Unit One Basic Concepts: Syllables, Stress & Rhythm

In your junior high and senior school, the teaching of pronunciation is described as "the Cinderella of language teaching“. That tells the truth. In contrast to those "princesses" — vocabulary, grammar, reading, writing and speaking people usually think much of, this "humble lady" has long been out of favor. But as a matter of fact, one's linguistic competence depends in a certain measure on his/her pronunciation which, if is too 1.Course Description

bad to communicate with other people, he will only be regarded as a failed language learner. On the other hand, for an adult, it is not difficult to enlarge the amount of vocabulary or enhance the knowledge of grammar. And without a solid foundation of pronunciation at the early stage, it will be beyond repair in case of fossilization. By this token ( 照这样看 来 ), teaching and learning of pronunciation deserves much more attention than we paid before.

2.Textbook English Pronunciation & Intonation for Communication 《英语语音教程》（第二版）王 桂珍 编著. 高等教育出版社， 2009.

This course is a compulsory course offered to the first year English majors with an aim to help the students of English to work on pronunciation foe both speaking and understanding. The students will undergo intensive training in 1) the pronunciation of individual phonemes in English, 2) in the rhythmic patterns of the English language and 3) in the patterns and functions of English intonation, so that the students will be able to communicate more effectively with good pronunciation and intonation. 3. Objectives of the Course

To have good pronunciation means 1) to pronounce correctly all the individual speech sounds in English; 2) to pronounce correctly the speech sounds in their combinations in isolated words as well as in sentences; 3) to speak fluently with correct rhythm, including the correct placement of stresses and pauses and the transition of sounds according to the context; and 4) to speak with appropriate intonation according to the context.

4. Course content 1.English phonemes: correct discrimination and pronunciation 2.Stress of English words and sentences: basic rules and functions 3.English rhythmic patterns: basic features and functions 4. English intonation: structures, functions and use

5.Recommended Reference materials 1.Mortimer,C. Elements of Pronunciation (Intensive practice for intermediate and more advanced students ), Cambridge University Press, Jack C. Richards & David Bycina, PERSON TO PERSON Communicative Speaking and Listening Skills, 外语教学与研究出版社 牛津大学出版社 3. Hancock, M. English Pronunciation in Use Cambridge University Press, 2003

6. Assessment The students' work for this course will be evaluated in the following rubric (an authoritative rule or direction).You are supposed to pass TWO tests during the term on 1. English phonemes: correct discrimination and pronunciation; 2. Stress of English words and sentences: basic rules and functions; Terminal Exam 1. Written Exam (30%): Related theories on discrimination of phonemes, and the phonetic transcription of the words 2. Oral Exam (70%):Word stress, sentence stress, etc.

About English West Germanic language About 325 million native speakers: Britain, 56 million the USA, 232 million Canada, 24 million Australia & New Zealand 17 million The sole official language in more than two dozen countries The most important language of commerce. The most widely learned second language.

Unit 1 Basic Concepts: Syllables, Stress & Rhythm Aims: 1. Learn some basic concepts about syllables, stress and rhythm in English. 2. Learn to say greetings and farewell with appropriate pronunciation and intonation in English.

Look at the following example: baNAna Syllable 1 Syllable 2 Syllable 3 (short) (long) (short) The word "banana" has 3 syllables. Syllable 1 is not stressed and so is short. Syllable 2 is stressed and so is long with a clear vowel sound /  :/. Syllable 3 is not stressed and so is also short. Stressed syllables are strong syllables. Unstressed syllables are weak syllables. Stressed syllables: are long, have a pitch change, and have full vowel sounds. Unstressed syllables: are short, often have a reduced vowel sound

What is a syllable? A syllable is a part of a word and the basic unit of English rhythm. English words can have one, two, three or even more syllables. In the word ‘driveway’, there are two syllables. In the sentence ‘Drive him away’, there are four. What is a stressed syllable? In English words with more than one syllable, one of them will receive more stress than the others. Stressed syllables are those that are marked in the dictionary as stressed. For example, in the word ‘driveway’, the first syllable is a stressed syllable while the second syllable is not. Stressed syllables in English are usually longer, louder, and higher in pitch.

What is rhythm? Rhythm can be found everywhere in life: the sound of a clock, the beating of the heart, the strokes of a swimmer, and of course in poetry and music. But rhythm in language is less familiar because it is less obvious. The rhythm of a language is characterized by the timing pattern of successive syllables. In some languages, every syllable is given about the same length, while in others, syllables vary in length. In English, strong beats are called stress -- the heart of the rhythmic pattern.