Teaching English Pronunciation to Spanish Speakers - Research Paper Example

It is noteworthy in this context that the pronunciation of consonants has been hugely different among the communities who speak English. The variances observed in the use and the pronunciation of each syllable in English becomes more apparent when depending on the use of the phonemes as well as the dialect. In English speaking, the pronunciation of vowels also differs from the pronunciation of the consonants depending on their uses. Change in the pronunciation, when speaking English, is observed to be a major characteristic of the language.

On a wider note, English pronunciation is not always predictable depending on the spellings, which also vary from one region and culture to the other, as in the case of British English and American English. Depending on the use of rhythm and syllables differently, the pronunciation changes, making it difficult for the learners to grasp each word separately. However, the uses of vowels are quite different from the use of consonants. Pronunciation of consonants usually changes with the change in its positioning.

Spanish speakers have been observed to be quiet similar to English speakers. However, the Spanish languages have been observed to be a bit different from the English speakers with respect to the use of vowels and consonants. It is owing to these variations that the meaning of each word changes with the change in its pronunciationThe English language constitutes 20 consonants. All the alphabets, other than the vowels A, E, I, O, U are consonants. However, the letter Y is often considered to be a vowel.

The rules regarding the use of Y specify that when any word starts with the letter, such as Yak, Yacht, or Yogurt, it is considered to be a consonant. Similarly, when a word ends with Y, the letter is classified as a vowel, such as in the case of Apology, Apostasy, Ancestry, and Ideology among others. Mostly, all the words in any English alphabet begin with a consonant when being pronounced.