| Oral proficiency is an important goal in second language learning not only for communication, but also for developing reading and writing skills. Use of cooperative learning (CL) strategies has been shown to successfully improve second language learning in many cases for its focus on individual accountability and positive interdependence (Kagan & McGroarty, 1993; Kagan, 1995).;This quasi-experiment, with a pre-post test two-treatment, formed by expanding across program design investigated (1) the effect of phonetic and phonological instruction on the oral proficiency, specifically, pronunciation skills of Spanish-speaking ESL students with and without cooperative learning structures, and (2) the impact of phonetic and phonological instruction, implemented with and without cooperative learning structures, on subjects' articulation of individual target phonemes. Instructional materials incorporated articulatory phonetics, including voicing, place and manner of articulation presented in a variety of formats, engaging participants in individual and group activities. Findings showed that the oral proficiency of ESL students in both groups improved with statistical significance after phonetic/phonological instruction.;However, the difference in improvement between the Cooperative Learning Group and the Conventional Group was not statistically significant to claim that the cooperative learning structure, in this study, was a major differential factor. Pedagogical implications for the classroom were discussed based on the findings. Recommendations were made for future qualitative research on implementation of phonetic/phonological instruction in a cooperative learning setting, focusing on influential factors such as age, duration of instruction, instructional techniques, environment, cross-cultural differences, and teacher preparation. |
