Date of Award

2010

Thesis Type

PhD

Document Type

Thesis

Divisions

Faculty of Languages and Linguistics

Department

Department of Asian and European Languages

Institution

Universiti Malaya

Abstract

The aim of the research presented in the current study is two fold: (i) to describe the phonetic and phonological systems of Persian and English, and (ii) to identify and analyze the errors committed by Persian learners in the perception and the production of English sounds. The research is based on a contrastive analysis of the Phonetic and Phonological systems of the two languages and an error analysis of the problems faced by Iranian students in the perception and pronunciation of the sounds of the English phonetic system. Findings of this study showed underprediction by CA, that is, the contrastive analysis could not predict some errors committed by the learners. It also showed overprediction; in other words, some of the errors predicted failed to occur. Nevertheless, the results of these two analyses are pedagogically and theoretically significant: Teachers of English can improve their teaching strategies with the help of findings from this research in their foreign language programs. Furthermore, the results of this research can be of value in the design and preparation of teaching materials by the textbook writers with a Persian speaking clientele in mind. Finally, the description of Persian and English linguistic similarities and differences identified through CA contributes to the field General Linguistics. In the introductory chapter, some remarks are given about the objectives and significance of the study, methodology, scope and limitation of the study, the Persian and English languages, and the language situation as well as the teaching of English in Iran. Chapter Two offers a description of the Phonetic and Phonological systems of Persian. In Chapter Three, the Phonetic and Phonological systems of English are described. Chapter Four presents a Contrastive Analysis of the Phonetic and Phonological Systems of English and Persian, and predicts the errors that may be committed by the language learners. Chapter Five deals with the Error Analysis, the hierarchy of difficulties and some recommendations to the teachers for the correction and prevention of errors. Finally, based on the findings of this study, the conclusion is made with the aim of assisting Persian learners of English to proceed smoothly in their learning of the sound system of target language. The pedagogical implications for the teaching of English as a foreign language are also discussed.

Initial

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Additional Information

Thesis (PhD) – Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, Universiti Malaya, 2010.

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