What is phonology? Why do we need to study it? These are
just some of the questions students of Linguistics usually ask. As teachers, we
may also have these questions in mind. We may also wonder the essence of having
such knowledge in relation to teaching.
Phonology is basically the study of sound system of a
language. What’s the importance of this to people’s lives? Since phonology is the
study of the “sound system” of a language, this would probably mean that it
could be the basis of the written and spoken language. Therefore, without the
system, a language would simply seem like a group of utterances/sounds which
other living creatures produce. By having a “sound system”, language is easier
to study. In addition, it can also give some patterns in developing the skill
in other aspects of language such as reading or writing. On top of that, it
will be easier for anybody to learn a language if there is a “system”. Learning
phonology can somehow enable somebody to be articulate in figuring out meanings
of words in several languages.
According to a study “Cross-Language Transfer of
Phonological Awareness: Implications for the Teaching of English in Puerto
Rico” by Cristina Lozano, it can be concluded that Spanish phonological
awareness seemed to be a predictor of success among Spanish as a first language
beginning readers in word recognition tasks in Spanish. From this, we can infer
that knowledge of phonology is very essential in language learning.
As English teachers, we can conclude that knowledge of
Phonology will enable us to perform our role better in teaching pronunciation,
stress, and intonation. This will lead to a successful teaching – learning
process that will result in students being able to speak internationally
intelligible English. Most importantly, the end result is to produce
individuals who can communicate effectively in English in various situations.
(This article was published as a sort of try out. This is actually a short work I submitted in one of my Grad school subjects.)
(This article was published as a sort of try out. This is actually a short work I submitted in one of my Grad school subjects.)