(How) Can We Teach Foreign Language Pronunciation? On the Effects of a Spanish Phonetics Course

Abstract

This paper investigates the effects of explicit instruction and self-analysis on the acquisition of second-language (L2) pronunciation, specifically of nine Spanish phonemes learned by native speakers of English. Oral data were collected from seventeen students enrolled in an undergraduate course in Spanish Phonetics at the beginning and end of the semester. The treatment consisted of standard phonetics instruction, practice with voice analysis software and oral self-analysis projects. Target sounds were rated for accuracy of pronunciation through voice analysis software. Results are promising, indicating that the participants receiving explicit phonetics instruction improved their pronunciation on specific features.