Posters

Can Successful L2 Pronunciation Facilitate Listening Comprehension? The Role of Speech Rate and Pitch Range

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Abstract

The relationship between speech perception and production has been the topic of a continuous debate and investigation in second language (L2) contexts, with no conclusive outcome. Considering that perception is a fundamental part of listening comprehension, the question emerges: Can production of certain pronunciation features predict L2 learners’ listening comprehension? Also, it is not yet clear if this relationship depends on students’ speaking proficiency. This study acoustically analyzed speech samplesfrom 43 English-as-a-second-language (ESL) students at three speaking proficiency levels to see whether and to what extent the production of the four suprasegmental features (i.e., speech rate, pauses, sentence stress, and pitch range) correlated with thelearners’ listening comprehension scores. The results showed that speech rate and pitch range were significant predictors of listening comprehension; the former having much more predictive power and the latter being especially prominent at the lower speaking proficiency. The findings suggest that ESL learners’ success in listening may be associated with their speech rate and pitch production patterns. Therefore, teachers might want to consider teaching speech rate and intonation patterns to develop students’ speaking and listening abilities.

How to Cite:

Lesnov, R., Wolhein Nava, S. & Bogorevich, V., (2019) “Can Successful L2 Pronunciation Facilitate Listening Comprehension? The Role of Speech Rate and Pitch Range”, Pronunciation in Second Language Learning and Teaching Proceedings 11(1).