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Non‐native English teachers' confidence in their own pronunciation and attitudes towards teaching: A questionnaire survey in Japan
Author(s) -
Uchida Yoko,
Sugimoto Junko
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
international journal of applied linguistics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.712
H-Index - 39
eISSN - 1473-4192
pISSN - 0802-6106
DOI - 10.1111/ijal.12253
Subject(s) - pronunciation , context (archaeology) , psychology , world englishes , mathematics education , linguistics , geography , philosophy , archaeology
The purpose of this study is to investigate non‐native English teachers' attitudes towards pronunciation instruction by exploring their pronunciation model and goal preferences and confidence in their own pronunciation. The questionnaire survey data of 100 public junior high school teachers in Tokyo indicated that the majority were less confident in pronouncing sentences and passages than words, while overseas experience had a positive effect on confidence. Covariance structure analysis confirmed that confidence led to positive attitudes towards pronunciation instruction. Native varieties were preferred as models and goals, despite a changing global context in which World Englishes are increasingly important. We discuss the necessity of providing teacher training that incorporates areas in which teachers feel less confident and setting the pronunciation goal of “intelligible pronunciation.”