Helping students know how to solve “pronuciation part” in tests, exams

PART I: INTRODUCTION
I. Reason for the study 
Pronouncing words correctly is very important in learning languages. It not only helps us speak accurately, hear one’s speech sound easily but also helps us to understand what people say. So “Pronunciation part” can’t help appearing in national examinations, English test and examinations for gifted students (there are normally from 2 to 5 questions). However, many students are confused and choose wrong answers because they don’t understand what phonemic transcription is. They don’t know when letter A is pronounced as sound / ei /, / æ /, / a: /, / eə /. 
Eg: / ei / Late
/ æ /Glad
/ a: / Park
/ eə / care
 [Every speech sound must be identified as one of the phonemes and written with the appropriate symbol.]1
Understanding how one letter is transcripted in a specific word is to help students to do pronunciation exercises easily.
In reality, I notice that the textbooks of English 10, 11, 12 don’t introduce some rules how a word is transcripted according to phonemic transcription even at lower secondary education level doesn’t too. So there is little chance for the students to understand the phonemic transcription. 
In practice, there are not a lot of useful references for teachers about this kind of exercise so the students cannot understand the phonemic transcription deeply.
From the reasons mentioned above, I have decided to write my own experience initiative on the topic: HELPING STUDENTS KNOW HOW TO SOLVE “PRONUCIATION PART” IN TESTS, EXAMS.
.
II. Aim of the study
	With this experience initiative, I wish to help my students understand more about the phonemic transcription. Besides, I would like to provide the students some rules how a letter is written according to phonemic transcription in specific word. Furthermore, through this experience initiative, I hope to contribute some ideas on issues related to phonology to the teaching experience sources for my colleagues to use as a reference in their teaching English.
________________________________________________________
In this page: 
- Section I. [1] – I consult from English phonetics and Phonology – A practical course, by Peter Roach, Second edition, Cambridge University Press, word for word; I myself write the rest.
- I myself write contents in Section II.
III. Objective and Scope of the study
	In this experience initiative, I give a basic chart of phonemic symbols, giving some exercise systems to help students get fimiliar with.
	The topic was studied in the English programme at high school level (The basic English textbooks 10, 11, 12) and in tests, exam preparation tests, entrance exams into university or college designed by the Ministry of Education and Training, English exams for gifted students in Thanh Hoa and other provinces. It is applied to the high school students at Mai Anh Tuan High School in the school-year 2016-2017 to prepare for the national high – school examination.
IV. Bases of the study:
	The experience inititative has been studied based on my own practical teaching experiences, referring to documents related to the research topic, observing other teachers’lessons, and consulting my colleagues.
PART II: PROBLEM SOLVING
	*The important point to solve this kind of exercise is students have to know the phonemic transcription in specific word.
	Below are some rules to write and pronounce phonemes in words.
A. The way to pronounce a vowel in stressed syllable.
Letters 
Open syllable
Closed syllable
Syllable with r
Syllable with re
a
 / ei / Late
/ æ /Glad
/ a: / Park
/ eə / care
Take /teik/
Fat /fæt/
Large /la:dʒ/
Stare /steə(r)/
e
/ i: / She
/ e / Desk
/ə:/, /ɜː/ Term
/ iə / Here
These /ði:z/
Well /wel/
Serve /sɜːv/
Or /eə/ where /weə/
o
/ əʊ / Home
/ ɒ / Shop
/ ɔː / Short
/ ɔː / More
Smoke /sməʊk/
Long /lɒŋ/
Sport /spɔːt/
Store /stɔː/
_____________________________________
In this page: 
- I myself write contents in Section III, IV..
- The contents in Part II, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
Letters 
Open syllable
Closed syllable
Syllable with r
Syllable with re
u
/ juː / Tune
/ ʌ / Must
/ ʊ / Full
/ ə: / Hurt
/ jʊə / Pure
Or /ʊə/ Sure
Use /juːz/
Full /fʊl/ 
buck /bʌk/
Nurse /nə:s/
Cure / kjʊə/
Poor /pʊə(r)/
i (y)
/ ai /Like
/ ɪ / Sit
/ ɜː/ First
/ ai / Fire
Why /wai/
Wish /wɪʃ/
Shirt /ʃɜːt/
Hire /’haiə(r)/
B. The way to pronounce a vowel in unstressed syllable.
Letters 
Pronunciation 
Examples
a
/ ə /
Again / əˊgein/
Vacation /vəˊkeiʃn/
/ i /
Palace /'pælis/
Village /'vilidʒ/
/ ei /
Celebrate /'selibretid/
Separate /'seprət/
e
/ i /
Exam /ig'zæm/
Careless /'keəlis/
/ ə /
Silent /'sailənt/
Student /'stju:dənt/
i (y)
/ i /
Office /'ɔfis/
Important / im'pɔ:tənt/
/ ai /
Exercise /'eksəsaiz/
Satisfy /'sætisfai/
o
/ ə /
Polite /pə'lait/
Second / 'sekənd/
/ ou / , / əʊ /
Piano / 'piænou/
Tomato /tə'mɑ:tou/
u
/ ə /
Autumn /'ɔ:təm/
Support / sə'pɔ:t/
/ i /
Busy /'bizi/
Minute /'minit/
/ ju /
Communist /'kɔmjunist/
Particular / pə'tikjulə(r)/
/ ju: /
Attitude /'ætitju:d/
Institute /'institju:t/
____________________________
In this page: 
- The contents in the chart, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
C. The way to pronounce a vowel cluster.
Vowel cluster
Position in syllable
Pronunciation 
Examples
ai / ay
/ ei /
Train /trein/
Wait /weit/
al
Before most consonats
/ ɔː /
Talk /tɔːk/
Small /smɔːl/
/ ɔː l /
Also /'ɔ:lsou/
Always /'ɔ:lweiz/
Before f, m
/ a: /
Half / hɑ:f/
Calm /kɑ:m
au(gh)
aw
/ ɔː /
August /ɔ:'gʌst/
Daughter /'dɔ:tə/
air / are
/ eə /
Chair /t∫eə/
Care /keə/
as
/ a: /
Grass /gra:s/
Pass /pa:s/
ea
Common
/ i: /
Sea /si:/
Easy /'i:zi/
Before: d
/ e /
Head /hed/
Bread /bred/
Special way
/ ei /
Great /greit/
Break /breik/
ew
Common
/ ju: /
New /nju:/
Few /fju:/
After: l, r, j
/ u: /
Flew /flu:/
Grew /gru:/
ie
Before consonats
/ i: /
Field /fi:ld/
Believe /bi'li:v/
At the end of word
/ ai /
Die /dai/
Lie /lai/
igh
/ ai /
High /hai/
Right /rait/
oa
/ əu /
Boat /bəu/
Road /rəud/
oi/ oy
/ ɔi /
Join /dʒɔin/
Boy /bɔi/
Noise /nɔiz/
Enjoy /in'dʒɔi/
oo
Common 
/ u: /
School /sku:l/
Soon /su:n/
Before: k
/ ʊ /
Book /bʊk/
Look /lʊk/
ou
/ au /
House /haus/
About /ə'baut/
ow
/au /, / əu/
How /hau/
Know /nəu/
our
/ɔː/, /auə /
Four /fɔː(r)/
Hour /hauə/
ui
After: j, r
/ u: /
Fruit /fru:t/
Juice /dʒu:s/
After: b, g
/ i/
Build /bild/
Guilty /'gilti/
Special way
/ ju: /
Suit /sju:t/
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In this page: - The contents in the chart, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
D. The way to pronounce a consonat and consonat cluster.
Letters 
Position in syllable
Pronunciation
Examples 
b
/ b /
Break /breik/
Book /bʊk/
After: m
Unpronounced 
Tomb /tu:m/
Climb /kaim/
c
Before vowels: a, o, u. Before consonats and at the end of syllable
/ k /
Clean /kli:n/
Picnic /'piknik/
Crowd /kraud/
Cat /kæt/
Before vowels: e, i (y)
/ s /
Nice /nais/
City /'siti/
Before: ia, ie, io
/ ʃ /
Social /'sou∫l/
Precious /'pre∫əs/
Sufficient /sə'fi∫nt/
cc
Before: e, i
/ ks /
Success /sək'ses/
Accident /'æksidənt
After: a, o, u or before another consonant
/ k /
According /ə'kɔ:diη]/
Acclaim /ə'kleim/
ch (tch)
/ tʃ /
Church /t∫ə:t∫/
Reach /ri:t∫/
/ k /
Christmas /'krisməs/
School /sku:l/
/ ʃ /
Machine /mə'∫i:n/
ck
/ k /
Neck /nek/
Black /blæk/
d
/ d /
Decide /di'said/
Desk /desk/
Unpronounced 
Handsome /'hænsəm/
Wednesday /'wenzdi/
dge
At the end of word
/ dʒ /
Bridge /bridʒ/
Judge /'dʒʌdʒ/
f
/ f /
Five /faiv/
Leaf /li:f/
Special way
/ v /
Of /əv/
_________________________________
In this page: 
- The contents in the chart, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
Letters 
Position in syllable
Pronunciation
Examples 
g
Before: a, o, u Before consonats and at the end of syllable
/ g /
Game /geim/
Group /gru:p/
Before e, i, (y)
/ dʒ /
Gem /dʒem/
Gypsy /'dʒipsi/
ge
At the end of word
/ dʒ /
Change /t∫eindʒ/
Large /lɑ:dʒ/
gh
/ f /
Cough /kɔf/
Laugh /lɑ:f/
In: igh, ough, augh
Unpronounced 
High /hai/
Bought /bɔ:t/
gu(e)
Beginning or end of word
/ g /
Guide /gaid/
Dialogue /'daiəlɔg/
In front of word
/ gw /
Language /'læηgwidʒ/
h
/ h /
Harm /hɑ:m/
Head /hed/
Unpronounced
Hour /'auə/
Honour /'ɔnə/
j
/ dʒ /
Joke /dʒouk/
Joy /dʒɔi/
k
/ k /
Cake /keit/
Kite /kait/
kn
/ n /
Knee /ni:/
Knowledge /'nɔlidʒ/
l
/ l /
Land /lænd/
School /sku:l/
Unpronounced
Walk /wɔ:k/
Calm /kɑ:m/
m
/ m /
Moon /mu:n/
Lamp /læmp/
mn
/ m /
Autumn /'ɔ:təm/
Solemn /'sɔləm/
n
/ n /
Nine /nain/
Fan /fæn/
ng
/ ŋ /
King /kiη/
Among /ə'mʌη/
/ ŋg /
English /'iηgli∫/
Angry /'æηgri/
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In this page: 
- The contents in the chart, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
Letters 
Position in syllable
Pronunciation
Examples 
nk(nc)
/ ŋk /
Bank /bæηk/
Uncle /'ʌηkl/
p
/ p /
Plan /plæn/
Supper /'sʌpə/
ph
/ f /
Photo /'foutou/
Elephant /'elifənt/
q
Rarely appearing alone
/ k /
Iraq /i'ra:k /
qu
/ kw /
Quick /kwik/
Question / 'kwest∫ən/
r
/ r /
Read /ri:d/
Around /ə'raund/
s
/ s /
Sister /'sistə/
Smile /smail/
Between two vowels
/ z /
Easy /'i:zi/
Music /'mju:zik/
Before: u, io, ia
/ ʃ /
Sure /∫uə/
Russia /'rʌ∫n/
/ ʒ /
Pleasure /'pleʒə/
Usually /'ju:ʒəli/
Unpronounced
Island /'ailənd/
Isle /ail/
sc
/ s /
Scene /si:n/
Science /'saiəns/
sh
/ ʃ /
Fresh /fre∫/
Wash /wɔ∫/
t
/ t /
Tell /tel/
Meet /mi:t/
Unpronounced
Often /'ɔfn/
Listen /'lisn/
Before: ia, ie, io
/ ʃ /
Patient /'pei∫nt/
Nation /'nei∫n/
th
/ θ /
Birth /bə:θ/
Method /'meθəd/
/ ð /
This /ðis/
Than /ðæn/
v
/ v /
Voice /vɔis/
Love /lʌv/
w
/ w /
Wait /weit/
Sweet /swi:t/
Unpronounced
Sword /sɔ:d/
Answer /'ɑ:nsə/
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In this page: 
- The contents in the chart, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
Letters 
Position in syllable
Pronunciation
Examples 
wh
Before: a, e, i, (y)
/ w /
What /wɔt/
When /wen/
Before: o
/ h /
Who /hu:/
Whole /houl/
wr
/ r /
Write /rait/
Wrong /rɔη/
x
In stressed syllable
/ ks /
Box /bɔks/
Exercise /'eksəsaiz/
In stressed syllable following with vowel 
/ gz /
Exam /ig'zæm/
Exhaust /ig'zɔ:st/
Exist /ig'zist/
Exact /ig'zækt/
xc
/ ks /
Excellent /'eksələnt/
Except /ik'sept/
y
At the beginning of word
/ j /
Yellow /'jelou/
Yes /jes/
z
/ z /
Zoo /zu:/
Citizen /'sitizn/
* From above rules, it is easy for us to teach students how s/ es and ed are pronounced.
1. The way of pronouncing -s/- es ending:
There are 3 ways to pronounce –s/ -es: /s/, /z/, /iz/.
- /iz/: when -s/-es after phonemes: /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /tʃ/, /dʒ/.
E.g: watches, boxes, bridges, buses, crashes, buzzes,
- /s/: when -s/-es after phonemes: /p/, /f/, /t/, /k/, /ө/.
E.g: cups, cats, books, beliefs, cloths,
- /z/: when -s/-es after phonemes: /b/, /v/, /ð/, /d/, /g/, /l/, /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /r/, /u/,
E.g: toys, answers, lessons, legs, trees, knives, ends, dreams, hills, songs,
2. The way of pronouncing -ed ending:
There are 3 ways to pronounce –ed: /t/, /id/, /d/.
- /id/: when -ed after phonemes: /t/, /d/.
_________________________________
In this page: 
- The contents in the chart, I consult from An English encyclopaedia for students, by the publisher of the Ha Noi Culture – Information, 2001. The phonemic transcriptions are copied from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th Edition, Cambridge University Press by me. I myself give some examples.
- I myself write the way of pronouncing -s/- es ending and the way of pronouncing -ed ending:
Eg: - wanted /ˈwɑːntɪd/ 
- Added /ædɪd/ 
- /t/: when -ed after phonemes: /s/, /f/, /p/, /ʃ/, /tʃ/, /k/ 
Eg:
- Hoped /hoʊpt/ 
- Coughed : /kɔːft/  
- Fixed : /fɪkst/  
- Washed : /wɔːʃt/  
- Catched : /kætʃt/  
- Asked : /æskt/  
- /d/: when -ed after phonemes: the rest 
- Cried : /kraɪd/  
- Smiled : /smaɪld/  
- Played : /pleɪd/ 
Note: some special adjectives
Eg: naked /'neikid/, wicked /'wikid/.
E. Some examples in tests, exams.
Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions.
Question 1: A. eleven 	B. elephant 	C. examine 	D. exact
Question 2: A. work 	B. form 	C. stork 	D. force 
(University Entrance Examination by Ministry of Education and Training, in 2013)
Key
1. A. /i'levn/	B. /'elifənt/	C. /ig'zæmin/ 	D. /ig'zækt/
2. A. /wə:k/	B. /fɔ:m/	C. /stɔ:k/	D. /fɔ:s/
Question 3: A. deal 	B. teach 	C. break 	D. clean
Question 4: A. supported B. approached 	C. noticed 	D. finished
(University Entrance Examination by Ministry of Education and Training, in 2014)
Key
3. A. /di:l/	B. ti:t∫	C. /breik/	D. /kli:n/
4. A. /sə'pɔ:tid/	B. /ə'prout∫t/	C. 'noutist/	D. /'fini∫t/
_________________________________
In this page: - I myself give some examples.
- I myself write the way of pronouncing -s/- es ending and the way of pronouncing -ed ending:
- I consult the questions from University Entrance Examination by Ministry of Education and Training, in 2013, 2014.
Question 5: A. laughs 	B. drops 	C. maintains 	D. imports
Question 6: A. justice 	B. campus 	C. culture 	D. brush
(University Entrance Examination by Ministry of Education and Training, in 2015)
Key
5. A. /lɑ:fs/	B. /drɔps/	C. /mein'teinz/	D. /'impɔ:ts/
6. A. /'dʒʌstis/	B./'kæmpəs/	C. /'kʌlt∫ə/	D. /brʌ∫/
Question 7: A. lose
 B. chose
 C. close
 D. rose
(Examination for gifted students in Thanh Hoa province, 2012 – 2013)
Key
7. A. /lu:z/ 	B. /tʃəʊz/	C. /klous/	D. /rəʊz/
Question 8: A. suggestion B. devotion 	C. congestion	D. digestion
(Examination for gifted students in Thanh Hoa province, 2013 – 2014)
Key
8. /sə'dʒest∫ən/	B. /di'vou∫n/	C. /kən'dʒest∫n/	D. /di'dʒest∫n/
Question 9: A. famous	B. nervous	C. favourite	D. mountain
Question 10: A. through	B. enough	C. rough	D. tough
(Examination for gifted students in Thanh Hoa province, 2015 – 2016)
Key
9. A. /'feiməs/	B. /'nə:vəs/ 	C. /'feivərit/	D. /'mauntən/
10. A. /θru:/	B. /i'nʌf/	C. /rʌf/	D. /tʌf/
F. Exercises: 
Find the word whose underlined part is pronounced differently from the others of the same group.
1.
A. candy
B. sandy 
C. many
D. handy
2.
A. earning
B. learning
C. searching
D. clearing
3. 
A. pays
B. stays
C. says
D. plays
4. 
A. given
B. risen
C. ridden
D. whiten
5. 
A. cough
B. tough
C. rough
D. enough
6.
A. accident
B. jazz
C. stamp
D. watch
7. 
A. this
B. thick
C. maths
D. thin
8.
A. gas
B. gain
C. germ
D. good
_________________________________
In this page: - I myself give some examples.
- I myself write the way of pronouncing -s/- es ending and the way of pronouncing -ed ending:
- I consult the questions from University Entrance Examination by Ministry of Education and Training, in 2013, 2015; from Examination for gifted students in Thanh Hoa province, 2012 – 2013, 2015 – 2016.
9.
A. bought
B. naught
C. plough
D. thought
10.
A. spear
B. gear
C. fear
D. pear
11.
A. forks
B. tables
C. beds
D. windows
12.
A. handed
B. booked
C. translated
D. visited
13.
A. car
B. coach
C. century
D. cooperate
14.
A. within
B. without
C. clothing
D. strengthen
15.
A. has
B. bag
C. dad
D. made
16.
A. drunkard
B. postcard
C. remark
D. discard
17.
A. kites
B. catches
C. oranges
D. buzzes
18.
A. student
B. stupid
C. study
D. studio
19.
A. wealth
B. cloth
C. with
D. marathon
20.
A. brilliant
B. trip
C. tripe
D. tip
21.
A. flouride
B. hidden
C. arid
D. lid
22.
A. surgeon
B. agent
C. engine
D. regard
23.
A. feather
B. leather
C. feature
D. measure
24.
A. geology
B. psychology
C. classify
D. photography
25.
A. idiom
B. ideal
C. item
D. identical
26.
A. children
B. child
C. mild
D. wild
27.
A. both
B. myth
C. with
D. sixth
28.
A. helped
B. booked
C. hoped
D. waited
29.
A. name
B. natural
C. native
D. nation
30.
A. blood
B. food
C. moon
D. pool
31.
A. deaf
B. of
C. leaf
D. wife
32.
A. comb
B. plumb
C. climb
D. disturb
33.
A. thick
B. though
C. thank
D. think
34.
A. flour
B. hour
C. pour
D. sour
35.
A. dictation
B. repetition
C. station
D. question
36.
A. dew
B. knew
C. sew
D. few
37.
A. asked
B. helped
C. kissed
D. played
38.
A. smells
B. cuts
C. opens
D. plays
39.
A. chooses
B. pauses
C. rises
D. horses
40.
A. decided
B. hatred
C. sacred
D. warned
41.
A. head
B. break
C. bread
D. breath
_________________________________
In this page: - I myself give some exercises.
42.
A. blood
B. tool
C. moon
D. spool
43.
A. height
B. fine
C. tidy
D. cliff
44.
A. through
B. them
C. threaten
D. thunder
45.
A. fought
B. country
C. bought
D. ought
46.
A. moon
B. pool
C. door
D. cool
47.
A. any
B. apple
C. hat
D. cat
48.
A. height
B. like
C. buy
D. hair
49.
A. book
B. blood
C. look
D. foot
50.
A. pan
B. woman
C. sad
D. man
Key
1. C
2. D
3. C
4. D
5. A
6. D
7. A
8. C
9. C
10. D
11. A
12. B
13. C
14. D
15. D
16. A
17. A
18. C
19. C
20. C
21. A
22. D
23. C
24. C
25. A
26. A
27. C
28. D
29. B
30. A
31. B
32. D
33. B
34. B
35. D
36. C
37 D.
38. B
39. D
40. D
41. B
42. A
43. D
44. B
45. B
46. C
47. A
48. D
49. B
50. B
	PART III: CONCLUSION
I. Study results:
	After I provided the students some rules of phonemic transcription of English language, they have known the way how to resolve “pronunciation part”. 
	Below are the results of the study before and after being applied to teach some rules of phonemic transcription of English language in the classes 10C and 10D at Mai Anh Tuan High School in the school-year 2016-2017. 
+ Before applying
Lớp
Number of students
Number of students give incorrect answers
Number of students give correct answers
Total
%
Total
%
10 C
45
32
71
13
29
10 D
44
34
 77
10
23
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In this page: - I consult some exercises from the website violet.vn; The keys are mine.
- I myself write the Part III – Conclusion.
	+ After applying
Lớp
Number of students
Number of students give incorrect answers
Number of students give correct answers
Total
%
Total
%
10 C
45
8
18
37
82
10 D
44
11
25
33
75
The results mentioned above have indicated that a number of students who have had more correct answers to PRONUN