This edited book presents and discusses theoretical, practical, and research developments in English pronunciation in order to establish evidence-based directions and recommendations for best practices in English speech assessment, research, and training. It features leading pronunciation experts from diverse contexts who share cutting-edge research and valuable insights. The collection consists of six parts. Part 1 introduces the aims, focus, and structure of the book, and describes its intended audience. Part 2 reviews, provides empirical evidence, and offers critical analyses guiding different aspects of English speech assessment. Parts 3 and 4 report empirical findings and research perspectives on the perception and production of English speech. Part 5 shares current practices in phonetic training and their effect on learners and listeners. Part 6 presents theoretical perspectives on the acquisition of phonology in multilinguals.
The Malleability of Listener Judgments of Second Language
Speech.- Evaluations of Foreign Accented Speech: Subjective Bias or Speech
Signal Characteristics?.- The Effects of Prestige Model Familiarity on
Students Perceptions of and Interactions with Diverse English
Accents.- Speech Assessment via Read-Alouds: A Critical Analysis of
Diagnostic Passages.- Accentedness and Comprehensibility in Non-Native
Listeners Perception of L2 Speech.- Perception and Recoverability of
Modified English L2 Codas.- The Role of Plosive Codas: Recognition and
Perception by Lithuanian Learners of English.- Hungarian Learners Perception
of Intrusive-R in English.- Vowel Accentedness in the Light of Internal and
External Competence Assessment.- On the Value of L2 Pronunciation Data for
Linguistic Theory: The story of /h/.- Consistency in the Rhoticity of Czech
Speakers of English.- High-Variability Phonetic Training under Different
Conditions: Individual Differences in Auditory Attention Control.- The
Effects of Intensive Phonetic Training on the Acquisition of English
Stops.- Learner Views on the Efficiency of L2 Perceptual Training.- Natural
Growth Theory of Acquisition (NGTA): Evidence from
(Mor)phonotactics.- Perceptual Drift in L1 Phonetic Categories in
Multilinguals.- The Study of English Accents: Current Approaches and Future
Directions.
Veronica G. Sardegna, Ph.D., is Adjunct Faculty at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, USA. For two decades, she has taught a wide range of ESL, English pronunciation, and teacher education courses at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Pittsburgh, and Duquesne University. Her research interests are in the areas of English pronunciation and business and academic writing, intercultural learning, and instructional technology. Specifically, she evaluates learning outcomes in these areas by investigating the effects of individual learner variables, strategy use, and technology use (including computer-mediated and learning technology tools) on instructed and autonomous learning contexts. She has published a book (The Practiced Business Writer: An ESL/EFL Handbook, 2009), and numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals and prestigious edited collections. Dr. Sardegna is also frequently invited for plenary speeches and expert panels at international conferences, and has been a leader for International TESOL since 2013. In 2021, she received the D. Scott Enright Interest Section Award for her outstanding service to TESOL. Anna Jarosz, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor in the Department of English Language and Applied Linguistics at the University of ód in Poland, where she conducts research and teaches courses on English phonetics and phonology, practical phonetics, and pronunciation instruction in teacher trainee programs. Her professional interests include pronunciation teaching and learning, phonetics, and second language acquisition with a focus on individual learner differences, motivation, and strategy use among English as a foreign language learners. Dr. Jarosz has recently published a monograph entitled English Pronunciation in L2 Instruction. The Case of Secondary School Learners (Springer, 2019). Since 2019, Dr. Jarosz has been organizing the International Conference on Native and Non-Native Accents (Accents) in Poland.
