
is voiced or voice less, and whether it is nasal or oral. For example, [m] is made at
the lips by stopping the airstream, is voiced, and is nasal. These features are
represented as: [m] [w] [l] Voicing voiced voiced voiced Place bilabial labio-velar
alveolar Manner stop glide lateral approximant Nasality nasal oral oral Example
word mime wow low. Vowels. Vowels include the sounds we ordinarily represent
as the letters <a, e, i, o, u>, as well as a number of other sounds for which the
ordinary alphabet has no unique symbols. Vowels are distinguished from
consonants in several ways. As we have seen, consonants are produced by
constricting the airstream to various de grees as it flows through the oral tract.
Vowels. They are produced with a smooth, unobstructed airflow through the oral
tract. Differences in vowel quality are produced by different shapes of the oral
cavity. Characteristic vowel qualities are determined by (a) the height of the tongue
in the mouth; (b) the part of the tongue raised (front, middle, or back); (c) the
configuration of the lips; and (d) the tension of the muscles of the oral tract. An
articulatory description of a vowel must include all of these features. Tongue
height Pronounce the words eat and at . Now pronounce just the vowels of these
two words. Notice that as you go from the vowel of eat to the vowel of at , your
mouth opens. If this is not obvious to you just by playing with these two vowels,
look in a mirror as you produce them. Alternate the words, and then just the two
vowels. Once you’ve become accustomed to the different degrees of openness of
these two vowels, pronounce ate between eat and at . The degree of open ness of its
vowel falls between those of eat and at , so there is a continuous increase in mouth
openness as you go from one vowel to another. These degrees distinguish high ,
mid , and low vowels. We will use the following symbols for this sequence of
vowels: (1) ea t [i] High a t e [e] Mid a t [ ] Low. Front and back vowels Now
compare the vowel of beat with that of boot . Alternate the words, and then just the
vowels. It will be more difficult this time to monitor the ac tivities of your tongue
as you shift from one of these to the other, but try anyway. You produce the [i] of
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![beat with the front (blade) of your tongue raised toward your palate. If you draw in
your breath as you make this vowel, you will feel the cold air against your palate.
As you shift from [i] to [u], the vowel of boot , you will find yourself raising the
back of your tongue. (You will also find yourself pursing ( rounding ) your lips, but
disregard this for the moment.) Because of the relative positions at which these
vowels are made in the mouth, phoneticians call [i] and the other vowels in (1)
front vowels , and [u] a back vowel . The back vowels, like the front ones, descend
from high, through mid, to low, in a continuous sequence. You can observe this by
pronouncing the words coot , coat , and cot , and then just their vowels. As you
produce this series of vowels you’ll find your mouth opening (monitor your lower
jaw) as you go from coot to coat to cot . We use the following symbols for these
back vowels: (2) c oo t [u] High c oa t [o] Mid c o t [A] Low. Lip rounding As you
compared [i] and [u] you probably noticed that your lips changed shape as you
shifted from the front vowel to the back one. Your lips were rounded as you
produced [u]. They were unrounded ( spread or neutral ) as you produced [i]. As
you moved through the series of back vowels you may also have noticed that lip
rounding decreased as you moved from high to low. In fact the lips are unrounded
during the pronunciation of [A]. In English, the only rounded vowels are back,
though many languages, such as French and German, have rounded front vowels.
Intermediate vowels First, pronounce the words meat , mitt , mate , met , and mat .
Then pronounce just their vowels: m ea t m e [i] m i tt [I] m a t e m ay [e] m e t [E] m a t
[{] The vowels we’ve just added, [I] and [E], are intermediate in height between [i]
and [e], and [e] and [{], respectively. Vowels in multi-syllabic words Pronounce
the words a bove , sod a , sof a , comm a , aren a , patin a , phot o graph , paying particular
attention to the vowel represented by the bold letters. Then pronounce this vowel
in isolation. This vowel is called schwa and written [@]. Schwa is made at
approximately the same place as [V], that is, farther forward than the back vowels
and farther back than the front ones. Hence, it is central. In addition, [@] is mid,
lax, and unrounded. It is heard primarily in unstressed syllables, as in the words
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![above. It is the vowel we produce if we vocalize as we prepare to speak— uh . The
tongue is said to be in its neutral position as we pronounce this vowel.
Diphthongs We have approached vowels as if they were articulated by a specific
configu ration of the tongue, lips, and oral cavity, which is held constant throughout
their pronunciation. Vowels made like this are called monophthongs ; oth ers,
called diphthongs , involve a change in the configuration of the mouth. The vowel
sounds in the words boy , by , and how involve a change in the shape of the mouth
as the vowel is being produced. The vowel of boy begins with approximately the
mid back vowel [O] and finishes with ap proximately the high front lax vowel [I]
(or the palatal glide [j]). The vowel of by begins with approximately the low back
vowel [a] (a low back vowel slightly more forward than [A], but not as forward as
[{]) and also finishes with approximately [I] (or [j]). The vowel of how begins with
approximately [a] and finishes with approximately the high lax rounded vowel [U]
(or the labio-velar glide [w]). We represent these diphthongs as [OI], [aI], and
[aU], respectively (though many linguists use [Oj], [aj], and [aw]). A second set of
English diphthongs is not as clearly distinguished as the first, primarily because we
tend to perceive them as simple vowels. However, in a precise ( narrow ) phonetic
transcription they must be represented as diphthongs. The tense front vowel [e] is
diphthongized. If you listen care fully you will notice that the vowel of bate is
actually pronounced [eI]. The tense back vowel [o] is also diphthongized: if you
listen carefully you will notice that the vowel of boat is actually pronounced [oU].
So, the front tense vowel is diphthongized by the addition of a front vowel and the
back tense vowel is diphthongized by the addition of a back vowel. We can
express this pattern as a rule: Mid and high tense vowels are diphthongized by the
addition of a high lax vowel that matches the original vowel in frontness or
backness. Diphthongization of these vowels is a feature of English rather than a
universal feature of natural language. Other languages, notably Spanish and
German, do not diphthongize their corresponding vowels. The tendency to
diphthongize these vowels is one characteristic of the “foreign accent” that betrays
English speakers when they begin to learn these languages.
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![Syllables and feet. It’s a lot easier to count syllables than to give them a
satisfactory definition. If the entire class were to count the syllables in this
paragraph, there would be considerable agreement about the number, but probably
not about where each syllable begins and ends. The fact that syllabic writing
systems devel oped before alphabetic systems (see our Spelling chapter in Book II)
sug gests that syllables are very salient linguistic units. That children seem to be
able to associate symbols with syllables before they can associate symbols with
phonetic segments also points to the importance of the syllable. Every syllable
(symbolized as $) consists of at least a nucleus (symbolized as N), which is
typically a vowel. The nucleus may be preceded by an onset (symbolized as O),
consisting of one or more consonants, and followed by a coda (symbolized as C),
again consisting of one or more consonants. The nucleus and the coda together
make up a unit called the rhyme (R). The diagram (3) illustrates the constituent of
the single-syllable word then .
(3)
Because vowels are high in sonority, a syllable nucleus is usually a vowel.
However, a consonant with high sonority, such as [l,r,m,n,N] may also be a
nucleus. The sonority level of a syllable thus rises from the onset (if there is one)
up to a peak in the nucleus and falls off again in the coda. In this respect, the onset
and coda are (almost) mirror images of each other. Parts of syllables may be
repeated for poetic effects. Of these repetitions, rhyme is the most important: it
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![involves repeating the rhyme of syllables, usually at the ends of lines, as the
rhyming words in the following stanza show:
(4) Piping down the valleys wild,
Piping songs of pleasant glee,
On a cloud I saw a child,
And he laughing said to me:
(William Blake, Introduction to Songs of Innocence )
The syllable onsets, [w] of wild , [tS] of child , [gl] of glee , and [m] of me are not
part of Blake’s rhymes. Repeating onsets, or first sounds in onsets, as in th en and
th ere , creates alliteration . Repeating nuclei, as in M i key l i kes it , or the incr e dible
e dible e gg creates assonance . In speech, syllables are combined into rhythmic
units called feet, which are also of considerable importance in scanning lines of
poetry. Each foot consists of at least one stressed syllable (its energy peak) and one
or two unstressed syllables. Feet are differentiated from each other by the number
of stressed syllables they contain and by the position of the stressed (S) syllable(s)
relative to other syllables in the foot. In (5), S represents a stressed syllable and U
an unstressed one; the stressed syllable of each example word is bolded.
(5) Iambic: [U S] to day
Trochaic: [S U] tro chee
Anapestic: [U U S] inter vene
Dactylic: [S U U] per sonal
Spondaic: [S S] good news.
In English, stressed syllables tend to be approximately equally far apart in time; as
a result unstressed syllables may be articulated slower or faster, de pending on the
type of foot. (See Beers (2003: 339) Appendix I: the 175 most common syllables
(as ordinarily spelled) in the 5,000 most frequently occurring English words.)
1.2. The Importance of Phonetics in the Teaching of Pronunciation
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![as the change of the quality of the vowel /¡/ preceded by a non-palatalized plosive
in Russian. In discussing the opposite processes of spirants becoming stops and of
stops becoming spirants, Donegan/Stampe (1979) conclude:
"Both tendencies are real, both are functional, and both are necessary parts of an
understanding of phonology." (Donegan/Stampe 1979: 130)
In this view, of course, the speaker has control over the movement of his or her
articulators. No output1^ is left to some uncontrolled bio-mechanical
circumstances, but planned and exerted via processes.
"Speakers do not simply line up a sequence of phonemic targets and allow the
articulators to get from one to another as best they can; instead, the activity of
articulation is centrally planned, so that features spread (or gestures overlap) in
regular ways. This planning differs from language to language, f_]" (Donegan
2002: 69)
"... is based not only on phonetics and general rhythmic behavior (cf. above 2a),
but also on the socio-pragmatic foundation of communication in the interaction
between speaker and hearer ..." (Dressier 1996: 43)
Consequently, one main function of language - the organization of social life - is
satisfactorily accounted for.
2.2. Integration into language teaching methodologies
Integrated language teaching is a term used to refer to teaching a foreign language
through a content-based subject. That way language is integrated into the natural
context and taught through real life situations in order to motivate students to
acquire language for the sake of communication. Therefore, integrated language
teaching gives preference to natural language acquisition rather than forced
language learning. Linguistic competence covers four basic skills: listening and
speaking (natural skills), and reading and writing (skills acquired by teaching). In
order to use these skills successfully, the individual needs some information on the
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The role of phonetics and phonology in English language methodologies