Abstract
Since English pronunciation errors are often caused by the transfer of the Persian language sound system, the present study investigated the effect of explicit pronunciation instruction on undergraduate English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ vowel perception enhancement. The nonequivalent group, pretest-posttest design was employed to study two classes of English literature and English teaching students at Kosar University of Bojnord (KUB) as the experimental group (EG) and control group (CG) respectively. A 40-item minimal pair test was developed based on the 3rd edition of the book Ship or Sheep written by Baker (2006). The reliability of the test was estimated 0.75 through KR-21 formula. After the pretest administration, both groups were exposed to the same activities; however, only the EG received the treatment regarding explicit pronunciation instruction. At the end of an eight-week training program, the pretest was used as the posttest. The results of the independent samples t-test from the posttest revealed that the EG had a better performance than the CG suggesting that EFL learners’ vowel perception can improve if they are explicitly made aware of their pronunciation errors.
Highlights
Education in Iran Education is generally free of charge, there are some private schools, institutes, and universities that are permitted to charge tuition fees
Statistical Analysis and Results To explore the effects of the two teaching methods on English vowel perception of the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners, the data were subjected to statistical analysis
To answer the research question–Does explicit pronunciation instruction enhance undergraduate EFL learners’ vowel perception?–after rating the subjects’ performance, the raw scores taken from the pretest and posttest were submitted to the computer software Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS version 16), using a t-test
Summary
Education in Iran Education is generally free of charge, there are some private schools, institutes, and universities that are permitted to charge tuition fees. The Iranian educational system consists of the following categories: 1. One year Kindergarten from the age of five (elective) 2. Six year primary school from the age of six (compulsory education) 3. Three year junior high school from the age of 11 (compulsory education) 4. Three year senior high school from the age of 15 to 18 5. University, which is under the supervision of the Ministry of Medical Health (MMH) and Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology (MSRT)
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