Analyzing Difficulties in Aural Word Recognition for Japanese English Learners: Identifying Function Words in Connected Speech

Abstract

This paper reports on a study that examined Japanese listeners’ difficulties in recognizing English function words in connected speech. Japanese first and second year university EFL students listened to short sentences of four to six words containing function words in connected speech and again in un-connected speech (citation form). Students transcribed the sentences and their errors were analyzed. Finding included, 1) students had considerably more difficulty transcribing connected speech than unconnected speech. 2) Function word pronouns beginning with the phoneme /h/ appear to be more difficult to perceive in connected speech. 3) Inadequate knowledge of how function words are modified in connected speech, little attention to sentence syntax, as well as a lack of phonological word knowledge are suggested as possible causes of difficulties in aural word recognition.