Examining Effects Of Onset Age And Classroom Learning Time On English Pronunciation Skills Of Chinese Students

Many researchers at home and abroad have become more and more interested in effects of onset age and classroom learning time on English pronunciation of second language learners. In China, English teaching with three classes per week has been introduced in primary schools in urban and rural areas in recent years, but there is no clear evidence to support the position"the earlier the better", especially in urban areas. Therefore, the present study aims to explore effects of onset age on English pronunciation skills for Chinese English foreign language learners with two types of classroom learning time in a formal setting in Chongqing urban areas.This current study included 100 subjects selected mainly by questionnaires and interview. The subjects were divided into four groups (N=25 in each group) according to their onset age (primary Grade 3 and junior Grade 1) and classroom learning time (570 hours and 930 hours). A reading aloud task on English pronunciation skills including vowels and consonants, elision and assimilation, liaison, pause and rhythm, intonation, word stress and word stress in sentences based on lexical class was administrated to the subjects. Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) of SPSS 16.0 was performed and the results showed that onset age effect on English pronunciation skills was not found, while classroom learning time effect was found, moreover, there exists an interaction between effects of onset age and classroom learning time. Independent samples t- test was employed to investigate classroom learning time effect for the groups with same onset age and age effect for the groups with same classroom learning time. The results showed that onset age effect was not found among the learners no matter with learning time of 570 or 930 hours, whereas classroom learning time effect was found among the early learners, and the early learners with longer learning time (930 hours) performed better than the early learners with shorter learning time (570 hours). For the late learners who started to learn English in junior Grade 1, classroom learning time effect was only found in learning single word stress, vowels and consonants, and the late learners with longer learning time (930 hours) performed better than the late learners with shorter learning time (570 hours) in learning single word stress, vowels and consonants.To sum up, onset age effect on English pronunciation skills was not found for Chinese foreign language learners in Chongqing urban areas no matter their classroom learning time was 570 hours or 930 hours. However, classroom learning time effect was found for the early learners, but not found for late learners with the exception of learning single word stress, vowels and consonants. Moreover, there existed an interaction effect of onset age and classroom learning time on English pronunciation skills. Age effect was not found might be the result that classroom learning time effect surpassed it in cities. No difference was found among late learners in learning elision and assimilation, liaison, pause and rhythm, intonation, word stress in sentences based on lexical class might due to first language transfer and attention to pronunciation an so on.