Techniques Used in Teaching Pronunciation

Abstract

This research work entitled 'Techniques Used in Teaching Pronunciation' is an attempt to find out the most dominant techniques in teaching pronunciation in the primary level. For the study, the data were the audio-record of the classroom discourse and the field notes collected from ten English medium schools of Kaski district. The audio-recorded data were transcribed, analyzed and interpreted using both the descriptive and simple statistical tools. Both primary and secondary source of data were used for the study. By this study, the researcher found out that teachers used only eight techniques to teach pronunciation and among them Drilling and Modelling Techniques were the most frequently used techniques in teaching pronunciation. They were used by 50 and 42.85 percent teachers respectively. Similarly, Reading Aloud Technique was used by 35.71 percent teachers. Syllable Breaking Technique came in the fourth position. It was used by 21.42 percent teachers. Besides, the teachers also used Chaining, Phonetic Symbol, Minimal Pair and Translation Technique to teach pronunciation. They covered 7.14 Percent each. Whereas, 21.42 percent teachers did not do any activities related to teaching of pronunciation. The thesis consists of four chapters. Chapter one deals with the introduction. It consists of general background, English language teaching in the context of Nepal, pronunciation: definition and importance, features of pronunciation, organs of speech, teaching pronunciation, pronunciation: a neglected aspect, problems in teaching pronunciation, review of the related literature, significance and the objectives of the study. Similarly, chapter two deals with the methodology. It encompasses source of data, population of the study, sampling procedure, research tools, process of data collection, process of data analysis and the limitations of the study. Likewise, chapter three is the core part of this thesis. It deals with the analysis and interpretation of the data. Chapter four consists of the findings of the study and recommendations.