Phonetics Applied: An Acoustic Analysis of Japanese L2 English

Anthony M. Diaz, Miyazaki International College https://doi.org/10.37546/JALTPCP2022-10 While experienced English instructors may possess an intuitive knowledge of the difficulties their students face regarding the mastery of English pronunciation, without training in phonetics or sufficient knowledge of the differences between Japanese and English phonology, it may not be apparent how phonetic differences between Japanese and English contribute to the acquisition of intelligible speech by Japanese learners. This may cause instructors to be hesitant to teach the skill of pronunciation due to lacking the confidence or understanding to teach the skill (Baker, 2011). This lack of confidence may be especially applicable to the Japanese EFL context, where non-native instructors are common (Koike, 2014). With reference to this pedagogical issue, this study presents an acoustic analysis of the English speech of seven freshmen Japanese university students conducted with the aim of providing quantitative data regarding Japanese L2 English pronunciation, and to discuss the pedagogical implications that arise from its analysis.