Chp 4: The Vowel System

continuum of tense vowels

(Categories the same as for lax vowels, with one additional option for the longest category.) Longest = when followed by no consonant OR final voiced sonorant consonant. EX: bee, bay, pa, law, go, boo, buy, plow, boy Middle length = when followed by final voiced nonsonorant consonant. EX: bead, bayed, pod, laud, goad, booed, bide, loud, void Shortest = when followed by final voiceless consonant EX: beet, bait, pot, loss, goat, boot, bite, lout, voice bee, bead, beet bay, bayed, bait pa, pod, pot law, laud, loss go, goad, goat boo, booed, boot buy, bide, bite plow, loud, lout boy, void, voice

Challenges in teaching the NAE vowel system

* place and manner of articulation is less clear-cut; voiced distinction is moot * sound-spelling correspondence has many variations * due to L1 interference, some ELLs will clip all tense vowels so they sound like lax vowels * vowels in adjacent positions in the vowel quadrant can be confused * vowels display much more dialectical variation among NSs of NAE than consonants

What are the two forms of an unstressed function word?

1. citation form 2. reduced form

What are the two situations when vowels occur in an unstressed position?

1. when a vowel occurs in an unstressed syllable in a multisyllabic word EX: allow, soft, focus 2. when a vowel occurs in an unstressed function word EX: articles (the, a, an); prepositions (on, of, at, in); copula be (am, are); Aux verbs (is, was, has, have, can, could); pronouns (he, you, his, her); conjunctions (and, or, as, than); conditions (if)

The 14 English vowels by type

11 = simple vowels or vowels with an accompanying glide 3 = diphthongs

Teaching ELLs to pronounce /r/- and /l/-colored vowels

A schwa can be inserted to pronounce the words with an extra syllable at first: our, ou-er; seal, sea-ul

rounded/spread/neutral lip position

A visible factor that characterizes vowel production, lip position occurs across a continuum from rounded to neutral to spread.

Selecting which vowels to teach

As with consonants, first decide if it's an issue, then consider functional load.

What are the reduced vowels in English

By far the most common = mid-central schwa, also in /r/-colored form Others = /i, I, o, u/ All = more central because of the lack of stress

Vowels with communicative meaning

Don't forget to teach Ls the list of vowels with communicative meanings. EX: Ahhh! Aw. Ow! Oh? Oh. Uh-oh. Ooh! Oops! Aha! Huh? Boo! Uh-uh. Uh-huh.

continuum of nasalization in NAE

Greatest nasalization = initial and final nasal EX: main, men, man, gnome Middle nasalization = final nasal EX: aim, ten, tan, home Least nasalization = initial nasal EX: maid, met, gnat, note

/r/-coloring

If a vowel is followed by /r/ and occurs in the same syllable, the vowel glides toward the central /r/ position and takes on some of the retroflex quality of /r/, often altering its production dramatically. This is called /r/-coloring. EX: fur, pour, beard, bared, lord

ELLs difficulty with reduced vowels

If an L1 does not contain reduced vowels, it is difficult to both hear and produce full vs. reduced vowels. The first step is consciousness raising since many Ls are unaware of this strong tendency in English.

orthographic vs. phonologic vowels

In English: 5 written vowels: a, e, i, o, u 14 distinct stressed vowel sounds

Effect of environment on vowels

Like consonants, the environment in which a vowel finds itself influences how it's realized. Vowels are lengthened or shortened in certain environments, and thy can be colored or altered significantly in others.

continuum of lax vowels

Longest = when followed by final voiced sonorant consonant. EX: hill, bell, bang, bull, bun Middle length = when followed by final voiced nonsonorant consonant. EX: hid, bed, bad, could, buzz Shortest = when followed by a final voiceless consonant. EX: hit, bet, bat, cook, bus hill, hid, hit bell, bed, bet bang, bad, bat bull, could, cook bun, buzz, bus

open/closed syllable

Open syllables end with a vowel and closed syllable end with a consonant sound. Tense vowels can occur in both stressed open and stressed closed syllables. Lax vowels can only occur in stressed closed syllables. They always require a consonant.

/l/-coloring

Post vocalic /l/ colors a vowel, but not as much as post vocalic /r/. The velarized /l/ pulls front vowels back to center. EX: see, seal; Mick, milk; may, male; tack, talc The velarized /l/ also slightly colors central and back vowels. EX: dot, doll; coat, coal; tooth, tool; how, howl

tense/lax vowel

Tense or lax vowels are made with more or less muscle tension. Increased muscle tension serves to stretch the articulation of tense vowel sounds to more extreme peripheral position in the mouth, making them less centered. Often tense vowels are accompanied by a glide. This glide quality, or slight diphthongization, frequently distinguishes them from similar vowels in other language that may have a purer quality. Tense vowels: more muscle tension, certain ones have a related glide, occur in open or closed syllables Lax vowels: less muscle tension, less tendency to glide, occur only in closed syllables when stressed

When to use the various reduced vowels

The chose of schwa over the other reduced vowels is often dialectical or idiosyncratic and the exact quality tends to vary, all depending on the speaker, context, and dialect.

reduced vowels

The frequency of reduced vowels in the speech stream is a striking feature of English. There's a distinctive tendency of English vowels in unstressed position (at the word and phrase level) to be articulated as reduced vowels.

How to present the NAE vowel system to ELLs

Use the communicative framework: 1. present information 2. listening discrimination 3. controlled practice and feedback 4. guided practice and feedback 5. communicative practice and feedback

citation form

a form with a stressed vowel when the word is spoken alone out of context (also: when special emphasis is placed on the function word, when signaling contrast, when the function word is being cited, in coordinated idiomatic expressions)

the vowel quadrant

a stylized diagram of the oral cavity, which acts as a resonance chamber as the tongue moves high-mid-low and front-central- back to change the shape of the chamber and thus the sound of the vowels produced. These two tongue dimensions are summarized on the vowel quadrant, which classifies vowels in combos such as a high front vowel or a mid back vowel.

sonorant

a voiced sound that can function as the peak of a syllable, including all vowels; the semivowels /w, y/; the nasals /m, n, ng/; and the liquids /l, r/

vowel with glide

a vowel accompanied by /y/ or /w/ EX: pain, stone

simple vowel

a vowel without an accompanying glide movement EX: bed, put

classification of vowels

less clear-cut than for consonants because all vowels are voiced & there is relatively no obstruction of the airstream, so they are all classified as continuents. Vowels are mainly characterized by the shape and size of the oral cavity. They are more clearly delineated in relation to one another than in relation to any external standard for classification: 1. degree to which the vowel is articulated with an accompanying glide 2. vowel's relative place of articulation within the oral cavity (high to low, front to back) 3. position of lips during articulation (spread to rounded) 4. vowel quality: tense versus lax

/rl/- coloring in the same word

the coloring is exacerbated when /rl/ appears in a word in that order: girl, world, pearl, curl, Karl can teach these as two syllable words first: girly, curly, burly and then practice the respective cluster configurations.

vowel

the core or peak of a syllable; sounds in which there is a continual vibration of the vocal cords, and the airstream is allowed to escape from the mouth in an unobstructed manner, without any interruption (i.e., the vocal cords are not disrupted from vibrating - all vowels are voiced - and articulators do not approach each other).

nasalized

the nasal consonants also tend to color preceding vowels, resulting in a more nasalized quality because the velum is partially open. This is true in NAE but not British English. EX: see, seem; mitt, ring; say, sane; cat, rang; coy, coin

front - central - back

the position of the body of the tongue influences the shape of the oral cavity, designated as front, central, or back on the vowel quadrant

reduced form

the version of the world that usually occurs in natural speech with an unstressed, reduced vowel

high - mid - low

the volume of the oral cavity increases as the jaw opens and the tongue successively lowers, thusly designated as high, mid, or low on the vowel quadrant

diphthong

vowels consisting of a vowel sound followed by a nonadjacent glide within the same syllable. In English, the vowels start lower in the mouth and move up to a higher location in the mouth. Greater movement than vowels with glides since the ending vowels are nonadjacent. EX: boy