English Studies for Language Teaching
Introduction
The study of the English language is one of the most tedious and complicated task one will ever do. It involves not only the basic knowledge of learning and knowing the meaning of words, arranging them into an orderly sentence, phrase, or paragraph, and communicating, but it more importantly involves proper pronunciation and grammar. In today’s generation, the English language is regarded as the global language, which is used by different peoples around the world, belonging to different fields and expertise. Along with the development and use of the English language is the development of science and technology, which has been depended upon by many individuals. Thus, in this sense, knowing and learning the English language has become the core of the overall major development of different societies around the globe. More importantly, learning the English language also involves effective and appropriate teaching that would benefit all the students. With this, this paper aims to discuss and analyze key concepts and issues related to three different major areas in the study of the English language, which includes Phonetics and Phonology, Psycholinguistics and Second Language Acquisition, and Literature and Language Arts. After the discussion of related concepts and issues from each three major areas, a number of practical and relevant examples in the teaching and learning of English will also be provided and discussed.
Part A – Concepts and Issues
Phonetics and Phonology
Both the concepts of phonetics and phonology are separate studies under the development of the English language, where phonetics deals with the production of sounds involved in human speech without knowledge of the language being spoken, while phonology deals with the patterns of sounds in human speech, either within a specific language or in different languages ( 2007). Thus, both of these studies involve the proper use of consonants and vowels in the English language. In relation to these studies are two of the most important concepts related to the study of phonetics and phonology, namely, stress and intonation, as they provide the proper pronunciation of words, being the basis of its use in forming sentences, phrases or paragraphs.
Stress or also known as accent is the emphasis or the weight given to certain syllables in words, and is referred to as the rhythm of the language. It has been stated that in pronunciation, stress refers to the word, part of a word, or a single word in a group of words, which receives the most emphasis, and this emphasis or weight is the result of loudness, pitch, length of the syllable, or a combination of the three variables. In learning English as a second language, stress is often a difficult concept, as its complexity is directly related to the variability of pronunciation in the English language. However, stress can be regarded as either fixed-word or fixed-phrase stress patterns, depending on a particular language. The use of stress refers to placing emphasis on particular syllables in specific words, or placing emphasis on a particular word in itself, thus, it is possibly and highly influenced by the length of word, standards of pronunciation, formality of the speaking situation, and dialects ( 1998).
The stress or emphasis in particular syllables in a word depends upon its level or degree, being primary and secondary, as commonly believed in the study of the English language. The primary stress is the stronger emphasis placed on a syllable, while the secondary stress is the weaker degree placed upon a syllable in the pronunciation of a word. The application of the degree or levels of stress depends is important in three types of words, namely, long words that have any number of syllables prior to the primary stress, a number of homographs, and compound words (2006). In a word, the primary stress is indicated with a raised vertical line at the beginning of the stressed variable, while the secondary stress is indicated with a lowered vertical line at the beginning of the variable (1997). The primary stress is exhibited in the word apple [‘apple], and the secondary stress is exhibited in the word yellow [‘yellow] ( 1998). The level of stress in a word also depends on its placement or patterns, which refers to either a word stress or a phrasal stress. In a word stress or lexical stress, the stress pattern falls usually on the same syllable of a given word, while in an English word with three or more syllables, the word stress relies on the level of stress, whether primary or secondary. In terms of phrasal stress, the first element of a compound is stressed, instead of the final element, and this is being observed in terms of having two words in a single compound ( 2007). Stress in monosyllabic words is easier to understand compared to polysyllabic words, as the level and pattern of stress varies. The English language is said to be a free-stress language or having movable stress, as being a feature of the individual word. The stress of every word relates to its origin, word class, and presence of suffixes ( 2005).
In studying the stress in words, it would be relevant to take note of the differences between the English and the Chinese language, particularly in speaking the Cantonese language. In comparison, there are 24 consonants and 5 vowels in the English language, and 19 consonants and 8 vowels in Cantonese. There are six plosive or distinctive stops in both the English and Cantonese language; however, in Cantonese, there are no voiced plosives, such that all stops or plosives are voiceless, compared to the English language wherein /p, t, k/ and voiceless and /b, d, g/ are voiced (2000; 2000). In terms of vowels, The English language has two close front vowels, two close back vowels, and two open back vowels, while the Cantonese language has only one close front vowel, one close back vowel, and one open back vowel (2000). Because of the difference in the characteristics of the consonants and vowels of both languages, the stresses of words also differ, thus, emphasizing the differences in learning English as a second language. In addition to such differences is the fact that English has stress-timed rhythm, implying that stressed syllables tend to occur at relatively regular intervals whether separated by unstressed syllables or not. On the other hand, Cantonese has a syllable-timed rhythm, where all syllables, stressed or not tend to occur at regular intervals, and the time between stressed syllables vary in proportion to the number of stressed syllables (2000). Thus, these differences can be regarded as an important factor to take note, especially in learning English as a second language, for it would be hard to shift the stress of words from one language to another.
Another relevant concept in the study of phonetics and phonology is the study of intonation, which refers to the use of the pitch of the voice to convey meaning ( 2000). In description, intonation refers to the musical features of speech or as the melody of speech, thus, it helps to express the attitude of the speaker and contributes to the actual meaning of a specific utterance, being important in semantic functions ( 2007). Moreover, intonation is important in expressing our attitude, in structuring our messages in communicating with others, and in focusing attention on particular parts of what we are conveying (2006). It has been reported that intonation in the English language is organized in units, which was referred to by Halliday as tone groups. A tone group is defined as one unit of information, one block in the message that the speaker is communicating, and can be of any length. In addition, in understanding a tone group, it is said that the particular meaning that a speaker wishes to convey many make it necessary to split a single clause into two or more tone groups, or to combine two or more clauses into one tone group ( 2007). Thus, to be able to convey a message through tone groups, it must be arranged in patterns that are distributed throughout speech, and is termed tonality. With tonality, the speaker divides the stream of spoken words into groups, which reveals to the listener how to mentally organize the information. It follows a predictable course, with tone groups corresponding to grammatical clauses (2007). In essence and simple terms, tonality refers to the pattern of arrangement of different tone groups that form a clause or phrase, and are combined to convey the message of the speaker to the listener.
Another important element of intonation in the English language is tonicity, which is defined as the placement of tonic prominence. A tonic prominence, or also called the tonic syllable is a place of prominence that the speaker seeks to carry the most pronounced pitch change and seeks to mark as most important. The tonic syllable carries the burden of “new information” in the clause and its normative place is on the last word in the clause (2007). In addition, tonicity emphasizes the concept of a tonic stress, the nucleus, or the intonation unit that has one peak of stress, and is received by the tonic syllable. Tonic stress and tonicity is often used in stresses such as referring, proclaiming, and reporting utterances ( 2001).
To be able to convey information and message, tone groups are being used. Both tonality and tonicity are being used in order to convey messages, as tonality refers to the arrangement of tone units or groups themselves, while tonicity refers to the content of the tonic group. In this sense, both tonicity and tonality is being dependent upon tone or pitch contours, in order to specify the personality and emotion of the speaker. It has been stressed out that tone interacts with tonality or the distribution of tone groups, and tonicity or the placement of tonic prominence in order to create meaning in English intonation. Halliday identified five basic tones, namely, falling, high rising or falling-rising (pointed), low rising, falling-rising (rounded), and rising-falling (rounded) (2007). In this sense, it can be understood that tone is the use of pitch in language to distinguish words, to express emphasis, contrast, and emotions ( 2007). Thus, it serves to be the choice of the utterance of the speaker, taking into consideration if the utterance is new or common ground with the listener.
In terms of differences, the Chinese language is a tone language, where every morpheme-word unit in its citation form has a lexical tonal pattern. The tones are distinctive, such that a change in tone results in a change in lexical meaning. On the other hand, English is an intonation language, wherein a change in tone will not result in a change of lexical meaning but may show a difference in attitude ( 2000). Thus, these three aspects in intonation interact effectively and appropriately to be able to convey messages and information, in the desire to communicate. In understanding the communicative value of intonation, the Discourse intonation (DI) theory must be understood, as it supposes intonation to play a crucial part in the pursuit of communicative purpose with regard to communicative value. In this regard, selection of intonation by both the speaker and the listener is given focus, by considering their common ground, such as their shared awareness, extended to a wider context of the mutual understanding of their society. In essence, the communicative value of intonation depends upon the interaction of tonicity, tonality and tone, as the speaker chooses the order of words, emphasis and pitch in showing special significance in a particular intonation in preference to another, keeping the listener in mind (2006). With this, both stress and intonation as features of spoken language, and consonants and vowels as language sounds are linked together in the aim of humans to express their speech, feelings, and emotions through the use of language. Both the features and sounds are incorporated in human speech, as they represent even the simplest emotion or feelings deemed to be expressed by humans. Thus, the combination of sounds and features of speech forms words, phrases, and sentences that enable individuals to communicate. The use of such words is in turn, based on stresses and intonations, which enable humans to distinguish a particular word, feeling, or emotion from one another. These aspects are important to take note, most especially in teaching the English language, for the mentors or teachers must be particularly aware of the use of stresses and intonations in words, phrases and sentences, which would become the basis of learning of students. In this sense, the effective and appropriate learning of the English language depends on the extent of the knowledge of its teachers.
Psycholinguistics and Second Language Acquisition
This larger concept in the English language emphasizes two specific and important ideas in the history of language development – Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and Krashen’s affective filter hypothesis. Vygotsky’s social constructivist theory suggests that cognitive skills and patterns of thinking are not only determined by innate factors, but are products of practiced activities in social institutions of the culture from which the individual developed and grew ( 2004). In essence, Vygotsky’s theory emphasizes that the society plays a vital role in shaping our individual history, thus, crucial in the molding and shaping of our thoughts. In the developing the minds and thoughts of individuals, language is the most important tool, as different information and knowledge are passed on to individuals through words. In his theory, he also stressed the idea of “zone of proximal development”, which refers to the difference between an individual’s capacity to solve problems on his own and one’s capacity to solve problems with assistance ( 2004). This idea supports the fact that an individual, particularly a child can perform activities with the help of someone else, and this person may take the role of a parent, teacher, instructor or peer who has been able to master that particular activity or function (2004). In this regard, it can be understood that learning is social in nature, as an individual is able to acquire knowledge, develop thoughts, and exhibit skills with the guidance of another individual or groups of individuals surrounding him or her, using a developed language. This can be also deemed similar to the acquisition of a second language, as an individual learns and adapts to the use of a specific language, particularly to the English language depending on the support, knowledge, and encouragement of an individual’s mentors. In relation to this is Krashen’s affective filter hypothesis, which states that in the process of second language acquisition, the individual’s attitude and perception plays a crucial role, as the person’s ability to acquire a second language depends on his or her opinions, positive or negative experiences, self-esteem, and motivation. In this hypothesis, personal negative perceptions, including anxiety, low self-esteem, and low motivation triggers the ‘filter’, thus, serving to block and prevent acquisition of the second language ( 2005).
A particular similarity can be perceived from the theory of Vygotsky and the hypothesis of Krashen, and this similarity features the significant involvement, role, and participation of the society in the acquisition of a second language of an individual. Both ideas emphasized the significant participation of the society and the members of society in the acquisition of a second language, as an individual would not be able to gain knowledge and information regarding the English language without the guidance and influence of the members of society, including family members, school members, and peers. The similarity of both ideas is that they stressed out the significance of having a supportive environment, which helps individuals to easily acquire knowledge on a second language, such as the English language.
However, despite such a similarity, the theory of Vygotsky and the hypothesis of Krashen have a slight difference. It is true that both ideas emphasize the role of the society in second language acquisition, and including acquisition of norms, practices and beliefs being developed in a specific society or community. The hypothesis of Krashen points out that a positive outlook and attitude of an individual enables one to become more receptive in acquiring a second language, thus, completely disregarding the presence of a ‘filter’ that impedes second language acquisition. The difference with Vygotsky’s theory is that he did not specify any attitude or outlook on the part of the individual, which are essential in becoming receptive to second language learning, as Krashen did. In this sense, Vygotsky placed a bigger responsibility in the role of the society as a whole in the acquisition of a second language. On the contrary, Krashen placed a much bigger responsibility on the part of the individual, being more receptive in acquiring a second language.
With these ideas in mind, it would be easier to acquire understanding on the relationship of the development and acquisition of a second language, and the development of an individual as an independent unit in the society or community. The development of an individual is dependent upon the development of the entire society, and thus, considered crucial in the acquisition of a second language. This individual and societal development is also related to the development and improvement of speech and language, which becomes bases for the application and use of stress and intonation in a language. This somehow emphasizes the fact that the differences in speaking the English and the Cantonese language are more cultural than linguistic ( 1991), as children acquire the tone and the meaning of speaking the Cantonese language through their environment. From this, the link between second language acquisition and phonetics and phonology can be observed, as the development and proper use of phonetics and phonology becomes the application of an effective second language acquisition that is dependent upon the shaping and molding of the society. As emphasized, the acquisition of the English language of students depends upon the knowledge and expertise of mentors or teachers, who also obtain their knowledge from the society, thus, simultaneously and continuously being shaped in order to effectively acquire the second language.
Literature and Language Arts
Literature and language arts have been a part of the development and improvement of the English language and other languages. The use of literature and language arts does not only indicate the success and richness of that particular language, but it also indicates the artistic capabilities and skills of individuals who have been responsible in its development and creativity. More often than not, when literature and language arts are mentioned, the most common ideas that most probably come to mind would include short stories, novels, poetry, prose, and other expressive literary artworks. Relevantly, these forms of literary works become the larger basis for the learning of students and teachers as well, not only confined in the four corners of the classroom, but in the larger picture of the society.
In literature and language arts, the terms protagonist, antagonist or foil, hero, and anti-hero are often mentioned and given emphasis. The term protagonist refers to the main figure of a piece of literature or drama, exhibiting the main role. The protagonist of the story can be the hero or even the antagonist, foil or anti-hero, where the term being referred to as the leading role in the literature. In literature and language arts, the protagonist or the hero is characterized as having the ability to change or evolve within the plot of the story. However, the protagonist of the story may not necessarily always be the hero, as the protagonist can also be the anti-hero of the literature. The whole literature would not be complete without the foil, the antagonist, or the anti-hero of the story, as the antagonist or anti-hero represents the obstacles or challenges that the protagonist must go through ( 2007). The creativity of the story involving the protagonist and antagonist depends upon the plot of the story and the ability of the characters to evolve, given the different situation unfolded in the literature. Each of these characters is featured in different forms of literature and language arts, and is given significance in the story depending on the type of genre. Both the protagonist and the antagonist of the story are presented in different genres in language arts, including fables and parables, epic and mock-epics, and comedy and black comedy. The evolution and change of the both types of characters thus depends on the plot of the story. Specifically, a parable is a short story, in prose or verse that may use comparison or analogy, which illustrates or teach truth, moral or religious lessons and principles. It differs from a fable, in which animals, plants, inanimate objects and forces of nature act as protagonists and antagonists in the story, as they assume speech and other powers exhibited by humans (2007). In comparison, an epic is a long, narrative poem, focusing on a serious subject, and centered on a heroic figure, while the mock epic is the satirical version of the epic, aiming to make the heroic figure in the epic look ridiculous by the incongruity. The heroic figure in both the epic and mock epic represents national, cultural and religious ideals, from where the fate of his or her people depends upon ( 2005). In both types of literature, the protagonist and the antagonist can be distinctly recognized, thus, evidently emphasizing their significance in the story and in the expression of the message of the whole literature. Other common forms of literature being used in the expression of language include the comedy and the black comedy. In a comedy, humor is being used to rouse laughter of the audience in general, while in the black comedy, serious subjects, such as death, murder, suicide, illness, terror, and crimes are treated in comedic or satirical ways to give it a lighter view (2007). In this form of literature, both the protagonist and the antagonist are also present, thus, making the plot of the story more exciting and interesting, as it is conceived to create misunderstandings or conflicts regarding the hero’s or anti-hero’s identity or social being (2007). Likewise, in the black comedy, serious and taboo subject matters are given emphasis and significance, thus, creating a conflict in both in the protagonist and antagonist of the story, and enable them to evolve.
These elements in literature and language arts are important to take note and are related and significant in learning the English language because they become the effective and useful mediums in expressing ideas, lessons, and other messages other individuals would like to share to the society. In this regard, the characters in different stories, particularly the protagonist and the antagonist reflect the real life situation of different individuals in the society. The use and the expression of literatures and the language arts is important in learning the English language because it serves to be a good teaching medium or method for audiences, readers and listeners, in their aim to understand words, expressions and use of English in practical situations. This also serves as tools for obtaining practical lessons and applications, which can be used in everyday life situations. (2002) points out that for vocabulary building purposes, texts, whether spoken or written, have enormous advantages over learning words, as words loosely connected by topic may be easier to learn than more tightly connected lexical texts. Through literatures and language arts, individuals would be able to build their sense of humor, analysis, and critical thinking, as these literatures and works of art mirror real life situations and instances, which can be used as bases for the real life crises and problems. In addition, through reading or producing literatures and language arts, individuals are able to build their creativity using the English language, in their aim to express realities in a creative and artful way. This links or relates to the other two major areas previously discussed, as they all focus in the development of the English language, through practical use and application in everyday instances. In this regard, literature and language arts become the medium for learning and gaining knowledge on the application of stress and intonation on certain words of the English language. Through literature and language arts, the use of stress and intonation can be practiced and further developed. In terms of psycholinguistics and second language acquisition, literatures and language arts are useful and relevant means of developing and teaching the English language, as its use helps an individual further understand the use of the language through specific stories and examples.
Part B – Practical Applications in Teaching and Learning English
Primarily, the concepts of the use of stress and intonation is related in learning and teaching the English language, most especially in terms of its use in the Chinese society, particularly in Hong Kong. As previously stated, stress and intonation is important in the English language or any other form of language, as these two aspects determine how the word, phrase or sentence is expressed in the desire to convey messages and meaning, from the speaker to the listener. In this regard, both stress and intonation are significant in teaching and learning the English language to effectively convey and express the meanings of messages and emotions. In addition, stress and intonation gives life to the expression of words, and indicates the purpose of the speaker in expressing his or her ideas to the listener. Without stress and intonation, speaking or saying of words during conversation would be boring and dull, thus, with stress and intonation, expressing ideas and emotions would be more personal and humane.
The relevance and importance of stress and intonation in teaching and learning the English language can be further understood in using a specific example, which differentiates the use of both the English and the Chinese language. Proper stress and intonation in the English language must be properly known by the Chinese, as the stress in the syllables, use of word, and word formation in Chinese is different in the English language. In both Chinese and English, many words are formed by adding affixes to roots that carry lexical meanings. A particular example of this is placing a phonetic prefix lao to nouns in the Chinese language in forming words such as lao hu (tiger), lao shi (teacher), and lao ye (grandfather). This is similar in the English language as placing suffixes on nouns, such as the prefix al in forming words such as conditional, functional and national ( 2003). In this sense, the difference in the formation of words between the Chinese and the English language emphasizes the difference in the application of stress and intonation in the words depending on its use. Thus, because the use of the words in Chinese is totally different in the use of words in English, the pronunciation, emphasizing on the stress and intonation of the words also differs. In addition, because the formation of the words in Chinese is different in the English language, the number of syllables also differs, such as the word lao ye, corresponding to the word grandfather in English. In this particular word, the number of syllables changed, including the combination of two words to form a single word with a particular meaning. In this sense, this particular example becomes practical in addressing in teaching and learning the English language because one must be able to understand and put into consideration the differences of the use of both languages in practical situations. With this, the difference in the pronunciation and use of words in both languages must be first recognized, so as not to confuse language usage. Error comes in the use of the English language when one combines one language with another. Moreover, the difference in the stress and intonation in speaking the Chinese or Cantonese language in Hong Kong gives rise to the debate, whether a type of English in Hong Kong exists. (2000) points out that the word or sense of the word must have some degree of currency and stability, either originating in the region concerned or be formally, semantically, or collocationally distinctive from usage elsewhere in the world. In the case of Hong Kong English, an additional problem arises that the items identified through the application of such criteria are not necessarily used, for certain words, such as Dim sum and short week are used in Hong Kong, but do not fit well with the description of Hong Kong English, as the language of Hong Kong English-speaking community as a whole ( 2000). With this, in teaching and learning the English language in Hong Kong or other Chinese societies, it would be best to always consult useful guides, such as dictionaries, English language books, and language professionals to ensure proper use of grammar and pronunciation, particularly of stress and intonation.
In the concepts of psycholinguistics and second language acquisition, teaching and learning of the English language becomes relevant and crucial as it emphasizes the significant role of an individual’s supportive environment, as in this case is the society or community of the individual from where he or she obtains knowledge and information from the world. In today’s generation, second language acquisition, particularly of learning and teaching the English language is not anymore confined in the four corners of the classrooms in academic institutions. The development and improvement of the different aspects in terms of science, technology, and communication has helped the process of second language acquisition becomes easier, as many uses the computers and the media as tools for teaching the English language. In relation to the ideas raised by Vygotsky and Krashen, which emphasized the role of the society in second language acquisition, is the practical application of their ideas in the realization of the significant contribution of the different forms of media in the learning and teaching of the English language. Nowadays, television shows and the use of the Internet have become part and parcel of the daily routines of individuals, most especially the younger generation. In this sense, the wrong usage in terms of the pronunciation and grammar in the English language can influence the larger population of viewers. A particular example of this influence is the development of Taglish or the combination of the Tagalog and the English language in the Philippines. The influence of the different forms of media in the Philippines, most importantly of famous television personalities strengthened and reinforced the use of Taglish in the Philippine society. This somehow affects the ability of learners to acquire the English language, for they combine the English words they use to the Tagalog context of the sentence, thus, not completely speaking the English language. This seems to be correct in some ways in terms of informal and casual conversations; however, sometimes used in formal conversations. In this regard, the society has placed substantial influence on the learning and teaching of the English language in the Philippine setting, as stressed by the ideas of Vygotsky and Krashen.
As previously discussed, the acquisition of a second language is relevantly related to the use of different literatures and language arts that encompasses different genres and forms of literatures. In this regard, reading and using a variety of forms of literatures and language arts reinforces and strengthens learning the English language. In the Chinese language, children are forced to master 3,500 Chinese characters to be able to spell Chinese words, indicate tones, and know variations of speech. However, in comparison to American English, only 27 letters of the alphabet must be known in order to form words ( 2001). In this sense, to be able to efficiently and appropriately teach and learn the English language, reading and using pieces of literature and language arts can be perceived very useful. (2001) points out that learning to read builds on cognitive, linguistic and social skills, thus, having a good grasp of spelling-sound correspondences, as evidenced by the ability to sound out novel words. With this, it can perceived that allowing and exposing students to different literary works can enhance and develop their skills in learning the English language. In addition to this is the fact that effective reading instruction with the help of a variety of literary works can help teach children what they need to know about both the alphabetic principle and phonological awareness ( 2001). Thus, this points out the significant role of reading literary works in the development and awareness of students in terms of the use of stress and intonation of English words through the recognition of the alphabet. Moreover, reading literary works and texts, whether short of long texts, builds the vocabulary, as they display topically connected sets of words or lexical fields. Short texts are ideal for classroom use, since they can be subjected to intensive grammatical and lexical study, without overtaxing the attention or memory of learners, and they are also useful as preparation for independent reading and listening, including dealing with longer texts. They also provide useful models for student production, in the form of speaking and writing ( 2000). A specific application or example of this is the use of metaphorical texts, as they are prevalent in authentic texts, such that the foreign language learner can deal with them in facing words that carry several meanings (2004), especially in learning and teaching the English language. Metaphorical language allows one to express abstract and difficult concepts in concrete terms ( 2004), and can be encountered in different genres and forms of literature, such as in newspapers, magazines, and books. However, reading in itself is not enough to reinforce learning and acquisition of the English language. This is because along with reading literary works is the need for practice. One benefit of reading practice is that is supports comprehension ability, vocabulary growth, and spelling skill, including the knowledge of individual words. In addition, practice in reading brings about an increasing facility with words because it increases the quality of lexical representations (2001). With this, the student is able to develop fluency in reading, thus, developing his or her abilities in recognizing, using, and pronouncing English words. A practical application of this is infusing English subjects in the school curriculum, which becomes the reinforcement of the English language academically, aside from the influence of the use of English in the larger society. Infusing or integrating the English language in the curriculum of academic institutions is one helpful strategy as students become more exposed and knowledgeable in the English language. With this, students would have the chance to practice speaking, reading, and writing English, which would be helpful in developing and improving their cognitive, linguistic, and social skills simultaneously.
Conclusion
This paper was able to discuss and specify several concepts and ideas related to three major aspects in learning and teaching the English language, namely, phonetics and phonology, psycholinguistics and second language learning, and literature and language arts. These three major aspects were shown to be linked together as one takes part in the development of the other, and becomes significant in the improvement of learning the teaching the English language. Stress and intonation in the phonetics and phonology is significant in the acquisition of English as a second language, depending on the influence and role the society plays in the development of the individual. The concepts and ideas expressed by Vygotsky and Krashen in terms of the acquisition of a second language emphasize the support of the individual’s environment in order to be able to efficiently acquire a specific language. With this, the use of pieces of literature and language arts becomes crucial, as an individual, most especially students must be practices and exposed to forms of literatures to reinforce learning the English language, which includes knowing the stress and intonation in words.
In terms of learning and teaching the English language, the major aspects discussed in this paper must be given emphasis and importance, as they serve as guide in the proper knowledge of the English language. With this, it would be necessary to remember two important points in relation to this discussion. The first is to remember that ‘practice makes perfect’, in terms of gaining knowledge of the proper pronunciation and grammar of English. Practicing reading, writing and speaking English underlies continuous research and study, which would be essential in guidance. The second important point to remember is to seek guidance from English teachers or instructors, including books and reading materials. However, this involves critical and analytical use of sources, which are essential skills to use in using different sources of information.
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