PHONETICS & PHONOLOGY

Phonetics and Phonology of Learners

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Phonetics and Phonology of Learners

Introduction

English is one of the oldest languages of the world. English is spoken by both the native English speakers as well as by the non-native speakers. The native speakers have English as their mother-tongue; however, the others are those who are literate and mostly well-educated and speak English as their second language. No matter the speaker, it is obvious that the speaker understands the grammar and linguistics of the language. The grammar may involve things like the punctuation and vocabulary. On the other hand, linguistics includes things like colloquialism, euphemism, etc. Therefore, the English speakers also need to be cognisant of the various dialects and accents in spoken and written English. While the accents are the specific ways of pronunciation in English, the dialects change the use of vocabulary as well as grammar. Still, there are other variations in English as well that provide the variety. These are the regional and non-regional variations in English. The regional variations occur due to geographies of the speakers, such as those of Londoners, New Yorkers, Australians, etc. On the other hand, the non-regional variations could be due to any of the factors such as age, sex, social status, etc.

Therefore, it is quintessential to understand the phonetics and phonology of speech. Phonetics is the branch of linguistic science that deals with the production of speech sounds. On the contrary, phonology is the patterns of sounds produced by speech and their various functions. By understanding the phonetics and phonology of speech, we are able to understand the various correct pronunciations of words. In this way, we are able to develop a specific accent of English as well as can speak English that is correct and closer to the English that is spoken by the native speakers of English.

The world is full of people who speak various types of English. However, it is not necessary that the native speakers of English do not need to study phonetics. They are equally in need of understanding the phonetics to understand the language more fully. However, the need for the non-native speakers to speak English with the correct pronunciation is well established and documented (Collins & Mees, 2003).

Arab's English language profile

Arabs are not very good at speaking English. The Arabs have their own distinct language that is one of the most popular languages of the world (Micheloud, 2009). Hence, they have their own phonetics and phonology of the language that affects their spoken English. Therefore, Arabs are better at speaking the various dialects of Arabic rather than speaking good English. Furthermore, the Arabs are also non-native speakers of English. Therefore, they naturally incorporate such phonology as to alter the meaning of spoken English. In a way, the Arabs are not very good at spoken English. Therefore, they need to be taught the phonology and phonetics of English language to be better able to understand their accent of English.

Arabs also have their own ...