An Analysis Of English Intonation Features Of Chinese Junior High School English Teachers

English intonation is an indispensable factor with which people conceive and convey meaning in discourses,enabling communication to be carried out.As China moves forward its English education reform,which attaches greater importance to candidates' ability to use language in real-life scenarios,the significance of teaching English intonation is remarkably elevated.Teachers,accordingly,should be valued for their leading role in that mission.This study is conducted against the aforementioned background and intends to discuss the intonation characteristics of Chinese junior high school English teachers.The findings are expected to serve as suggestions for teachers to better their oral English teaching.This study is theoretically based on the framework laid out by Wells'(2006)3T theory —— tonality,tonicity,tone.It not only tests the theoretical intonation knowledge of Chinese junior high school English teachers,but also compares their intonation in reading with that of native speakers from the United Kingdom from the perspective of intonational functions.Paper quiz as well as recordings were used during the experiment,which used the software of Praat for the data analysis.By comparing local teachers' reading with that of the native speakers,this study intends to explore the following two questions: 1)What is the current situation concerning the intonation knowledge of Chinese junior high school English teachers? 2)What are the differences between these teachers and native speakers in tonality,tonicity,tone and intonation function usage when they read the same passages?A sample of 23 English teachers from Qingpu District in Shanghai has been collected,and the experiment in this study analyzes their tonality,tonicity,tone and intonation function usage,with discussions on possible causes for these traits.Finally,in light of the differences with the native speakers,this study provides relevant advice for their intonation capabilities and pedagogical competence,hoping to guide their intonation training in the future.