The Application of Linking by Jordanian EFL Students While Pronouncing English Words That Begin With Vowels
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1506.07Keywords:
L1 interference, linking, phonology, pronunciation, foreign language acquisitionAbstract
This paper investigates the application of linking as a feature of connected speech by Jordanian English Language senior university students at the Hashemite University. The paper specifically examines Consonant-Vowel (CV) and Vowel-Vowel (VV) environments using audio-recordings of students reading a controlled set of sentences. The recordings were converted into waveforms to facilitate their analysis and comparison with those of a native speaker. The main results show that students applied linking in the CV environments in percentages that exceeded those in the VV environments. Furthermore, when collectively analyzed, data showed that students in the sample failed to apply linking in more than half of the environments of the instrument. The research recommended that EFL teachers should be trained on methods of teaching pronunciation as students could benefit from receiving instruction regarding the application of linking.
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