A Secondary Data Analysis Describing the Syllable Structure Exhibited by Four-Year-Old Filipino-Dominant Speaking Children

Abstract

The objective of the study is to describe the syllable structures exhibited by Filipino-dominant speaking four-year-old children. A total of nineteen audio-recorded connected speech samples were transcribed, segmented, and analyzed to describe the syllable structures through identifying the parts of a syllable, the number of syllables in a word, and the combination of the different syllable structures exhibited by the participants. Descriptive and cross-sectional secondary data analysis was used to describe the different syllable structures. The most frequently occurring syllable structure is CV followed by CVC. Consonants Inf and/?/are the most frequently occurring onset and coda, and vowel /al for the nucleus. Furthermore, the most frequently occurring number of syllables are one-syllable and two-syllable words with syllable structure combinations CVC, CV.CV,CV.CVC and CV. As for diphthongs and clusters, the occurrence was less frequent (less than 5% of the total sample) as Filipino words primarily do not contain these. The increase in number of syllables resulted from the reduplication of the verbs and affixes. Overall, the results of the current study may serve as basis for word structure, monitoring, and regulating the expected skills and development of Filipino children.