What is it about second language speech that makes it sound
‘foreign accented’? Is it something that we, as teachers and
learners of second languages, should try to do something
about? Sometimes a foreign accent is seen as something
positive. It can be seen as interesting and sophisticated;
it can mark our identity and keep us in touch with our
cultural roots. Sometimes, however, a foreign accent can be
seen as a negative, this is especially the case when the
accent decreases comprehensibility.
When thinking about foreign accents, we have to consider
at least two main contributors: segments and prosody.
Segments contribute to a foreign accent when consonants
and vowels are produced in a manner unlike native speakers
of the target language. Language learners may substitute
a first language sound for a second language sound.
Consider an English learner of French who produces the
French uvular (back of the throat) ‘r’ as the English
alveolar (behind the teeth) ‘r’. This will lead to a
foreign accent, but not affect comprehensibility very much.
On the other hand, if a second language learner fails to
make a meaningful distinction in the second language due
to a foreign accent, comprehensibility will be affected.
Let’s consider our English learner of French again. If
they fail to distinguish the two ‘u’-like vowel sounds
in words like tout ‘all’ and tu ‘you’, it may be more
difficult for the listener to understand their meaning.
Prosody can contribute to a foreign accent when second
language learners produce stress, rate of speech, intonation,
and rhythm differently than native speakers. Stress placed
on the incorrect syllable can render a word incomprehensible
to native speakers (try saying ‘bottle’ with stress on the
final syllable). Second language learners of English have to
master the English rhythmic structure which reduces unstressed
vowels to the ‘schwa’. Think about the word hippopotomus ;
every other vowel is reduced. English learners of languages
that do not have vowel reduction (and that is most other
languages in the word!) have to learn not to reduce vowels,
even in long words. Finally, words are not produced as single
units in fluent speech. We package words together in groups.
Learners have to get the packing of words right in order for the
listener to easily comprehend their intended message.
Recent studies have found that both prosodic and segmental
differences contribute to the perception of a foreign accent.
However, prosodic differences seem to contribute more to
comprehensibility judgments. Native speakers report more
trouble understanding second language speech because of prosodic
differences caused by rhythm, stress, rate of speech and intonation,
than because of segmental differences caused by vowels and
consonants. These emerging results suggest that we should be
including ‘global’ aspects of pronunciation in our oral skills
classes which focus on rhythm and overall fluency. For example,
metered poetry and chants can provide an opportunity to internalize
rhythmic structures of a second language. Oral communication on
topics of interest to the students can encourage fluent productions.
A major focus on segmental accuracy may, on the other hand, have
the effect of curtailing fluency. We wouldn’t want to just throw
segmental concerns out the window but a focus on segments, at the
expense of fluency, may not ultimately be helpful.
In summary, foreign accents are caused by both segmental and
prosodic characteristics and can, but do not always, contribute
to reduced comprehensibility. Given that prosodic characteristics
affect comprehensibility, learners should be given the opportunity
to improve their overall rhythm and fluency thorough global
pronunciation practice.
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