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Journal of Second Language Pronunciation - Online First
Online First articles are the published Version of Record, made available as soon as they are finalized and formatted. They are in general accessible to current subscribers, until they have been included in an issue, which is accessible to subscribers to the relevant volume
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A new decade : JSLP looking to the future
Author(s): Dustin CrowtherAvailable online: 19 June 2025More Less
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A comparison of techniques for training L2 Japanese prosody
Author(s): Masako ShimadaAvailable online: 12 June 2025More LessAbstractDespite growing interest in the role of prosody in communication, there is still a need for more empirical research to better understand its impact on listeners’ understanding and to provide effective pronunciation instruction. The study compares the effectiveness of two methods (i.e., embodied and computer-assisted techniques) in training Japanese vowel length contrast and pitch accent, with the aim of improving L2 perception and production, and ultimately increasing intelligibility and comprehensibility. Training was provided to English-speaking learners of Japanese for four weeks. Following the training, learners exhibited significant improvement in their overall performance, and these observed improvements often continued until the delayed posttest. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in performance between learners assigned to embodied techniques and those using computer-assisted methods. These findings suggest that both methods may be equally effective and that L2 prosody can improve in as short as four weeks with targeted instruction.
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Production of American English consonants /v/ and /w/ by Hindi speakers of English
Author(s): Vikas Grover, Valerie L. Shafer, Luca Campanelli, D. H. Whalen, Stephanie Kakadelis and Erika S. LevyAvailable online: 10 June 2025More LessAbstractPrevious research revealed that Hindi speakers identify American English (AE) phonemes /v/ and /w/ with only chance accuracy. Building on these findings, this study explored the production of AE /v/ and /w/ by Hindi speakers, utilizing both acoustic analysis of second formant (F2) onset and AE listeners’ ratings. Participants included two groups of Hindi-English bilinguals, one residing in the US for more than 5 years, one residing in India, and a group of monolingual AE speakers. Results indicated significant differences in F2 onset between AE speakers and Hindi groups, with AE speakers differentiating the consonants more than the Hindi speakers did. The F2 onset of the Hindi speakers who had resided in the US differed from the F2 onsets produced by those with no AE immersion experience in certain conditions only. AE listeners rated only a few productions from Hindi speakers as accurate representations of AE /v/ and /w/. AE /v/-/w/ is difficult for Hindi speakers to produce contrastively, even for those who have resided in the US for several years.
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Teaching perspectives : [Mandarin]
Author(s): Christina SmithAvailable online: 03 June 2025More Less
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Exploring large language models for L2 metaphonological awareness tutoring
Author(s): Kacper Łodzikowski, Jarosław Weckwerth and Kamil MalarskiAvailable online: 02 June 2025More LessAbstractThis is the first observational study to evaluate the feasibility of implementing large language models (LLMs) for second language (L2) metaphonological awareness training. A custom implementation of GPT-4 acting as a homework tutor was piloted in an English phonetics and phonology course for first-year university students. Two novel homework assignments were designed to leverage the LLM’s strengths and explore its weaknesses. Analysis of learner interaction logs, homework reflections, and survey data revealed that most learners perceived the AI Tutor as helpful for its personalised explanations. However, the overall sentiment was mixed due to the LLM’s propensity for confabulation. Despite these challenges, the pilot demonstrated the potential for LLMs to engage learners in active and self-regulated learning. Recommendations for future directions include designing LLM-based learning environments, promoting AI literacy among educators and learners, and experimentally researching long-term effects of AI tutors on learning outcomes.
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Review of Nagle (2025): A Guide to Quantitative Research Methods in Second Language Pronunciation
Author(s): Daniel R. IsbellAvailable online: 19 May 2025More Less
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Linguistic dimensions of comprehensibility and perceived fluency in L2 speech across tasks of varying complexity
Author(s): Jialiang Lu and Reiko SatoAvailable online: 13 May 2025More LessAbstractThis study investigated the effects of task complexity on the linguistic dimensions of comprehensibility and perceived fluency in L2 Japanese. 36 Chinese-speaking learners of Japanese performed two argumentative speech tasks with differing levels of complexity. These audio samples were judged by eight experienced native raters of Japanese for comprehensibility and perceived fluency and then analyzed in terms of complexity, accuracy, and fluency. The results showed that linguistic correlates of comprehensibility exhibit a task-specific effect, with additional linguistic dimensions (e.g., syntactic density, explicit grammatical marking) becoming increasingly relevant as task complexity rises. In contrast, perceived fluency also undergoes a task-specific shift but differently: rather than expanding the set of predictors, it changes the nature of primary cues, placing greater emphasis on syntactic sophistication alongside (but not replacing) temporal aspects. Findings underscore the unique role of Japanese linguistic system in shaping listeners’ judgments of L2 Japanese.
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Spanish rhotic acquisition in semester-long study-abroad and at-home contexts
Author(s): Jeff Michno and Lauren OrfinikAvailable online: 29 April 2025More LessAbstractThe present study compares the L2 acquisition of Spanish rhotics (intervocalic taps /ɾ/ and trills /r/) by 16 semester-long study-abroad (SA) participants and 7 at-home (AH) peers using an experimental production task. Data collected at three different time points (pre-/mid-/post-semester) suggest an advantage of study-abroad in the acquisition of trills containing multiple occlusions. Participants at all proficiency levels showed significant movement towards multiple-occlusion trills throughout the semester. Intensity of contact with Spanish interacted with proficiency, enhancing gains at certain levels. Results indicate that segment duration can also serve as a useful phonemic contrast. While both the SA and AH groups significantly increased trill segment duration over time, only the SA group sustained the increase from mid- to post-semester. These findings have theoretical and pedagogical implications for the acquisition of L2 phonetic categories and phonemic distinctions that differ from the L1.
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English pronunciation through acting exercises and techniques
Author(s): Luke NicholsonAvailable online: 15 April 2025More Less
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Exploring automatic speech recognition for corrective and confirmative pronunciation feedback
Author(s): Paul John, Carol Johnson and Walcir CardosoAvailable online: 01 April 2025More LessAbstractGiven that second language pronunciation errors are typically variable, learners would benefit from feedback that both flags errors (corrective feedback) and confirms correct pronunciation (confirmative feedback). We investigated Google Translate (GT) automatic speech recognition (ASR) transcription accuracy to determine its capacity to provide such feedback, based on Quebec francophone recordings of correctly/incorrectly realized English th-initial, h-initial and vowel-initial items in predictable/unpredictable sentence contexts. Recordings from male and female speakers were used to verify possible gender bias. In predictable contexts, transcription accuracy rates were higher for correct vs incorrect pronunciations; rates in unpredictable contexts for correct or incorrect pronunciations fell midway between the two. GT ASR is thus better at providing confirmative feedback in predictable contexts but corrective feedback in unpredictable contexts. Regardless of context, accuracy was considerably higher on errors leading to real-word than nonword output. Contra the anticipated pattern, female speakers were transcribed with higher accuracy than male.
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Implicit feedback and lexical stress : Development of perception and production in a classroom environment
Author(s): Özgür Parlak, Nicole Ziegler and Reem RabeaAvailable online: 24 February 2025More LessAbstractThe current study explored the effects of recasts on the production and perception of primary stress in a classroom context. Following a pretest-posttest-delayed posttest design, 28 L1 Arabic speakers were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Participants received four hours of instruction over a period of four days, and the lessons were recorded for stimulated recall. Teaching materials focused on argumentation, and were embedded with the target vocabulary to facilitate incidental mispronunciation. When the intervention group produced target words with misplaced primary stress, they received a recast. The control group did not receive corrective feedback. The results of linear mixed-effects analyses showed that recasts facilitated primary stress development through increased vowel duration. Stimulated recall data confirmed that participants noticed the recasts they received. However, there were no changes in participants’ perceptions of stress placement. These findings suggest that incidental pronunciation errors can be addressed through implicit feedback.
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Teaching Perspectives : Arabic
Author(s): Ayman S. ElbarbaryAvailable online: 24 February 2025More Less
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Effects of observing pitch gestures on the perception of English intonation by Japanese learners of English
Author(s): Tomoko Hori, Mari Akatsuka and Michiko ToyamaAvailable online: 24 January 2025More LessAbstractThe effects of observing pitch gestures on non-native English intonation perception among 80 Japanese learners of English were examined to uncover whether pitch gestures boost the perception of intonation patterns in the contexts of congruent, incongruent, and no gestures (CGs, IGs, and NGs, respectively); gestural effects differ from various intonation patterns; and gestural effects are based on the complexity of stimuli. The results showed that identification was most accurate for CGs, followed by NGs and IGs for both word and sentence stimuli. Although gestural effects differed depending on intonation patterns and the target stimuli, observing CGs enhances the perception of intonation patterns, including rising patterns, which are particularly challenging for Japanese learners. Consequently, these findings provide pedagogical implications for incorporating pitch gestures into both the learning and teaching of second-language intonation.
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Review of LaScotte, Meyers & Tarone (2023): Voice and mirroring in L2 pronunciation instruction
Author(s): Jennifer A FooteAvailable online: 28 November 2024More Less
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Production of prominence by Mandarin‑speaking EFL learners : The role of prominence position, focus type and proficiency
Author(s): Congchao HuaAvailable online: 22 November 2024More LessAbstractThis study investigated Mandarin-speaking English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners’ prominence production in relation to prominence position, focus type, and proficiency. Eighty Mandarin-speaking EFL learners and 20 native English speakers read 12 question-answer pairs in English, with the questions eliciting different prominence patterns (end vs. non-end) for different focus types (broad vs. narrow). The results revealed that the phonological aspect (prominence assignment) was influenced by prominence position, focus type, and proficiency, but the phonetic aspect (phonetic realization of prominence) was affected only by prominence position. Phonologically, the learners achieved more native-like performance on end than non-end prominence, on broad than narrow focus, and their performance improved with proficiency. Phonetically, they achieved more native-like performance on end than non-end prominence and produced native-like F and intensity, but not duration. Drawing on these patterns, in teaching priorities should be given to prominence assignment over phonetic realization, non-end over end prominence, and narrow over broad focus.
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