The Pedagogical Effect of Teacher and Student- Centered of Corrective Feedback Moves on Pronunciation Intelligibility

Abstract

This study is an attempt at investigating the pedagogical effect of student-fronted and teacher-fronted Corrective Feedback (CF) on improving pronunciation intelligibility in a Sri Lankan context. The study identified the confusion between the / o / and / ɔ / contrast, the insertion of / I / before word onset consonant clusters commencing with / s /, and the substitution of / s / for / z / to be the most frequent phonological errors that affect intelligibility of learners of English as a Second Language in Sri Lanka.The study employed a sample of fortyfive ESL learners to form six experimental groups (3 teachercentered CF and 3 studentcentered CF groups) and three control groups. The research participants received instruction and the experimental groups were given CF on the three identified sound contrasts. Pre, post and delayed -post tests were used to measure improvement before and after Form Focused Instruction (FFI). The findings brought to light that the effect of instruction coupled with teacher-fronted CF is restricted to immediate uptake of a target phonological feature as no improvement was noticed in free speech production with the lapse of time. Overall, results confirmed that the effect of FFI coupled with student-fronted CF extends to sustained learning and improvement in pronunciation intelligibility. The evidence derived from this study suggests that despite the learner s age, pronunciation intelligibility could be improved provided L2 learners receive Form-Focused Instruction (FFI), sufficient opportunities to practice and Corrective Feedback (CF) that provides room for them to identify the gap between the target form and the hypothetical form.