Phonetics Syllabus
First year course, one semester, 2 hours a week, lecture + tutorial
Mrs. Mona Schreiber, email: monas@macam.ac.il or: 03-532-3576
Course objectives:
The student will be able to describe the English sound system.
The student will use the phonetic alphabet as a tool to improve pronunciation.
Topics of Study:
Unit 1 weeks 1-2
Unit 2
Unit 3
Unit 4
Unit 5
Unit 6
Unit 7
Unit 8
The Phonetic Alphabet: why it is necessary,
table of phonetic symbols and phonetic transcription.
weeks 3-4
Vowel Classification: the 12 basic vowel sounds,
diphthongs, place of articulation and vowel discrimination
weeks 5-6
Syllable Recognition: recognizing number of syllables,
identifying stressed and unstressed syllables.
weeks 7-8 Syllable Reduction: the schwa, primary word
stress, shifting stress, the schwa in connected speech
week 9
Sentence Stress: function and content words,
thought groups and phrasing, sentence expansion.
week 10
Common Intonation Patterns: rising, rising-falling,
open choice questions, tags, and lists.
weeks 11-13 Consonant Classification: voiced and voiceless
sounds, inflectional endings (-ed, -s) initial and final
consonant features- aspiration, vowel lengthening,
flap -t, syllabic consonants, substitutions.
week 14
Front, Central and Back Vowels: Review.
Teaching Methods: Frontal lessons
Group work
Student Requirements: Weekly exercises in phonetic transcription
Homework exercises
Class participation
Assessment: 2 quizzes on the material (20%)
Homework exercises (10%)
Class participation (10%)
Final exam (60%)
Bibliography:
Gilbert, Judy. Clear Speech. United States: Cambridge University Press 1984
Hagen, Stacy and Grogan, P. Sound Advantage. New Jersey: Regents/Prentice Hall.
1992
Prator, Clifford and Robinett, B.W. Manual of American English Pronunciation: 3rd
Edition. New York: Holt, Rhinehart and Winston, Inc. 1972.