The teaching of English pronunciation: The model accents

Abstract

The massive growth of English as an international language has meant that many among the very considerable number of those who are engaged in teaching it have been eager to possess a full description of the features of the spoken variety they employ. The first really full account of a suitable British model pronunciation is found in Daniel Jones's Outline of English Phonetics, notably as it appeared in 1932. For thirty years this was unrivalled. Despite numerous features which have become outdated and others that were never entirely suitable treatments of their subject matter, this book has still not been completely superseded and fortunately still remains in print. In 1962, A. C. Gimson's Introduction to the Pronunciation of English immediately showed itself to be a better organised and more up-to-date account but markedly less oriented to the needs of the EFL teacher and learner. Less than 5% of its content consisted of specific advice for this audience. Its second revision in 1980 more than doubled its EFL coverage by the addition of a very valuable appendix on ‘Teaching the Pronunciation of English’.