SS 2020 The Pronunciation & Intonation of American English

This ‘kombinierte Sprachprüfung’ concentrates on pronunciation and intonation skills but also involves competence in grammar. There are two exam sections, an oral exam, which tests spoken language skills, and a written exam, which tests phonetic transcription and use of verbs and tenses.  

In this Pronunciation and Intonation class, we aim to identify the students’ problem areas, tune in students’ ears to pronunciation style and speech rhythm (stress patterns, weak forms, linking), provide practical information on articulatory phonetics and (some) phonology of English, practice interpreting and writing passages in phonetic script, identify characteristic segmental and suprasegmental features in given (oral and/or written) passages, and establish islands of perfection (speaking complex passages in near-perfect form) as stepping-stones to progress and improvement. The skills and knowledge gained here will be developed in the year two Listening and Speaking course. 

In the written exam students have to show good competence in using (1) the phonetic symbols both passively and actively, and (2) the verb and tense systems.

Materials:

1) Buy the coursepack devised by Eva Stahlheber at EMF Bürotechnik, Zellescher Weg, before the first meeting.

Prerequisites:

The Entry Test must have been passed.