【作者】 吴静；

【导师】 周卫京；

【作者基本信息】 江苏大学 ， 外国语言学及应用语言学， 2009， 硕士

【摘要】 处于新世纪的中国与世界各国在经济、金融、贸易、文化、教育等领域的合作越来越多,对外语人才,特别是精通英语、并且能熟练使用英语进行交流的人才需求越来越大。作为现在的大学生,要为将来步入社会打好基础,就应该具备良好的英语听、说交际能力。在平时的交际中,人们所讲的句子就是由音素及音素在一定音变情况下形成的集合体再加上语调的特有功能及不同的信息焦点来传达态度及意思。因此,正确生成音段音素层的发音尤其是元音的发音是英语学习的重要部分。本研究作者为了了解学生的语音面貌并对自己的教学有所感悟,挑选了江苏大学60名学生作为对象,从声学角度进行了中国外语学习者英语元音习得的研究。本文主要是将中国外语学习者习得的元音声学特征与英国及美国本族语者的元音声学特征进行比较,进而研究中国外语学习者的元音整体习得情况。实验设计了11个单元音及8个双元音的录音语料,采用录音软件Cool Edit录音,实用语音分析软件Praat进行标注及提取数据(主要提取单元音的声学参量第一共振峰和第二共振峰及时长,双元音的总时长还有其滑动部分、第一音素及第二音素稳定段的时长),最后通过Excel和SPSS进行处理并分析数据。本文主要进行的对比如下:单元音:对比中国外语学习者生成的元音的F1、F2与本族语者生成的元音的F1、F2之间的相似度;对比长短元音比例的相似度:双元音:对比中国外语学习者生成的双元音的滑动部分占总时长的比例与本族语者生成的元音的双元音的滑动部分占总时长的比例的相似度;并分别对比第一音素稳定段占总时长的比例及第二音素稳定段占总时长的比例的相似度。本研究发现如下:1.中国外语学习者英语元音的总体习得情况:(1)由评分者根据学生发音的可理解度打分。所有元音可理解率都在70%以上,说明中国学生元音习得情况不算糟糕。(2)/(?):/、/(?)/和/i:/是中国外语学习者习得最好的3个单元音,而/(?)/、/e/和/(?):/是习得最差的3个。/aI/和/a(?)/是习得最好的2个双元音,而/eI/和/(?)/是习得最差的(参见表4.2&4.3)。2.中国外语学习者英语元音的声学特征:(1)男生和女生的英语元音声学图参见图4.3&4.4。中国外语学习者的/(?):/和/i:/与本族语者的发音相似性极为显著。主要问题出在/(?):/和/(?)/上,中国外语学习者的发音比较靠前并且低.中国学生在/e/、/(?)/、/(?)/和/a:/的发音上,容易出现语内混淆,尤其对这些单元音的前后纬度把握不好。(2)中国外语学习者对单元音的时长模式习得较好。他们所发的长短元音的比例与本族语者的相当接近。但是有一些学习者对时长特征把握得还不够准,他们在发长元音时,只是加长了短元音的时长或者只是加重相对短元音的响度及强度。(3)中国外语学习者对英语双元音的声学特征已经有了很大关注。女生对双元音的时长及构成特征的把握与本族语者相当接近。而男生在发双元音时对其声学特征已经很是注意,而且想刻意地将这些特征表达出来。本研究的实验结果可以对语音的教与学具有指导意义。首先学生元音发音存在问题,将引起英语教育者对语音音素层教学的重视;其次有助于引起教师对语音重要性的思考,树立正确的教学观;再者,若想学生具备良好语音基础,教学者本身要具备丰富的语音知识和良好的语音面貌,教师自身也要不断提高;另外,教学者要想出有效的方法来规范并矫正学生的发音,本文中使用的语音分析软件可推广使用,以便使教学者能直观地去发现和分析学生发音中存在的问题;最重要的是学生本身的努力与坚持,利用身边可利用的资源,了解语音知识,尽量使自己的语音接近本族语者,不引起歧义。更多还原

【Abstract】 This thesis reports a study of the acquisition of English vowels by Chinese EFL learners(CEFLLs) from an acoustic perspective.It adopts the contrastive experimental research methodology to compare the major acoustic features of English vowels produced by CEFLLs with those produced by Received Pronunciation speakers(RPSs) and American native speakers(ASs).The subjects of the study are 30 male and 30 female CEFLLs whose production of 11 English monophthongs and 8 English diphthongs were recorded and analyzed in line with the following research questions the present study intends to address:1.To what extent do Chinese EFL learners(CEFLLs) acquire English vowels?1) What’s the acquisition rate of English vowels by CEFLLs?2) What are the most/least acquired English vowels by CEFLLs?2.What are the acoustic features of English vowels by CEFLLs?1) What are the acoustic features of English monophthongs by male/female CEFLLs?(1)What’s the distribution pattern of their English monophthongs?(2) What’s the duration pattern of their English monophthongs?2) What are the acoustic features of English diphthongs by male/female CEFLS?(1) What’s the duration pattern of their English diphthongs?(2) What’re the formational features of their English diphthongs?The results of data analysis reveal the following major findings:(1) All the intelligibility rate of English vowels is above 70%,which indicates that the overall acquisition of English vowels by CEFLLs is not very bad. (2)/(?):/,/(?)/and/i:/are the three most acquired monophthongs by CEFLLs and /(?)/,/e/ and /(?):/ are the three least acquired ones;/aI/and/a(?)/are the two most acquired diphthongs and/eI/and/(?)/are the two least acquired ones.(3) By the distribution pattern of English monophthongs by CEFLLs,/(?):/ and /i:/ by CEFLLs are significantly similar to native speakers’.CEFLLs have the greatest problems with/(?):/and/(?)/,which are more fronter and lower than RPSs’.(4) CEFLLs have acquired the duration pattern of monophthongs.The duration ratio between long and short vowels is similar to native speakers’.(5) CEFLLs have noticed acoustic features of English diphthongs.FCEFLLs are more similar to native speakers in duration pattern and formational features of English diphthongs.The findings listed above shed lights into EFL phonetic teaching and learning in China.Firstly,segemental problems in CEFLLs’ production Of English should not be neglected as it has been,for the intelligibility rate of some English vowels articulated by CEFLLs is far from satisfactory.Second,explicit instruction of English vowels, both monophthongs and diphthongs,should be highlighted at the beginning stage of college English learning,for a number of students fail to pronounce English vowels properly largely due to the mispronunciation of English vowels by their middle school teachers or due to badly insufficient exposure to the correct pronunciation by English native speakers.Such negative effects can only be got rid of by means of phonetic training and practice.Thirdly,speech analyzing software such as Praat is recommended to facilitate the teaching and learning of English pronunciation,which is powerful not only in the presentation of the acoustic features of English segments but also in the vivid realization of the articulation,i.e.the mechanism and procedures of the articulation.Lastly,English teachers are required to have solid knowledge of English phonology and phonetics so that they are able to perceive and produce English vowels correctly and supervise their students efficiently.更多还原