SP E A K I N G D I F F I C U LT I E S

U N I T VI
WHAT MAKES SPEAKING DIFFICULT
(BROWN, 2001)
A. CLUSTERING
•CLUSTERING REFERS TO GROUPING RELATED WORDS OR IDEAS
TOGETHER TO FORM COHERENT AND MEANINGFUL UNITS. IT
INVOLVES ORGANIZING THOUGHTS IN A WAY THAT ENHANCES THE
FLOW OF SPEECH AND EASIER FOR THE LISTENING TO FOLLOW
THE SPEAKER’S MESSAGE.
•
•FLUENTSPEECH IS PHRASAL, NOT WORD BY WORD. LEARNER
CAN ORGANIZE THEIR OUTPUT COGNITIVELY AND PHYSICALLY
THROUGH SUCH CLUSTERING.
A. CLUSTERING
EXAMPLE:
WITHOUT CLUSTERING:
LIKE. READING. BOOKS. PAINTING. IN. MY. LEISURE TIME.
(WORD-BY-WORD)

WITH CLUSTERING:
IN MY LEISURE TIME, I LIKE READING BOOKS AND
PAINTING. (PHRASAL)
FACTORS OF CLUSTERING DIFFICULTY

1.DIFFICULTY ORGANIZING THEIR THOUGHTS

2.LIMITED VOCABULARY
3.LACK OF EXPOSURE TO SPOKEN LANGUAGE
4.FLUENCY DISORDER SUCH AS STUTTERING
B. REDUNDANCY
REDUNDANCY MEANS THE EXPRESSION OF A MEANING IN A
SENTENCE OR PHRASE THROUGH MULTIPLE LINGUISTIC
ELEMENTS – MORE THAN ACTUALLY NEEDED TO CONVEY
THE MEANING.

FOR EXAMPLE:
I SAW IT WITH MY OWN EYES.
WHY DO LEARNERS STRUGGLE WITH
REDUNDANCY?

1.LIMITED VOCABULARY
2.COPYING SPEECH PATTERNS
3.CLUTTERING
4.LANGUAGE PROCESSING DISORDERS
STRATEGIES TO EMPLOY IN THE REMEDIAL
CLASSROOM
1.VOCABULARY EXPANSION ACTIVITIES (E.G.
WORD ASSOCIATION GAMES)
2.ENCOURAGE THE LEARNER TO SPEAK AT A
SLOWER PACE.
3.SPEECH THERAPY
C. REDUCED FORMS
•REDUCED FORMS REFER TO THE MODIFICATION OR
SIMPLIFICATION OF WORDS AND PHRASES IN SPOKEN
LANGUAGE. THIS OFTEN INCLUDES CONTRACTIONS,
ELISIONS, AND REDUCED VOWELS. IN CASUAL
CONVERSATION, PEOPLE TEND TO SHORTEN WORDS OR
COMBINE THEM TO SPEAK MORE QUICKLY AND
INFORMALLY. FAILURE TO GRASP THESE COLLOQUIAL
FORMS MAY LEAD TO A STILTED, OVERLY FORMAL WAY OF
SPEAKING THAT CAN BE SEEN AS UNNATURAL.
TO ADDRESS DIFFICULTIES WITH REDUCED FORMS IN SPOKEN
LANGUAGE, CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING SOLUTIONS:
1. ACTIVE LISTENING PRACTICE:
•ENCOURAGE ACTIVE LISTENING TO NATIVE SPEAKERS IN CASUAL
CONVERSATIONS, MOVIES, OR PODCASTS WHERE REDUCED FORMS ARE
COMMONLY USED. THIS EXPOSURE HELPS INDIVIDUALS BECOME
FAMILIAR WITH THE NATURAL RHYTHM AND FLOW OF SPOKEN
LANGUAGE.
2. REPEAT AND REPLICATE:
•REGULARLY PRACTICE SPEAKING IN A MORE NATURAL,
CONVERSATIONAL MANNER BY CONSCIOUSLY INCORPORATING
REDUCED FORMS INTO YOUR SPEECH. REPETITION AND CONSISTENT
PRACTICE ARE KEY TO INTERNALIZING THESE PATTERNS.
D. PERFORMANCE VARIABLES
•IT’S THE PROCESS OF THINKING AS YOU SPEAK.
•ONE OF THE ADVANTAGES OF SPOKEN LANGUAGE IS THAT THE
PROCESS OF THINKING AS YOU SPEAK ALLOWS YOU TO MANIFEST
A CERTAIN NUMBER OF PERFORMANCE HESITATIONS, PAUSES,
BACKTRACKING, AND CORRECTIONS. LEARNERS CAN ACTUALLY BE
TAUGHT HOW TO PAUSE AND HESITATE. FOR EXAMPLE, IN ENGLISH
OUR “THINKING TIME” IS NOT SILENT; WE INSERT CERTAIN
“FILLERS” SUCH UHM,WELL,YOU KNOW,I MEAN, LIKE, ETC. ONE OF
THE MOST SALIENT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NATIVE AND
NONNATIVE SPEAKERS OF A LANGUAGE IS IN THEIR HESITATION
PHENOMENA.
TO ADDRESS DIFFICULTIES WITH PERFORMANCE VARIABLES IN
SPOKEN LANGUAGE, CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING SOLUTIONS:

VOCABULARY EXPANSION:
•ENHANCE VOCABULARY TO REDUCE THE NEED
FOR FILLERS. A MORE EXTENSIVE VOCABULARY
ALLOWS FOR SMOOTHER EXPRESSION OF IDEAS
F. STRESS, RHYTHM, AND INTONATION
STRESS
- REFERS TO THE EMPHASIS PLACED ON CERTAIN SYLLABLES WITHIN
WORDS.
- LEAD TO MISUNDERSTANDINGS AND DIFFICULTY IN CONVEYING THE
INTENDED MEANING.
- EXAMPLE: PERMIT (NOUN) AND PERMIT (VERB)
F. STRESS, RHYTHM, AND INTONATION

RHYTHM
- PERTAINS TO THE PATTERN OF STRESSED AND UNSTRESSED
SYLLABLES IN SPEECH.
- DISRUPTS THE FLOW OF SPEECH
- EXAMPLE: SHE WILL PRESENT HER PROJECT AT THE CONFERENCE."
F. STRESS, RHYTHM, AND INTONATION
INTONATION
- INVOLVES THE RISE AND FALL OF PITCH IN SPEECH
- CAN CONVEY UNINTENDED EMOTIONS OR CHANGE THE
MEANING OF A STATEMENT.
- EXAMPLE: “I LOVE THIS MOVIE?”
STRATEGIES
INTERACTIVE READING
- INVOLVES ENGAGING STUDENTS IN READING ALOUD, EMPHASIZING
CORRECT STRESS PATTERNS.
MODELING AND IMITATION
- PROVIDING STUDENTS WITH EXAMPLES OF CORRECT
PRONUNCIATION AND SPEECH PATTERNS
- STUDENTS LEARN BY OBSERVING AND REPLICATING THESE MODELS,
REINFORCING PROPER LANGUAGE USAGE.
G. INTERACTION

LEARNING TO PRODUCE WAVES OF LANGUAGE IN A VACUUM

WITHOUT INTERLOCUTORS WOULD ROB SPEAKING SKILLS ITS
RICHEST COMPONENT (THE CREATIVITY OF CONVERSATIONAL
NEGOTIATION)
TEACHING PRONUNCIATION
TECHNIQUES AND PRACTICES IN TEACHING
PRONUCIATION
- LISTEN AND IMITATE
- PHONETIC TRAINING
- MINIMAL PAIR DRILLS
- CONTEXTUALIZED MINIMAL PAIRS
- VISUAL AIDS
- TONGUE TWISTERS
- READING ALOUD/RECITATION
- RECORDING OF LEARNER’S PRODUCTION