Training materials

Message from the Project Leader

Dear all,

Thank you for your participation in this video series.

In recent years, the Covid-19 pandemic has hindered the teaching and learning of English pronunciation. Social distancing measures have reduced interaction, limiting opportunities for students to practice oral skills. Furthermore, the use of masks during face-to-face instruction has made it difficult for students to hear and imitate correct pronunciation. Moreover, the pandemic has led to a decrease in social activities like cultural exchange programs and international travel, which typically provide language practice opportunities. These factors have cumulatively resulted in a negative effect on the teaching and learning of English pronunciation.

Mastering intonation and stress is crucial for English language learners as these elements play a vital role in effective communication. Word stress, which emphasizes specific syllables in a word, can significantly alter meanings. For example, "REcord" and "reCORD" have distinct meanings based on stress placement. Intonation involves the rise and fall of pitch in a sentence, conveying emotions, attitudes, and intentions. Enhancing these prosodic elements enables learners to communicate effectively, ensuring their message is understood and minimizing miscommunication. Improved prosody enhances learners' fluency and naturalness in spoken English, boosting their confidence and enhancing success in academic, professional, and social contexts.

Teaching English intonation and stress to ESL learners poses several challenges for teachers. Firstly, these aspects are not consistently covered in language textbooks or curricula, leaving teachers uncertain about where to start. Secondly, the rules governing intonation and stress can be intricate and reliant on context, posing challenges for both teaching and comprehension. Thirdly, providing constructive feedback on intonation and stress requires a high level of awareness and attention to detail, which can be demanding for instructors. Finally, effectively teaching intonation and stress necessitates ample practice and repetition, which may be time-consuming and difficult to integrate into already busy classroom schedules. Despite these obstacles, ESL teachers must prioritize teaching intonation and stress to aid learners in communicating effectively and sounding more natural in spoken English.

In this video series, I along with four doctoral students, Tina Zhou, Veronica Han, Xuan Tian, and Justine Chan, collaborated to develop teaching materials on English word stress and intonation, covering rules, acoustics, tools, and AI. We hope that everyone can enjoy the process of learning English prosody.

Rebecca Chen

Associate Professor

Department of Linguistics and Modern Language Studies

The Education University of Hong Kong

Self-evaluation on knowledge of English word stress and intonation