Exploring pronunciation errors through a song: a case

EXPLORING PRONUNCIATION ERRORS THROUGH A

SONG: A CASE STUDY OF 3RD YEAR STUDENTS,

THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY

BY

MISS PATTARAPORN MUANGPHRUEK

AN INDEPENDENT STUDY PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL

FULFILLMENT OF

THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

MASTER OF ARTS IN

ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

LANGUAGE INSTITUTE


ACADEMIC YEAR 2017

COPYRIGHT OF THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY

Ref. code: 25605921042304OWQ

EXPLORING PRONUNCIATION ERRORS THROUGH A

SONG: A CASE STUDY OF 3RD YEAR STUDENTS,


BY

MISS PATTARAPORN MUANGPHRUEK

AN INDEPENDENT STUDY PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL

FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE

OF MASTER OF ARTS IN

ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

LANGUAGE INSTITUTE


ACADEMIC YEAR 2017

COPYRIGHT OF THAMMASAT UNIVERSITY

Ref. code: 25605921042304OWQ

(1)

Independent Study Paper Title EXPLORING PRONUNCIATION ERRORS

THROUGH A SONG: A CASE STUDY OF

3RD YEAR STUDENTS, THAMMASAT

UNIVERSITY

Author Miss Pattaraporn Muangphruek

Degree Master of Arts

Major Field/Faculty/University English Language Teaching

Language Institute

Thammasat University

Independent Study Paper Advisor Assistant Professor Watjana Suriyatham, Ed.D.

Academic Years 2017

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to explore pronunciation errors on final consonant sounds

through the song and song lyrics “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri. The

participants consisted of seven third-year students from Faculty of Innovation,

Thammasat University selected by convenience sampling. Through four phrases of

investigation: reading aloud the lyrics, participants pin-pointing the errors form first

reading while listening to the song, reading aloud the lyrics again and semi-structured

interview, the results showed that participants made pronunciation errors on fourteen

predicted final consonant sounds. They had the difficulty in pronouncing /θ/, /d/, /l/, /z/,

/v/, /nd/, /rt/ and /nt/ sounds and the formation of errors was the substitution of /d/ and

/θ/ with /t/, /z/ was substituted with /s/ and /v/ was substituted with /p/, and consonant

cluster tended to be omitted one of two sounds or both of them. Some of them revealed

that they already knew the rules for pronouncing the problematic final consonant

sounds when they were in an authentic situation but were unable to use them correctly.

Keywords: pronunciation errors, songs

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is a pleasure and great opportunity to express my deepest thankfulness to those who

made this independent study possible.

First of all, I am deeply grateful to my advisor, Assistant Professor Watjana Suriyatham,

Ed. D.; without her continuous guideline, assistance, optimism concerning this work,

and support, this study would hardly have been achieved.

Also, I would like to thank my participants; my relative and her friends, for their help

and cooperation in data collecting procedure for this research.

I would like to show my gratitude to all Ajarns, staff, and friends at the Language

Institute, Thammasat University for their kind support, encouragement and enthusiasm.

Also, I am very thankful to my friends and sisters who always gave me encouragement

during my two precious years.

I own my deepest gratitude to my family who gave me the support essential for studying

a master’s degree. I struggled at first but the support from my family was an aid to help

me pass this two tough years.

Lastly, I am so thankful I have been able to make MA life a success. It would be difficult

for me to continue studying in university for more than six consecutive years, I felt

down many times when my passion and motivation was running out, yet, I got up with

the great support and encouragement from people around me.

Miss Pattaraporn Muangphruek

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ABSTRACT (1)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS (2)

LIST OF TABLES (6)

LIST OF FIGURES (7)

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rational and background of the study 1

1.2 Objectives of the study 3

1.3 Research questions 3

1.4 Significant of the study 3

1.5 Scope of the study 3

1.6 Limitation of the study 4

1.7 Organization of the study 4

1.8 Definition of terms 4

CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 6

2.1 Pronunciation 6

2.1.1 Final sounds' pronuniation issues by Thai learners 7

2.1.1.1 Final consonants 7

(1) The omission of final sounds 8

(2) The substitution of final sounds 8

2.1.1.2 Consonant clusters 8

2.1.2 The causes of pronunciation problems 9

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2.1.2.1 L1 interference 9

2.1.2.2 Exposure of L2 sounds 9

2.1.2.3 Age and Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH) 10

2.1.2.4 Pronunciation teaching in EFL classroom 10

2.2 The use of songs 11

2.2.1 The advantages of using songs in English classrooms 11

2.2.2 The advantages of using songs on pronunciation 12

2.3 The selection of song 13

2.4 Relevant studies 13

CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 15

3.1 Research design 15

3.2 Participants 15

3.3 Instruments 15

3.4 Data collection 16

3.5 Data analysis 16

3.5.1 The result from reading aloud test 16

3.5.2 The interview of participants 17

CHAPTER 4 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 18

4.1 Word Count 18

4.2 The participants’ pronunciation errors (Production) 19

4.3 The perception of participants on the pronunciation errors 21

4.4 The interview results 24

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 30

REFERENCES 32

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APPENDICES 36

APPENDIX A 37

APPENDIX B 39

APPENDIX C 40

APPENDIX D 46

APPENDIX E 52

BIOGRAPHY 53

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LIST OF TABLES

Tables Page

1. The word list that were predicted that participants might

create pronunciation errors

18

2. Number of errors with final sounds made by each participant

19

3. The list of frequent words of pronunciation errors

20

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figures Page

1. The comparison of the number of pronunciation errors in

the 1st production (marked by researcher) and the perception

(marked by participants)

22

2. The comparison of the number of pronunciation errors

between the 1st and 2nd production (marked by researcher)

24

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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale and Background of Study

As a Thai student, I have been learning English as a foreign language for years,

and I cannot deny that my pronunciation does not quite reach native-like level since

English is uncommonly spoken in Thailand and I rarely speak and practice English in

my daily life. I have found that songs are useful tools to learn and practice the ways to

speak words correctly and smoothly. Most of Thai English speakers lack ability to

pronounce the words in suprasegmental units as there are some features of intonation,

stress and rhythm which do not exist in Thai. However, in order to successfully achieve

communicative competence and create intelligible pronunciation, segment units,

consonants and vowels should be a significant focus. Without understanding

consonants and vowels, speakers might not be able to pronounce target words.

I found that people who are interested in a particular song will keep repeating

listening to the song and practice – imitate – the way the song is sung with correct

pronunciation as much as possible in every single word. On the other hand, if the song

is not in their interest they will just listen to it and ignore how the lyrics sound or how

they are pronounced.

This paper aims to examine pronunciation problems with final sounds by using

the song lyrics “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri and investigate whether songs

can raise learner’s awareness to notice the errors that they have been making while

reading aloud. According to the lyrics, I have predicted pronunciation errors of final

sounds that will be made by the participants and categorized them into eight sounds as

follows: /v/, /z/, /s/, /l/, /θ/, /t/, /d/, and /k/ and consonant clusters.

Robert Lado (1957) described the relevant obstacles in a statement on

pronunciation and second/foreign language learners as:

“…if we now place two speakers of different language

facing each other in a similar diagram, when each

listener hears an utterance in a foreign language he is

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learning, his set of native language habits cannot be

eliminated at will, and he hears units of sounds, words,

phrases and sentences that are those of his own

language, that is he distorts what he hears. Similarly,

when he attempts to speak in a foreign language, he

transfers the entire sound system of his native language

to the foreign language.”

To be proficient in the standard pronunciation and able to accurately distinguish

different kinds of pronunciation are the significant objectives for learners in order that

they can correct their own pronunciation errors (Ellis, 1994). Intelligible pronunciation

allows us to understand worldwide English. Even though English in different countries

is pronounced differently, the similarity in pronunciation (including intonation and

stress) should be close or sufficiently alike in the same words or sentences in any accent

to be comprehensible.

The problems of English pronunciation as a target language for Thai learners

are caused by the influence and interference of Thai as a native language. “Error” is

defined as a piece of written or spoken language produced in second/foreign language

where a native speaker or language expert can detect deficiency or incompleteness.

Error refers to three main sub-types: vocabulary errors, grammatical errors and

pragmatic errors (The Royal Institute, 2010). Bason (1988) mentioned that errors

decrease intelligible pronunciation. The lack of being able to be proficient in

pronunciation creates a big gap between English learners and other English speakers,

especially native speakers. The gap has to be reduced or removed in order to create

intelligibility.

Lo & Li (1998) mentioned that songs play a key role in activating English

learning for students. The use of songs has been around in language learning classrooms

for a long time. According to Levman (2000) and Thomas (1995) (as cited in Bannan

(2012)), music and language has been connected together in academic matters since the

eighteenth century. The use of music and song lyrics in language acquisition can benefit

both linguistic features and the motivational interest in learners as many scholars have

been arguing for so long. (Bartle, 1962; Richard, 1969; Jolly, 1975).

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Song has a common nature that can provide a productive and non-threatening

atmosphere in the class for both teacher and students. Song decreases students’ stress

and anxiety; not only does it lower affective filters, but it also creates effectiveness in

language acquisition (York, 2011). Furthermore, songs are considered a powerful

teaching instrument that can be applied with learners in several ways. Besides the basic

skills, listening, speaking, reading and writing, sentence patterns, vocabulary, rhythm,

word functions and pronunciation can be developed by songs. Murphy (1992) stated

the advantage of music and songs in language learning was that songs could be assistant

materials to improve human speech development; it can be said that it is easier to sing

language than to speak it.

1.2 Objectives of the Study:

To identify the problematic sounds in final consonants for the participants who

were not majoring in English.

To investigate whether the participants could notice their English pronunciation

errors with final sounds through a song.

1.3 Research Questions:

1. What are the learners’ pronunciation errors in final sounds?

2. Are learners able to notice their English pronunciation errors in final sounds

through a song?

1.4 Significance of the Study:

1. To examine pronunciation problems with final sounds by using the song

lyrics “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri

2. To investigate whether song can raise learner’s awareness to notice the

errors that they have been making while reading aloud.

1.5 Scope of the Study:

As the participants were students in a Thai major, they had not learned about

phonetics or how words are pronounced before, so, it was difficult for them to classify

the words in different features and pronounce each word correctly.

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1.6 Limitations of the Study:

This study only focuses on problematic final consonant sounds. Other parts such

as vowels and initial consonants are not emphasized. Moreover, there is no supra-

segmental unit analysis, such as investigation of intonation, stress, rhythm etc.

Due to the limits of resources and time, the participants numbered only seven

students; all of them were voluntary. It was difficult for the researcher, who is not

working as a teacher, to gain many participants. Additionally, the song that was used

as an instrument was the only song due to the limited time available for meeting each

participant. Also, the song “A Thousand Years” does not contain all the target final

problematic sounds where Thai learners will produce errors. The results of this study

might not be generalized.

1.7 Organization of the Study:

This study of exploring pronunciation errors through a song, a case study of 3rd

year students, Thammasat University, is distributed into five chapters.

Chapter I covers rationale and background, objectives, research questions,

significance, and scope of the study and definitions of terms.

Chapter II reviews the relevant academic literature and relevant research.

Chapter III illustrates the methods used in the study, which includes subjects,

materials, procedures and data analysis.

Chapter IV shows the data gathered from reading aloud production and

perception through a song, and interviewing to investigate pronunciation errors, and

the discussion of the results.

Chapter V presents a summary of the study, conclusions and recommendations

for further study.

1.8 Definition of Terms

1. Errors: the flawed side of learner speech or writing

2. Pronunciation errors: an omission or substitution of other sounds into

target final sounds

3. Segmental: the aspects in phonetics primarily refer to an individual unit

that can be identified, such as consonants and vowels

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4. Suprasegmental: the aspects of speech beyond the level of the individual

unit: rhythm, stress and intonation

5. Final consonant: the final speech sound produced with a significant

compression of the airflow in the oral tract

6. Final consonant clusters: the combination of two or more consonants

together occurring in the final part of words. e.g., last, final, consonants

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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

2.1 Pronunciation

Pronunciation is the production of sounds in order to create meaning. Its

functions contain 2 main features: segmental and suprasegmental aspects. Segmental

unit refers to the particular sound of a language, while suprasegmental unit concerns

intonation, phrasing, stress, timing and rhythm (AMEP, 2002). The message can be

clearly conveyed if speakers have a good pronunciation, even though there are some

parts, such as grammar or vocabulary, broken. Dalton & Seidlhofer (1994) listed the

significance of pronunciation in two senses: first, it is used as “part of a code of

particular language” and second, it is used to “achieve meaning in context of use”.

In order to create intelligible pronunciation, both main features should be

combined together when speaking, though these two units are taught separately. It is

significant for teachers to know how these two aspects differ in terms of theory and

practice, in contrast, learners should necessarily be concerned more with practical

activity.

There are five basic components of pronunciation: intonation, stress and

rhythm, vowels, consonants, and voiced and voiceless production.

1. Intonation: Intonation is the way a voice goes up and down in pitch when we

are speaking, and the rise and fall of our voice as we speak.

2. Stress and rhythm: Stress refers to certain syllables of energy or effort that

are pronounced by English speakers and signals significant matter in a

sentence. Rhythm refers to the regular strong stress or syllables in a sentence

that is created.

3. Vowels: A vowel is a speech sound produced by humans when the breath

flows out through the mouth without being blocked by the teeth, tongue, or

lips. There are 5 vowels in English (a, e, i, o, u). The combination of vowels

in English is called diphthongs.

4. Consonants: Consonant is defined as a part of speech and a sound that is

articulated with complete or partial closure of the upper vocal track.

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5. Voiced and Voiceless: English sounds are either voiced or voiceless. All

vowels in English are voiced while some consonants are voiced or voiceless.

Generally, it seems to be a traditional method to emphasize and focus on

segments which are obvious and where it is easier to notice the errors (AMEP, 2002).

Burns (2003) stated that a word is created by consonants and vowels combined, and its

sound is made up of phonemes. Phonemes are key sounds, and the meaning of the word

can change when the word is pronounced incorrectly. Nevertheless, this study will

mainly focus on segmental features due to the fact that the researcher is able to detect

any particular mispronounced sounds with ease and measure student error; intonation,

stress and connected speech are also determined as a secondary factor.

2.1.1 Final Sound Pronunciation Issues for Thai Learners

2.1.1.1 Final Consonants

According to the focus of study, the pronunciation issues will emphasize only

segmental features: consonants. Researchers have indicated the pronunciation issues

produced by Thai learners cover segmental aspects in many different cases. One of the

most important problems is the final consonants; they cause Thai pronunciation

problems as there are only eight consonants that Thais are able to pronounce in the final

position: /n/, /m/, /ŋ/, /p/, /b/, /d/, /t/, /k/, /j/, /w/ (McKenzie-Brown, 2006). The

voiceless consonant sounds /p, t, k/ are produced with a puff of air called aspiration.

These sounds are likely to be problematic for Thai speakers as they pronounce them

unclearly at the end. It can be said that the sounds are not emphasized when

pronouncing words which probably causes the problems when other types of error are

made at the same time and it is important in terms of conveying target messages

correctly.

Wei & Zhou (2002) stated the major pronunciation problems with consonants

produced by Thai learners are omitted final consonant sounds, consonant clusters, /r/

and /l/ sounds, /θ/ and /ð/ sounds, /v/ sounds, /s/ and /z/ sound and /ʒ/ sound. In addition,

“The Pronunciation of English Final Consonant Clusters by Thai Students” research by

Mano-im (1999) showed that learners tended to mispronounce some sounds by deleting

one of two sounds, replacing one or both sounds, removing one sound and substituting

with another sound, or adding an extra sound.

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Also, when focusing on sound errors, Thais seem to have great problems

pronouncing some consonants, especially when they occur in the final position, (Swan

& Smith, 2001). They mentioned that final sounds are systematically substituted for

other sounds.

According to many studies on Thai learners’ pronunciation problems, the

pronunciation issues on final sounds can be considered in two aspects, the omission and

the substitution of final sounds.

1.) The Omission of Final Sounds

Thai learners tend to omit consonant sounds occurring at the end of words. It is

obviously seen when the words end with /s/, /z/, /t/, /d/, /f/, /v/, /ð/, /θ/ or /dʒ/ sounds.

This is due to the fact that Thai has no ending fricative and plosive sounds.

2.) The Substitution of Final Sounds

Thai learners tend to replace some final sounds with a small class of unreleased

consonants. Researchers have also found that the formation of the final consonants

substitution in Thai speakers are quite systematic in three ways:

1. The /s/, /z/, /d/, /ð/, /θ/, /ʒ/, /ʃ/, /tʃ/, /dʒ/ are pronounced as a /t/ sound.

2. The /v/ and /f/ seem to be substituted with a /p/ sound

3. The /l/ is replaced with an /n/ sound.

2.1.1.2 Consonant clusters

Unlike English, clusters in Thai occur when two or more consonant sounds have

an intervening vowel between. Many non-native speakers (Chinese, Thai, etc.),

therefore, have difficulty in pronouncing some English words; for example, spade,

sixth, and risked. However, when it comes to the final sounds, it seems to be more

difficult as Thai does not have final consonant clusters; consequently, some consonants

in these clusters can either be substituted or omitted. In this way, learners tend to

mispronounce some sounds by deleting one of two sounds, replacing one or both

sounds, removing one sound and substituting with another sound, or adding an extra

sound into final target sounds.

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2.1.2 The Causes of Pronunciation Problems

2.1.2.1 L1 Interference

Dulay, Burt, and Krashen (1982:101) accounted for the influence from L1, or

language transfer, as “the use of past knowledge and experience in new situation” (cited

in Phintuyothin, 2011). Language transfer is one of the most important and

distinguishable characteristics in learning second language, to illustrate, the

dissimilarity in pronouncing the English word “have” by German and French native

speakers (Archibald, 1998: 2).

L1 transfer created the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH), a theory

proposed by Robert Lado (1957). CAH aims to predict L2 learners’ problems and

describe the differences or similarity of L1 and L2 linguistic systems thoroughly

(Saville-Troike, 2006:34). Celce-Murcia et al., (2010:22) stated that L2 acquisition is

penetrated by L1 if the target language differentiates or non-exists in L1. The result,

therefore, creates two kinds of transfer: positive transfer and negative transfer.

According to the theory of Wardhaugh (1983), CAH can predict learners’

difficulties and deliver appropriate language instruction promptly. He stated the CAH

in two conditions: a strong version and a weak version. A strong version of CAH

purposes to predict errors while a weak version goal is to explain the errors after the

fact. Besides, there is a moderate version of CAH which is disputed that it is easier for

learners to learn the difference of L1 and L2 than the similarity (Oller and Ziahosseiny

1970, as cited in Major 2008). According to many studies, Major (2008) concluded that

“the larger the differences are, the more easily they tend to be noticed; therefore,

learning is more likely to take place”.

The CAH has an effect in L2 pronunciation texts and pedagogical guides

(Edwards and Zampini, 2008). The language transfer characteristic, particularly

negative transfer, has evidence explaining foreign accents, particularly in the

pronunciation acquisition of typical segmental units such as aspiration and voicing, and

of suprasegmental units such as intonation and rhythm (Celce-Murcia et al., 2010).

2.1.2.2 Exposure of L2 sounds

Practicing is one of the main factors that improves L2 pronunciation

intelligibility; the insufficiency of drills leads to lack of success in acquiring native-like

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accent and strengthens the mother language phonology (Khamkhien, 2010). The review

study of Khamkhien, as shown in Siriwisut (1994) and Serttikul (2005), states

“Learners’ pronunciation ability is affected by the amount of exposure to the target

language in their daily lives” (cited in Phintuyothin, 2011). These studies imply that the

more learners are exposed to target language or L2, the more they avoid interference

by L1 pronunciation; consequently, good pronunciation is the result of that.

Exposure to the target language is described by Krashen’s theories (1982): “The

Input Hypothesis” stated that “learners acquire language implicitly through a large

amount of exposure to language input that is a little bit beyond the learner’s current

level yet still comprehensible to the learner” (cited in Phintuyothin, 2011). He also

believes that if learners are exposed to the target language input adequately, the

acquisition will come naturally.

2.1.2.3 Age and Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH)

Age is one of the factors that has a huge impact on native-like pronunciation. A

lot of previous research has illustrated that learners who start to learn L2 at the young

age, in the environment of L2 is normally used and spoken, tend to be more native-like

than those who start at adult age (Flege et al., 1995; Piske et al., 2001; Abu-Rabaia &

Illiyan, 2011 cited in Phinuyothin, 2011). The study of Cenoz (2003) and Munoz (2007)

has shown that learners for whom the exposure of L2 starts at the age of two tend to

outperform the learners who start at the age of four to eight in terms of English

proficiency.

2.1.2.4 Pronunciation Teaching in EFL Classroom

Murphy J. (2003) described the trend of teaching pronunciation from the past

to present in three orientations, listen-and-repeat method, giving more emphasis to

explicit pronunciation teaching, and using authentic material respectively.

“Listen carefully and repeat what I say” (1940s–1950s). Learners had to

duplicate what the teacher said; they listened and memorized then repeated.

Pronunciation was not taught explicitly; learners had to learn by imitating what they

learnt.

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“Let’s analyze these sounds closely to figure out how to produce them more

clearly” (1960s–1970s). The pronunciation was taught explicitly in this era; students

would learn about the features of the sound system or phonetic symbols in L2 with the

aid of visual and audio materials.

“Let’s start using these sounds in activities as soon as we can while I produce

cues and feedback on how well you’re doing” (1980s–present). This approach aims to

emphasize interactive activities in actual classrooms after learners receive an

explanation of the construction of sounds in order to use target language successfully,

with authentic tools in real-world contexts.

The use of songs is a genuine material for learners as it provides interactive

activity and implicit pronunciation teaching. The use of English songs engages top-

down processing – looking from broad meaning of the language input and then

narrowing to small details, by which implicit knowledge is delivered, at first through

the exposure to English songs.

2.2 The Use of Songs

The use of songs has been employed in language learning classrooms for a long

time as songs play a key role in activating English learning for students (Lo & Li, 1998).

It is not a modern trend applying songs and music to English language learning; the use

of music and song lyrics in language acquisition, as many scholars have been arguing

for so long, can benefit in both linguistic features and the motivational interest of

learners. (Bartle, 1962; Richard, 1969; Jolly, 1975).

2.2.1 The Advantages of Using Songs in English Classroom

According to Lo & Li (1998), song plays a significant role in activating English

learning for students. The use of songs has been evident in language learning

classrooms for a long time. Researchers have been conducting research supporting the

use of songs in English language classroom. Applying songs in SLA has become

popular among English teachers; thea number of investigations about songs in language

teaching has rapidly grown in recent years (Wallace, 1994; Schon, et al., 2008).

Furthermore, the advantages of using songs in the classroom were outlined by

York (2011), stating that song has its common nature that can provide a productive and

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non-threatening atmosphere in the class for both teacher and students. Song decreases

students’ stress and anxiety; it not only lowers the affective filter but also creates

effectiveness in language acquisition.

Listening to music has an effect on vocabulary. The importance of this

connection is proved by a number of research studies about the correlation. Rhythm,

melody and lyrics seem to be the principle factors that draw listener attention (Fonseca-

Mora et al. 2011).

2.2.2 The Advantages of Using Songs on Pronunciation

It seems that motivation produces effects on English learners’ pronunciation

when it comes to learning English by songs. There are studies which show that songs

are involved in learning motivation and learning performance in English language

classrooms (Bake, 2007; Luo 2008). Consequently, it seems that motivation has effects

on English learners’ pronunciation when it comes to learning English by songs.

Additionally, Nicoleta (2015) stated that songs are a tool for accessing different kinds

of English: Standard English – the English which is used in most EFL classroom,

British English (BrE) and American English (AmE). Different kinds of English have

their own accents and pronunciation styles and it is hard for students to understand all

those types of English by just learning from the classroom, so music and songs help

them understand, then they can satisfactorily communicate. Being native like is not the

most important aspect in communication; to be able to communicate and pronounce

target language correctly is.

Not only the songs, but the use of song lyrics, can also be an aid to assist learners

in pronouncing final consonant sounds. Lin, Fan, & Chen (1995) illustrated that

teachers could use the lyrics of some popular songs and let students read aloud in order

to practice final consonant sounds. They gave an example of their classroom in which

students tended to either omit final consonants or hardly pronounce them - they

pronounced ‘studen’ instead of ‘student’. Students then listened to songs to notice how

the word is actually pronounced.

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2.3 The Selection of the Song

Songs allow students and teachers a valuable opportunity to practice English

pronunciation in many different features. The songs used in a classroom should be

carefully selected according to the level of proficiency, which is very significant.

Kristen (2001) mentioned that “Students are often strongly motivated to learn the lyrics

of a new pop song or an old favorite they have heard and never understood, so their

choices for classroom music should not be overlooked.”

The song “A Thousand Years” has quite clear pronunciation of each word in both initial

and final sounds. The final consonant sounds, which are problematic for Thai speakers,

are fully pronounced, for example, in the words heart, beats, fast, promises, brave,

afraid, believed and breath – the song pronounces with clearly endings /t/, /ts/, /st/, /z/,

/v/, /d/, /d/, and /θ/ sounds respectively.

2.4 Relevant Studies

There is no exactly relevant study about using a song for identifying

pronunciation errors without drilling in the classroom. A lesson plan and instructions

are the majority tools in many studies to seek out learners’ pronunciation errors, as well

as to improve the errors. Numerous studies have substantiated the progress of students

by giving them pre-test and post-test, then the scores will be compared and summarized

as to whether students improve their pronunciation through songs.

The study of Farmand Z. & Pourgharib B. (2013) explored whether using

English songs can increase students’ motivation in learning English and EFL learner’s

pronunciation. The study was done on 30 EFL students, intermediate level, in an

English Institute of Mazandaran, Iran. The research was conducted with two groups,

control group and experimental group, with pre- and post-test experimental design. The

pre-test evaluated reading and pronunciation ability that was picked from vocabulary

words in the songs for both groups. The experimental group received different types of

English song teaching for eight sessions, fifteen minutes each, and the effect on

pronunciation was investigated after the instruction. Results showed that the use of

English songs had impact on language learners’ pronunciation, and it improved oral

production.

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Pimwan (2012) investigated “The Effect of Teaching English Pronunciation

through Songs of Prathomsuksa 4 Students at Watratchaphatigaram School” with

twenty-two participants. The focus of the study was on the final sounds of /k/, /g/, /l/,

/r/, /s/, /z/, /t, /d/. The research instruments were pre- and post- pronunciation tests and

10 lesson plans. The data was analyzed using the SPSS program, by mean, standard

deviation and t-test dependent. The results exposed the differences in learners’ English

proficiency ability and levels. She concluded that participants were able to pronounce

the final consonant more accurately after learning English through songs.

In the study of Stanculea (2015) the usage of songs in different aspects of

pronunciation such as using songs to focus on sounds, particular sounds and minimal

pairs, words and connected speech was investigated. The researcher believed that the

syllabus does not include pronunciation features teaching like songs do and little

emphasis is put on teaching pronunciation in English language classrooms. The

communicative approach to language teaching encourages the acquisition of these

aspects of the language rather than their learning.

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CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

3.1 Research Design

The strategy employed in this study is a case study; the aim of study is to explore

the pronunciation errors of final sounds by applying song to the research in order that

learners are able to notice their pronunciation errors.

3.2 Participants

As the participants were limited in number and voluntary, the sampling was

only seven learners; all of them agreed to take part in this study by signing a consent

form. They were 3rd-year students in the Faculty of Innovation, Thammasat University

(Thai Program). Their ages were about twenty to twenty-one years old. They had

studied basic English courses for specific purposes such as communicative skills and

cultural management, which approximates their level as intermediate. They were

systematically selected to investigate the errors made by each person. They received

the same activity and treatment during the investigation.

3.3 Instruments

To be able to answer the research questions, three instruments were utilized:

The first was “A Thousand Years” song lyrics which was a tool to identify

learners’ pronunciation errors. The lyrics mainly contain eight problematic sounds of

final consonants: /v/, /z/, /s/, /l/, /θ/, /t/, /d/, and /k/ and consonant clusters /nd, rt, st/.

The second instrument was the audio of the song “A Thousand Years”. The

song was played twice to the participants to see whether they could notice the

problematic sounds that they produced in the first reading.

The third instrument was a semi-structured interview. The interview comprised

open-ended and closed-ended questions and was divided into two parts: background

and personal information of the participants and the questions related to songs and

pronunciation.

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3.4 Data Collection

The song lyrics were given to each participant to read aloud; the data collection

was taken in four phases as follows:

Error Investigation: Participants read aloud the lyrics; this procedure was

audio recorded. The researcher then marked the final sound errors from their reading

of the lyrics, with each word separated into a table that showed where the participants

had pronunciation problems.

Final Sound Errors’ Perception: Participants listened to the song “A

Thousand Years” twice. They then indicated the sounds that they thought were

problematic from their first reading pronunciation by highlighting the words in the

lyrics paper.

Errors Investigation Summary: Participants read aloud the lyrics after

listening to the song twice (audio recorded). The researcher then marked the final sound

errors that either occurred or were corrected in the second reading aloud.

Semi-structured Interview: The interview was conducted at the end of the data

collecting process to gain more reliable and practical information about participants’

pronunciation errors and the use of songs.

The pronunciation problem sounds that were recorded were categorized under

the guidance of phonemic transcription in the Cambridge English Pronouncing

Dictionary. The recording was replayed many times and the pronunciation errors of the

final sounds noted.

3.5 Data Analysis

So that the two research questions were able to be answered, the results were

evaluated into two parts as follows:

1) The Results from Reading Aloud Test

In this part the results were carefully investigated and transcribed into three

main aspects: 1.1 The pronunciation errors on final sounds that learners made before listening

to the song, which were marked by the researcher.

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1.2. The pronunciation errors on final sounds that learners noticed that they had

made in the first reading aloud, which were marked by learners themselves while

listening to the song twice.

1.3. The pronunciation errors on final sounds that learners made after listening

to the song, which were marked by the researcher.

Consequently, the results were compared in order to evaluate whether song

could be a tool to enhance their notice of pronunciation errors, and whether participants

were able to correct their errors.

The problematic sounds that were made by the subjects before listening to the

song (1st production) were indicated as pronunciation errors. Based on the theories

relating to pronunciation errors in Thai EFL, the causes of the errors were diagnosed in

two ways:

1. Final sounds were omitted or unpronounced.

2. Final sounds were substituted with other sounds.

2) The Interview of Participants

This interview was intended to find out participant’s perception of error making,

their own errors in pronunciation that they usually made, as well as the causes of error

making. Also, the advantages of using song for error identification and teaching

pronunciation was discussed. This interview took place in a very informal and relaxed

atmosphere, thus the students could share their opinions openly and freely.

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CHAPTER IV

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

The previous chapter outlined the introduction, the review of literature and

methodology. This chapter describes the results of the study based on the data collected

from seven learners from the Faculty of Innovation, Thammasat University.

In order to answer research questions, the results of the analyzed data are

divided into two parts: pronunciation errors made by participants and the comparison

between the errors production and perception.

4.1 Word Count

There are seventy-four words in total in the song lyrics “A Thousand Years”

(Appendix E). The number of word summary includes vocabulary words such as,

nouns, pronouns, verbs, preposition, adjectives, adverbs, etc., however, articles and

duplicate words were excluded from the number counted.

Thirty out of seventy-four words were predicted as final sounds pronunciation

errors which participants might have made during the reading aloud.

afraid loved don't breath take front

all promises doubt brought this goes

beats stand fall colors will have

believed step fast died years heart

brave still find love let I’ll

Table 1: The word list that were predicted that participants might create pronunciation

errors

The final sounds of those predicted words comprise of fourteen sounds; ten final

consonant sounds: /d, l, s, z, d, t, p, v, k, θ/ and four final consonant clusters: /nd, rt, st,

nt/. The predicted final sounds were selected from various previous studies on the

sounds that are problematic among Thai learners.

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4.2 The Participants’ Pronunciation Errors (Production)

The number of pronunciation errors made by each participant, most frequent

errors that are made by participants and final consonant sound and consonant cluster

that cause participant errors are illustrated in this part.

The identification of pronunciation errors, which were made while reading the

lyrics aloud, was diagnosed into two major problems as indicated in chapter three: the

omission of final consonant sounds and the replacement of other sounds for target final

sounds; both were counted as pronunciation errors.

The number of the problematic sounds that were not pronounced correctly by

each participant are represented in the table below:

P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7

/θ/ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

/d/ 4 4 3 3 2 5 3

/l/ 1 3 3 2 2 2 1

/z/ 3 2 2 2 1 3 1

/s/ 1 1 1 1 0 1 0

/v/ 2 1 0 0 0 1 1

/t/ 1 1 0 1 0 3 2

/rt/ 1 1 1 1 0 1 0

/st/ 1 1 0 0 0 1 0

/nd/ 2 2 2 2 0 1 2

/nt/ 1 1 1 1 0 1 0

Total 18 18 14 14 6 20 11

Table 2: Number of errors with final sounds made by each participant

The number of errors made by participants was between six to twenty, the

average was about fifteen errors. The numbers are quite comparable since their level of

English proficiency was similar. However, there was one participant who outperformed

the others. While twenty was the highest number that the participants made in errors on

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final sounds, the least was only six, so the gap between the highest and the least error

making is quite big.

Of the pronunciation errors analysis in the song lyrics, unfortunately, the lyrics

contain only seven problematic final consonant sounds: /θ, d, l, z, s, v, t/ and four final

consonant clusters: /nd, rt, st, nt/. The results from the seven participants displayed that

the pronunciation errors on final sounds had been discovered in twenty-five words:

breath, loved, died, fall, find, goes, promises, afraid, take, believed, doubt, front, heart,

stand, all, beats, brought, I’ll, let, love, fast, years, brave, but and don’t. The errors were

diagnosed in detail for every participant (see appendix B).

In the reading aloud test, the top pronunciation errors made were /θ/, /d/, /l/, /z/

and /v/ sounds. The formation in making the errors was quite similar for each

participant, i.e., the substitution of /d/ and /θ/ with /t/, /z/ was substituted with voiceless

sounds /s/ and /v/ was substituted with /p/. Consonant clusters tended to be omitted one

of two final sounds or both of them as there is no existence in Thai’s final consonants.

Table 1 depicts the words from song lyrics that were mispronounced by the participants

from the reading aloud.

The frequency

of the errors

(participants)

Words that

are Wrongly

pronounced

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final Consonant

Sounds

7 participants breath /θ/ substitution with /t/ or /d/

loved /d/ omission of /d/

6 participants

died /d/ omission of /d/

fall /l/ omission of /l/

find /nd/ omission of both /n/ and /d/

goes /z/ substitution with /s/

promises /z/ substitution with /s/

afraid /d/ substitution with /t/ or /s/

5 participants

believed /d/ omission of /d/

doubt /t/ omission of /t/

front /nt/ omission of /t/

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Table 3: The list of frequent words of pronunciation errors (most to least)

From the data above, it shows that the participants had difficulty in pronouncing

words in -ed form, such as in the words ‘believed’ and ‘loved’. They tended to omit the

final /d/ sound when making the utterance of the words. Likewise, none of the

participant could pronounce the word ‘breath’ correctly. ‘Breath’ is pronounced with

final /θ/ which is one of the most difficult sounds for Thai speakers since Thai has no

dental sound, so that the sound is mostly substituted with /t/ or /d/.

Regarding the pronunciation problem that was predicted (by Smyth, 2001; Wei

& Zhou, 2002) /l/ is altered and pronounced as /n/ when it comes to appear in a final

position. Nonetheless, the investigation from seven participants in this research found

that they tended to omit the /l/ sound instead of substituting with /n/, for example, ‘fall’

/fɔl/ has been pronounced without /l/ as /fɔ/, ‘all’ /ɔl/ has been pronounced as only

vowel sound /ɔ/ and I’ll /aɪl/ is reduced to /aɪ/ with no /l/.

4.3 The Perception of Participants on the Pronunciation Errors

Here perception means the opinions from participants on vocabulary where they

made pronunciation errors comparing to what they have been listening to. The

production is the actual pronunciation errors that participants created while reading

aloud the song lyrics; the production was recorded by the researcher in both 1st and 2nd

reading aloud.

heart /rt/ omission of /r/

stand /nd/ omission of /d/

4 participants

all /l/ omission of /l/

beats /s/ omission of /s/

I’ll /l/ omission of /l/

3 participants love /v/ substitution with /p/

2 participants fast /st/ omission of /t/

years /z/ substitution with /s/

1 participant brave /v/ substitution with /p/

don’t /t/ omission of /t/

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The participants were assigned to highlight the pronunciation errors that they

made in the first listening while they were listening to the song “A thousand years”

twice. The results of the participants’ perception were thoroughly analyzed to see

whether song can be a tool to raise their notice of pronunciation mistakes. However,

none of the participant was capable of identifying all of the pronunciation errors they

had made. Yet, some of the errors such as in the words beats, brave and promises, are

easily noticed according to the song that clearly pronounces these words.

In the 2nd reading aloud test, after listening to the song, participants were able

to correct their mistakes from the highlighted lyrics sheet. Some of them could correct

the errors that were clearly and explicitly heard from the song such as in the word love.

The comparison of the number of pronunciation errors made between the 1st and 2nd

production and the perception is illustrated in chart two.

Chart 1: The comparison of the number of pronunciation errors in the 1st

production (marked by researcher) and the perception (marked by participants)

According to the chart, it is clearly seen that there was one participant

(participant 7) who picked up their pronunciation errors in the number that was close

to their authentic errors production, while the others managed a perception lower than

a half of their genuine errors. The tendency shows that participants who made a large

number of pronunciation errors tended to be able to have the awareness in noticing

more mistakes that the person who created less errors.

18 17

14 14

6

21

11

5

8

4 5

1

79

0

5

10

15

20

25

Participant1

Participant2

Participant3

Participant4

Participant5

Participant6

Participant7

Pre-listening (1st Production) While listerning (Perception)

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While the perceptions of participants on their own pronunciation errors are

obviously different from the productions in the first reading aloud, the number of errors

that participants were able to notice is astonishingly low. However, if we look into

details, the comparison table of words that they noticed (in Appendix D) shows that

‘breath’, ‘promises’, ‘doubt’, and ‘believed’ are easily noticeable in terms of final

sound errors. Six out of seven participants marked that ‘breath’ was one of the errors

they created.

Meanwhile, there were some vocabulary words that they did not literally make

pronunciation errors on as final sounds but were marked as errors. The most remarkable

ones are ‘brave’ and ‘take’; participants did not realize that they had already created

correct target final sounds in the first reading aloud.

On the other hand, ‘brought', and ‘thousand’ were highlighted as errors but not

on the focus of final sounds, since the researcher did not assign to participants at first

that the focus of study was only on the final sounds, due to the fact that the findings can

create diversity in pronunciation errors in other focused features. Therefore, three of

the participants underlined irrelevant target sounds. In this case, the problem is that they

did not know how exactly the words are pronounced; they made pronunciation errors

on the vowels in ‘brought’ and the initial consonant in ‘thousand’.

After participants listened to the song and made their decisions on the error

perception by themselves, they were asked to read the lyrics aloud again to investigate

whether they could correct the errors that they had made in the first reading aloud. The

number of pronunciation errors in the 2nd reading aloud and the comparison between

1st and 2nd readings aloud are illustrated in the chart below.

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Chart 2: The comparison of the number of pronunciation errors between

the 1st and 2nd production (marked by researcher)

Though the pronunciation errors were somehow noticed by learners, it

unfortunately, did not mean that they could correct them (Chart 2). Most of the errors

that were identified occurred again in the second reading aloud. The results surprisingly

revealed that only one word out of the many errors created by the seven participants

was revised into the correct sound.

Regarding the practical results of the seven participants, it is still a controversial

topic and cannot be implied that the use of song seems to have an impact on raising

learners’ awareness to notice pronunciation errors. Despite that there were a number of

error improvements, it cannot be summarized that the song was an aid to boost their

notice and, consequently, made them correct the errors. The results from participants’

interviews could support the causes of pronunciation errors on the predicted sounds.

4.3 The Interview Results

This interview was intended to find out their perception on error making in

detail, their own errors in pronunciation that they usually made, as well as the causes

of error making. Also, the advantages of using song for error identification and teaching

pronunciation was asked about. This interview took place in a very informal and relaxed

atmosphere, thus the students could share their opinions openly and freely. Apart from

18 17

14 14

6

21

1116 16

1311

5

17

9

0

5

10

15

20

25

P A R T I CI P

A N T 1

P A R T I CI P

A N T 2

P A R T I CI P

A N T 3

P A R T I CI P

A N T 4

P A R T I CI P

A N T 5

P A R T I CI P

A N T 6

P A R T I CI P

A N T 7

Pre-listening (1st Production) Post-listening (2nd Production)

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the personal information questions, six close-ended questions were asked to the

participants, with sub-questions that allowed them to display their views and attitudes

towards the topics.

1. Do you like listening to English songs?

1.1 how often?

All of the participants were fond of listening to music. When asking about their

preferences about listening to English songs, most of them preferred listening to

popular English songs in particular periods, or those that were in hit charts, as well as

listening to Thai songs. Whereas there was a person (who made the most pronunciation

errors on the task) that did not normally listen to English songs and the participant who

outperformed others normally listened to English songs rather than Thai songs.

2. Do you notice that you have made pronunciation errors after listening

to the song?

2.1 What words do you make errors on?

All of them noticed that they had made errors and were able to describe some

errors. They could notice the errors in the words promises and breath clearly. Some of

them noticed the errors in final -ed sounds and knew that they omitted them while

reading aloud the song lyrics. They also stated that most of the vocabulary words in the

song had quite clear pronunciation at ending sounds. Also, some of them had known

the song before; they could sing it right away after seeing the lyrics.

Extract 1:

P4: I equally listen to Thai and English songs, especially, the songs which

were popular in each period of time or were on the charts.

P5: I often listen to English songs, I am fond of them.

P6: I barely listen to English songs, I just listen to them when they have

been played by my friends.

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3. Do you know how th, -ed, -es, and v are pronounced? How?

All of them knewthe rules and the ways of pronouncing th, -ed, -es, and v before.

The participants that made the errors in those ending sounds stated that they had

forgotten the rules when it came to the authentic situation and were unable to use them

correctly. They also demonstrated how these sounds should be pronounced.

4. Is it possible for a person who has never known how to pronounce to

pronounce it correctly?

Five of the participants agreed that people who have never known the ways to

pronounce those words would not be able to make them correct, while two participants

suggested that there could be a reason that they somehow pronounce the words

correctly, such as they imitate the lyrics or they fortunately pronounce them correctly.

Extract 2:

P2: I knew that I must have made some errors during reading aloud.

P3: I noticed that I cannot pronounce the word breath.

P6: I mostly cut the final -ed sounds when pronouncing words.

Extract 3:

P2: I have studied the rules of using -ed and -es since the young age but I

forget to use it when it comes to real situation.

P3: I knew that th and v are pronounced with the movement of my mouth

and tongue but I get used to pronouncing in Thai way.

Extract 4:

P1: I do not think s/he can do it. S/he might pronounce it closely to how it is

actually pronounced, but there could be some mistakes on the place of

articulation as in [th] sound.

P3: It could be possible. I think they could imitate from the songs, even

though they have never known how some words are pronounced.

P5:

P6:

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5. Does listening to music help you pronounce words correctly?

Most of the participants did not express an agreement on whether it could help

or not; they said that it depends on the songs and the focused sounds. They said that

songs could help them to have better pronunciation, but not in the particular words

because songs have intonation, contraction between sounds and reduction of some

sounds. They also stated that if they kept repeating listening to one song it might help;

but when it comes to another context usage, they could forget how to pronounce and

made the mistakes again.

6. Do you prefer learning pronunciation explicitly by teacher/native

speaker or teaching through songs? Why?

Five of seven participants thought that learning English explicitly will help them

in learning pronunciation rather than songs. One gave the reasons that songs have

complex lyrics and structures, and the ways songs pronounce each word is inconsistent

according to each song. One participant said that he preferred listening to the song and

following the lyrics because of its memorable lyrics and rhyme, while the other one

said that he liked both of them equally because they provide different kinds of

pronunciation teaching.

Extract 5:

P1: It could help in some particular words.

P4: I think it helps when I keep listening to one song and I will have better

pronunciation for the words that are in that song.

P6: It helps me sometimes but I can rarely apply it to a conversation in my

daily life.

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6.1 What is better in pronouncing each single word, teacher or songs?

Teacher Songs

No. of participants 6 1

6.2 What is better learning motivation, teacher or songs?

Teacher Songs

No. of participants 5 2

According to the interview, many other factors such as level of English

proficiency, motivation, the familiarity with the songs and vocabulary words and the

atmosphere are also the key influences to learners’ success.

The English level proficiency has the most impact in the production of corrected

pronunciation. Once learners are proficient in the standard pronunciation and able to

accurately distinguish different kinds of pronunciation they will decrease pronunciation

errors and create intelligible pronunciation.

Not only the level of proficiency affects the number of errors, but motivational

interest is another relating factor that increases learners’ productivity in pronouncing

the target final sounds correctly. As Gardner (1993) emphasized, the more learners have

motivation, the more learners tend to enjoy the language learning and lessons; therefore,

the knowledge gained is greater.

Extract 6:

P3: I think that they are different, it depends on what are you going to focus

on in the lesson, the explicit teaching might be proper to get accuracy while

using songs is better for fluency.

P5: Songs have the complex lyrics and structures, and the ways songs

pronounce each word is inconsistent according to each song, so it is easier

to learn English explicitly with teacher.

P7: I like learning English by songs; I got a lot of vocabulary words from

listening to English songs.

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The familiarity with song and lyrics also has an impact on the pronunciation.

As the song “A thousand years” was quite popular in recent years, some participants

had already known the song and the way some words are pronounced, thus they were

able to pronounce some words better that other participants.

Positive attitude has the key role in effective learning atmosphere. At the same

time, songs have the power and influence in creating a non-threatening atmosphere,

relieving not only physical but also mental conditions (Ghanbari, 2014).

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CHAPTER V

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The study shows that pronunciation errors of final sounds that are made by the

participants have been distinguished into two main types: omission and substitution.

There are twenty-five problematic words in the song “A Thousand Years – Christina

Perri” where participants made pronunciation errors on final sounds; ending consonants

of /θ, t, d, z, v/ tended to create the most problematic pronunciation. The limitation of

final consonants, because Thai only has eight finals /n/, /m/, /ŋ/, /p/, /b/, /d/, /t/, /k/, /j/,

/w/, is one of the significant objects that caused errors to have been produced, and also,

the lack of Thai final consonant clusters blocked the ability to pronounce in English all

the target final consonants in the vocabulary words.

When it comes to the perception of pronunciation errors made by each

participant, the participants were able to identify some errors by themselves while they

were listening to the song twice. The findings indicate a tendency for a surprisingly low

rate of the errors that they are able to notice. Similarly, the production in the second

reading aloud did not produce satisfactory performance in the number of noticeable

improvements from the first reading.

As the results of this practical research and interview indicate, the use of songs

in this research was unable to improve participants’ errors, as well as their notice of

pronunciation errors. The factors that affect the inefficient outcome comprise level of

English proficiency, motivation, the familiarity with the songs and vocabulary words,

and the atmosphere when they are exposed to the song. However, songs are still an

effective tool to increase learners’ motivation and activate their willingness to learn

pronunciation rather than learning by traditional methods.

The results of the study, nevertheless, should be more advised and concerned

since there are many limitations. First, there is a need to be more specific in sounds and

vocabularies identification in order for Thai learners to evaluate as many final

pronunciation sounds as possible and the song “A Thousand Years” does not contain

all the target sounds that have been researched as final problematic sounds. Second, the

study only focused on problematic final consonant sounds; other parts such as vowels

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and initial consonants were not emphasized. Moreover, there was no supra-segmental

unit investigation, such as looking at intonation, stress, rhythm etc. Other skills, e.g.

vocabulary and reading comprehension, might be affected by songs as well. Finally,

there should be more variety of the instruments utilized in error identification in order

to create research reliability and practical information; the usage of one song

individually is inadequate in pronunciation error identification. Further studies could

take more concern over the variables which were excluded in this research.

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APPENDICES

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APPENDIX A

SONG LYRICS

A Thousand Years – Christina Perri

Heart beats fast

Colors and promises

How to be brave

How can I love when I'm afraid to fall

But watching you stand alone

All of my doubt, suddenly goes away somehow

One step closer

I have died everyday, waiting for you

Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years

I'll love you for a thousand more

Time stands still

Beauty in all she is

I will be brave

I will not let anything, take away

What's standing in front of me

Every breath, every hour has come to this

One step closer




And all along I believed, I would find you

Time has brought your heart to me,

I have loved you for a thousand years


One step closer

One step closer

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And all along I believed, I would find you

Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you for a thousand years


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APPENDIX B

SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

Part I: Demographic

Part II: The Attitude towards Pronunciation Errors and The Use of Songs in

Language Classroom

Demographic

1. How old are you?

2. Have you ever taken English courses outside classroom?

3. How would you rate your level of English proficiency?

Information about Participants’ Pronunciation Errors and The Use of Songs

4. Do you like listening to English songs?

5.1 How often?

5. Do you notice that you have made pronunciation error after listening to the

song?

5.1 What words do you make errors on?

6. Do you know how th, -ed, -es, and v are pronounced? How?

7. Is it possible for a person who has never known how to pronounce pronounces

it correctly?

8. Does listening to music help you pronounce words correctly?

9. Do you prefer teaching pronunciation explicitly by teacher/native speaker or

teaching through songs? Why?

9.1 What is better in pronouncing each single word? Teacher or songs?

9.2 What is better learning motivation? Teacher or songs?

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APPENDIX C

PRONUNCIATION ERRORS BEFORE LISTENING TO THE

SONG “A THOUSAND YEARS” MADE BY EACH PARTICIPANT

Participant 1

No.

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in 1st Reading

Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds

1. heart /rt/ omission of /r/

2. beats /ts/ omission of /t/

3. fast /st/ omission of /t/

4. promises /z/ substitution with /s/

5. brave /v/ substitution with /p/

6. love /v/ substitution with /v/

7. fall /l/ omission of /l/

8. stand /nd/ omission of /d/

9. goes /z/ substitution with /s/

10. doubt /t/ omission of /t/

11. afraid /d/ substitution with /t/

12. died /d/ omission of /d/

13. loved /vd/ substitution /v/ with /p/,

omission of /d/

14. years /z/ omission of /z/

15. front /nt/ omission of /t/

16. breath / θ/ substitution with /t/

17. believed /vd/ substitution /v/ with /p/,

omission of /d/

18. find /nd/ omission of both /n/ and

/d/

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Participant 2

No.

Words Pronounced


Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds


2. beats /ts/ omission of /t/



5. love /v/ substitution with /p/

6. afraid /d/ substitution with /s/



9. all /l/ omission of /l/





omission of /d/

14. I’ll /l/ omission of /l/


16. breath /θ/ substitution with /d/


omission of /d/


/d/

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Participant 3

No.

Words Pronounced


Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds








8. died /d/ omission of /t/


omission of /d/





/d/ with /t/


/d/

Participant 4

No.

Words Pronounced


Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds


2. beats /ts/ substitution /t/ with /d/

3. Promises /z/ substitution with /s/

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4. Fall /l/ omission of /l/







omission of /d/



13. breath /θ/ substitution with /t/


/d/

Participant 5

No.

Words Pronounced


Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds

1. Promises /z/ substitution with /s/


3. loved /d/ substitution with /t/


5. breath /θ/ substitution with /t/

6. believed /d/ substitution with /t/

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Participant 6

No.

Words Pronounced


Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds


2. beats /ts/ omission of /t/ and /s/

and substitution with /p/


4. promises /z/ omission of /z/

5. love /v/ substitution with /p/




9. goes /z/ omission of /s/


11. don’t /t/ omission of /t/



omission of /d/

14. years /z/ omission of /z/


16. let /t/ substitution with /s/




omission of /d/


/d/

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Participant 7

No.

Words Pronounced


Aloud

Correct Final

Consonant Sounds

Incorrect Final

Consonant Sounds

1. love /v/ omission of /v/

2. afraid /d/ substitution with /t/ or

/s/





7. loved /d/ omission of /d/



10. heart /t/ substitution with /d/


/d/

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APPENDIX D

THE COMPARISON OF WORDS PRONOUNCED WRONGLY IN

READING ALOUD BETWEEN THE 1ST AND 2ND PRODUCTION

AND THE PARTICIPANT’S PERCEPTION.

Participant 1

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading

Aloud before Listening

(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading

Aloud while Listening

(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading

Aloud after Listening

(2nd Production)

heart - heart

beats - beats

fast - fast

promises promises -

brave brave brave

love - love

fall - fall

stand - stand

goes goes goes

doubt - doubt

afraid - -

died - died

loved - loved

- thousand -

years - years

front - front

breath breath breath

believed - believed

find - find

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Participant 2

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(2nd Production)

heart - heart

beats - beats

fast - fast

promises promises promises

- brave -

love - -

fall - fall

stand - stand

all - all

doubt doubt doubt

goes - goes

died - died

loved loved loved

I’ll I’ll I’ll

- take -

front - front


believed believed believed

find - find

- brought -

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Participant 3

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(2nd Production)

heart heart heart

promises - promises

- brave -

afraid - afraid

fall - fall

stand - stand

all - -

goes - goes

died died died

loved - loved

I’ll - I’ll

front - front


believed believed believed

- brought -

find - find

Participant 4

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(2nd Production)

heart heart heart

beats - beats

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promises - promises

- brave -

fall - fall

stand - -

doubt doubt doubt

goes goes goes

died - -

- don't -

afraid - -

loved loved loved

all - all

front front front

breath - breath

find - find

Participant 5

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(2nd Production)


fall - -

loved - Loved

all - All

breath - Breath

believed - believed

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Participant 6

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(2nd Production)

heart - -

beats beats beats

fast - fast


love - love

afraid - -

fall - fall

doubt doubt doubt

goes - goes

died - died

don’t - -

afraid - afraid

loved loved loved

years - years


let - let

Front - front


believed - believed

find - find

- brought -

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Participant 7

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(1st Production)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(Perception)

Words Pronounced

Wrongly in Reading


(2nd Production)

love - -

afraid - afraid

stand - stand

doubt - doubt

goes goes goes

died - -

loved loved loved


breath - breath

- believed -

brought brought -

heart - heart

find - find

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APPENDIX E

THE WORD IN LISTS IN “A THOUSAND YEARS” SONG

1. afraid 21. day 41. in 61. take

2. all 22. died 42. is 62. this

3. alone 23. don't 43. let 63. thousand

4. along 24. doubt 44. love 64. time

5. and 25. every 45. loved 65. to

6. anything 26. everyday 46. me 66. waiting

7. away 27. fall 47. more 67. watching

8. be 28. fast 48. my 68. what's

9. beats 29. find 49. not 69. when

10. beauty 30. for 50. of 70. will

11. believed 31. front 51. one 71. would

12. brave 32. goes 52. promises 72. years

13. breath 33. has 53. she 73. you

14. brought 34. have 54. somehow 74. your

15. but 35. heart 55. stand

16. can 36. hour 56. standing

17. closer 37. how 57. stands

18. colors 38. i 58. step

19. come 39. i'll 59. still

20. darling 40. i'm 60. suddenly

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BIOGRAPHY

Name Miss Pattaraporn Muangphruek

Date of Birth

Place of Birth

Address

March 7, 1994

Surat Thani, Thailand

618/739 Boromrajchachonnanee Road, Bang

Bamru, Bang Plat, Bangkok

Educational Attainment

Work Experiences

2012– 2015 Bachelor of Arts (Business English),

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences,

Khon Kaen University

Freelance Proofreading and Copy-Editing

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Documents

Exploring pronunciation errors through a song: a case