A Neglected Aspect of the Standards: Preparing Foreign Language Spanish Teachers to Teach Pronunciation

Abstract

This article discusses reasons for explicit pronunciation instruction, despite the continued neglect of this area in the communicative classroom. ACTFL/NCATE Program Standards for the Preparation of Foreign Language Teachers (2002) and Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century (National Standards, 1999) dictate that teachers have an understanding of target language sound/spelling relationships, segmentals, suprasegmentals, and dialectal variation. Suggestions are offered for building a knowledge base, including issues invohed in pronunciation instruction, content areas of Spanish phonetics, and types of pedagogical materials that can be designed and implemented in the communicative foreign language Spanish classroom. Pedagogical materials created by students enrolled in a graduate‐level Applied Spanish Phonetics course show that it is possible to engage in pronunciation instruction in the communicative foreign language Spanish classroom and incorporate basic pronunciation instruction into an existing curriculum at all levels.