Phonological Analysis of English Language on Selected Undergraduate Students

Abstract

The English language has been marked as an embodiment of
inconsistencies and this is obvious that special attention needs to be
given to it. The need is especially itching when one considers that by
virtue of it being a prestigious and an international language, students,
specifically, English language students, encounter many problems now
and then; and despite the fact that pronunciation is taught in courses like
Spoken English, Phonetics and Phonology, there are still flaws in
students' pronunciation as they battle with confusion caused by such
inconsistencies. As a result, this study anchored on the factors that
hinder students' competence in oral pronunciation. Specifically, it
studied the impact of inconsistency of English sound-spelling system
on students learning English as their second language in the Department
of English Language and Literature, UNIZIK, Awka. However, its
relevance will bring to bear some unnoticed phonological treasures
embedded in the English language which in turn, helps in speaking the
language without a foreign accent. In order to achieve the set purposes,
the data were collected through the transcription of English words which were administered to forty (40) students from the mentioned
institution through random sample method and were analysed within
the scope of Error Analysis Theory which was propounded by Stephen
Pit Corder and his colleagues in the late of 1970s. It was revealed that
the inconsistency of sound-spelling system militate against students'
proficiency in oral English communication.