What Characterizes Comprehensible and Native‐like Pronunciation Among English‐as‐a‐Second‐Language Speakers? Meta‐Analyses of Phonological, Rater, and Instructional Factors

Kazuya Saito

doi:10.1002/tesq.3027

Abstract

AbstractThe current study presents two meta‐analyses to explore what underlies the assessment and teaching of comprehensible and nativelike pronunciation among English‐as‐a‐Second‐Language speakers. In Study 1, listener studies (n = 37) were retrieved examining the influence of segmental, prosodic, and temporal features on listeners’ intuitive judgements of comprehensibility and nativelikeness/accentedness as per different listener backgrounds (expert, mixed, L2). In Study 2, training studies (n = 17) were retrieved examining the effects of segmental, prosodic, and temporal‐based instruction on ESL learners’ pronunciation. The results showed that (a) comprehensibility judgements were related to a range of segmental, prosodic, and temporal features; (b) accentedness judgements were strongly tied to participants’ correct pronunciation of consonants and vowels; and (c) instruction led to larger gains in comprehensibility than in nativelikeness. Moderator analyses demonstrated that expert listeners were more reliant on phonological information. Greater effects of instruction on comprehensibility than nativelikeness became clearer, especially when the treatment targeted prosodic accuracy. The findings suggest that ESL practitioners should prioritize suprasegemental practice to help students achieve comprehensible L2 pronunciation. The attainment of nativelike pronunciation, by contrast, may require an exclusive focus on the refinement of segmental accuracy, which is resistant to the influence of instruction.

Highlights

Assessing Second Language PronunciationIt is well documented that L2 pronunciation is coloured by phonological and phonetic features found in the first language (L1), especially when the onset of learning begins after puberty (Flege et al, 1995)
The current study focuses on two global constructs of L2 pronunciation proficiency: comprehensibility and accentedness
The results suggest that the dataset well represents how a range of phonological measures are related to L2 comprehensibility and accentedness among the 27 primary studies

Summary

Introduction

Assessing Second Language PronunciationIt is well documented that L2 pronunciation is coloured by phonological and phonetic features found in the first language (L1), especially when the onset of learning begins after puberty (Flege et al, 1995). Very few learners are able to reach native-like pronunciation norms, and may only be able to do so if their L1 is linguistically close to the target language (e.g., Dutch learners of English; Bongaerts, van Summeren, Planken, & Schils, 1997; see Saito, Macmillan, et al, 2020 for Indo-European vs non Indo-European speakers of L2 English). In light of these findings, it is important that language teachers are made aware that attaining native-like L2 pronunciation is a difficult task— even if it is an idealized goal. On the basis of this argument, a number of scholars have emphasized the importance of attaining the more realistic and achievable goals of comprehensibility, intelligibility, and communicative adequacy, as these are what matter for successful L2 communication (Levis, 2018)

Results

Discussion

Conclusion