Presentation

Mimic Video: A Cinematic Method for L2 Pronunciation

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Abstract

Mimic Video is an experimental L2 teaching method that uses video production and imitation to teach English pronunciation. In early 2015, the course was delivered as a pilot program at a Hong Kong secondary school to L1 Cantonese-L2 English speakers. In the first lesson, students viewed the target video, a three-minute dramatic sequence of native English speakers holding a meeting. For their culminating task, students were required to film, edit, and act in their own sequence that imitated the shots, acting, and dialogue of the target video as closely as possible. The remaining lessons focused on the skills needed to accomplish this task. These included daily focused listening and a cycle of repetitions modeled on Pimsleur’s Graduated Interval Recall. To gauge the efficacy of Mimic Video, students were recorded before and after the course. Spectrographic evidence suggests that after taking the course there were significant changes in students’ articulation of dark /l/, that is, [ɫ]. Additionally, F0 analysis suggests that some students improved their ability to imitate intonation.

How to Cite:

White, D., Chan, J., Mok, P. & Lie, P., (2015) “Mimic Video: A Cinematic Method for L2 Pronunciation”, Pronunciation in Second Language Learning and Teaching Proceedings 7(1).