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Dr. Sarwet Rasul

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Review of Previous Learning

Development of Listening SkillWhat is listening?Why listening is important?Difference in hearing and listening

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Important Learning Points

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Cont.Perspectives on listeningHuman aspects of listening:Perspectives on listeningHuman aspects of listeningLanguage aspects of listeningDifferent listening contextsDifficulties in listeningListening strategies

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Cont.Language aspects of listeningPurposes of Listening:

We listen to obtain information. We listen to understand. We listen to learn. We listen for enjoyment.

Different listening contextsDifficulties in listening

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Listening strategies:Extensive listening:

Listening to something in a relaxed wayNot concentrating on every wordFor sheer pleasure

Intensive Listening:Listening practice in modern classrooms.To pick up important points

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Preview of the lesson Introduction to Speaking Skill: What is speaking skill?Why is it important?General Misconceptions about speakingHindrances in learning good speaking skillSpeaking a foreign language Speaking English as a foreign language Speaking/ Listening – The inter-relationshipComponents of SpeechFactors that Affect Oral Delivery

Pitch Speech Rate Volume Vocal quality Pronunciation

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Introduction to Speaking skillOne of the most desired communication skillOne of the most frequently used

communication skillBut one of the most taken for granted

communication skill as wellBasic level speaking skill means ……….

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In our own language, speaking is usually the second language skill that we learn.

This vocalized form of language usually requires at least one listener.

When two or more people speak or talk to each other, the conversation is called a "dialogue". Speech can flow naturally from one person to another in the form of dialogue which is the most frequently used form in daily life.

Sometimes we can also plan and rehearse what we want to speak, as in the delivery of a speech or presentation.

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DefinitionSpeaking is the productive skill in the oral

mode. It, like the other skills, is more complicated than it seems at first and involves more than just pronouncing words. (www.sil.org/lingualinks/languagelearning/ )

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Importance of speaking skillConsider for a while how much of you communicate

through this skill in a dayThink for a while if you do not have this skill. What would

you do? How much you would be able to communicate? And, more importantly how much of your communication would be effective?

Speaking skill is very crucial to human interaction

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Biggest hindrance

Failing to recognize that speaking is an acquired skill.

Effective speakers learn how to speak We can learn it as we learn other skills –

Example of driving

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SPEAKING A FOREIGN LANGUAGEThe expectation is not native-like speech. Difference in accent and pronunciation is acceptable Errors are okay. Perfect grammar is not expected.

Speaking is probably the language skill that most of the foreign language learners wish to perfect as soon as possible. But, this often proves to be the most difficult to master.

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SPEAKING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGEExpectations Differences ErrorsGrammar How about your speaking skill?

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Speaking/ Listening – The inter-relationship

Variety in contexts: There are three kinds of speaking/ listening situations in which we find ourselves:

interactive,partially interactive, andnon-interactive.www.sil.org/lingualinks/languagelearning

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Interactive speaking situations include face-to-face conversations and telephone calls, in which we are alternately listening and speaking, and in which we have a chance to ask for clarification, repetition, or slower speech from our conversation partner.

Some speaking situations are partially interactive, such as when giving a speech to a live audience, where the convention is that the audience does not interrupt the speech. The speaker nevertheless can see the audience and judge from the expressions on their faces and body language whether or not he or she is being understood.

Very few speaking situations may be totally non-interactive, such as when recording a speech for a radio broadcast.

www.sil.org/lingualinks/languagelearning

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Components of Speech: Basic Six Elements Involved

Transmitter: Speaker Channels: Senses (speech, hearing, seeing, etc.) Message: Speaker's topic Receiver: Audience Noise: Internal and external factors that affect message

reception by audience for example traffic noise, noise of people working around etc.

Feedback: Audience reaction

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Extemporaneous / Impromptu: Spoken without advance preparation, Prompted by the occasion rather than being planned before hand or in advance. Spoken, performed, done, or composed with little or no preparation

MemorizationReading

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Degrees of Formality

Speaking can be formal or informalInformal speaking is typically used with

family and friends, or people you know well. Formal speaking occurs in business or

academic situations, or when meeting people for the first time.

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Factors that Affect Oral Delivery

1. Pitch2. Speech Rate 3. Volume4. Vocal quality 5. Pronunciation

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Pitch of your voice That property of voice which we call pitch is determined by the

rate of vibration of the vocal cords. As a general rule the greater the number of vibrations per

second, the higher the pitch. Now how the rate of vibration is determined? It is determined

by the length and thickness of the vocal cords and by the tightening or relaxation of these cords.

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Cont… Pitch of your voiceNormally, women's voices are pitched higher than

men's.Reason: Women's vocal cords are shorter as compared

to men. Among individuals of each sex there are wide variations due to difference in physical structure.

Key factor for us to remember as speakers is that the pitch of our voices is partly determined by nature, but is not entirely beyond our control.

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Inflection of Pitch Inflection is a change of pitch. Naturally we do not speak on one pitch level alone. The voice slides up and down the scale as we express various

shades of thought and feeling. Generally an upward slide or inflection expresses a question or

an uncompleted thoughtGenerally a downward inflection expresses a completed

thought.

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Cont... Inflection of PitchIf somebody’s voice never rises or falls, and he or

she drones on and on in the same monotone, the listener very soon loses interest in what he or she is saying.

The voice that holds your attention conveys emotion and interest by change of pitch or inflection.

What about Urdu and English?

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Speech RateWhat is speech rate?The Ideal Rate of Speech: 90-140 words per minute or 140 to

160 words per minute or ???There is some variance to the acceptable rate of speech

depending on the geographical area in which you reside.  If your rate of speech is ideal, then there is an effective

communication. Otherwise the speaker either may have to repeat himself/ herself, or some information gets ignored.

Young children and old people may also process information more slowly so their rate of speech can be lower than the ideal rate of speech.

If the rate of speech is faster the listener may miss out the information given by the speaker.

What is your rate of speech?

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Speech rate as a problem

The rate of speech that we use in normal conversation affects our fluency rating.  If you are a speaker with excellent command of the English language, you are more likely to speak to quickly compared to the speaker who is still learning the language and speaks more slowly to find the right words, carefully considering pronunciation. 

If a speaker is too slow, speech sounds labored, broken up and is difficult to listen to.  On the opposite end, when the rate of speech is too fast, the listener can’t comprehend the content or understand the speaker. 

A normal rate of speech benefits the speaker in enormous ways: pronunciation is easier, intonation and stress are appropriate and pauses can easily be inserted.   

If you have good pronunciation, you may be able to speak at the faster end of the normal range.  But, slower speech will benefit you in a variety of ways especially if you are mispronouncing vowels and consonants.  It allows more time to lengthen your vowels and add stress and pitch changes.  And again, the sound of your voice and the resonance dramatically improves, too.

Finally, the rate you choose to adopt may depend upon the setting in which you’ll be speaking, the difficulty of material and the audience you are speaking to. 

www.clearly-speaking.com

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VolumeDo you ever struggle to make yourself heard?Do people ask you to repeat yourself? How can volume affect your speech?

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Vocal quality

It is more of a natural giftIt plays an important role in communicating

emotion, mood and attitude

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Pronunciation

Pronunciation is the ability to use the correct stress, rhythm and intonation of a word in a spoken discourse. A word can be spoken in different ways by different individuals or groups. It depends on many factors which include the area in which they grew up, the area in which they now live, if they have a speech or voice disorder, their ethnic identity, their social class, and their education.

References: Beech, John R.; Harding, Leonora; Hilton-Jones, Diana (1993). Assessment in speech and language therapy. CUP Archive. p. 55.

^Labov, William (2003). "Some Sociolinguistic Principles". In Paulston, Christina Bratt; Tucker, G. Richard. Sociolinguistics: the essential readings. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 234–250.

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Cont… Pronunciation Pronunciation is a foreign languageIssues in correct pronunciationHow to check your pronunciation?Standard pronunciation

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Summary of the Lesson Introduction to Speaking Skill: What is speaking skill?Why is it important?General Misconceptions about speakingHindrances in learning good speaking skillSpeaking a foreign language Speaking English as a foreign language Speaking/ Listening – The inter-relationshipComponents of SpeechFactors that Affect Oral Delivery

Pitch Speech Rate Volume Vocal quality Pronunciation

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Thank you !