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Interlanguage: Activity 1


Pronunciation

Please read the information about interlanguage before working through these activities.

In contrast to error analysis, an interlanguage analysis seeks to identify the rules and patterns the learner is using to produce the language. As you may recall, in Error Analysis activity 3, we looked at Pari’s pronunciation of the Persian "gh" sound (a voiced fricative /ɣ/) and found instances where she made errors in pronuncing this consonant. She used native language patterns in trying to produce the target language sound. To turn the error analysis activity 3 into an interlanguage analysis, we will not just look at errors, but also at contexts where Pari produced "gh" accurately. In other words, we’ll do a Target Language Use (TLU) analysis to identify possible patterns or interlanguage rules.
  1. Look at the same video from Pari’s Retell task. Listen to her pronunciation of / ɣ /.

    Transcript (PDF)

  2. In the table below, in the right column write words in which she produced the target sound accurately. We have inserted Pari’s phonological errors with "gh" based on the answers in error analysis activity 3.


  3. Line
    Pari
    Words w/phonological
    error: / ɣ /

    Line
    Pari
    Words w/correct
    pronunciation of: / ɣ /
    1 væ/k/ti keh    
    2 ota/k/    
    9 tæ/k/sir    
    20 væ/k/ti keh    


  4. Look at both the errors and the correct instances of use of "gh" that you have entered and answer the following questions:

    a. Is there a rule or pattern in Pari’s IL production of "gh"? Explain.
    b.  Does the new information provided by TLU analysis suggest a teaching   strategy for "gh"? If so, how?


When you have finished typing your answer, click to compare your response with the Learner Language staff response.

Line
Pari
Words w/phonological
error: /ɣ/

Line
Pari
Words w/correct
pronunciation of /ɣ/
1 væ/k/ti keh 1 ota/ ɣ /æsh
2 ota/k/ 18 mæ/ ɣ /azeh
9 tæ/k/sir 22 mæ/ ɣ /azeh
20 væ/k/ti keh    

3. a. Is there a rule or pattern in Pari’s IL production of "gh"? Explain.

Looking at the small sample of data suggests that Pari may have an easier time pronouncing voiced "gh" when it is located between two vowels. From error analysis activity 3 recall that we thought that Pari has difficulty pronuncing the voiced "gh" when it is followed by a consonant (mainly alveolars and voiceless /t/ and /s/) or when it occurs at the end of the word. But in the table above we see that she doesn’t seem to have as much difficulty pronouncing words like “otaghæsh” (line 1) and “mæghaze” (2 times, lines 18 and 22), where the sound / ɣ / is followed by a vowel, not a consonant.

b. Does the new information provided by TLU analysis suggest a teaching strategy for "gh"? If so, how?

In teaching, you could draw Pari’s attention to the contexts where she pronounces this consonant right, and get her to compare it with contexts where she pronounces it wrong. Show her how to start with the sound in medial position before a vowel, in words where that following vowel is followed by a consonant, such as “mæghaze”. Create a nonsense word by gradually deleting the vowel before the consonant, blending the sounds in more and more rapid speech, to produce the nonsense word “*maghze”.

 

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