Interpretation of Results

Choose a section to find out how to interpret the results screen for that section:

• Vowels
• Consonants
• Word Stress
• Intonation
• Sentence Stress

• Count up the number of correct, incorrect, and "I don't know." responses for each contrast. (Note: there are either 2 or 4 items for each contrast.) Don't forget that the consonant contrast could be word-initial or word-final. This will be noted on the results page.
   
• If the majority of responses are correct for that contrast, then perception of that contrast is probably not a problem for that student.
   
• If the majority of responses are incorrect or "I don't know." for that contrast, then the student should focus on that contrast when practicing speech perception. (See below for some suggested practice exercises.)

This page lists the items in the section and if they student got each item correct, incorrect, or selected "I don't know." as an answer. It also shows the ending intonation of each item (rising or falling, as indicated by the up or down arrow). There are two different intonation sections: Intonation 1 and Intonation 2. Intonation 1 focuses on the intonation in questions or statements. Intonation 2 focuses on the intonation at the end of tag questions. For examples, see our preview page.

To interpret the results, count the number of incorrect or "I don't know." responses. If the majority of the responses are incorrect or marked "I don't know.", the student may need some practice in this area. Focus on the same type of sentences as tested in each section (i.e. questions or statements for Intonation 1 and tag questions for Intonation 2). See below for some suggested practice exercises.

This page lists the items in the section and if the student got each item correct, incorrect, or selected "I don't know." as an answer. There are two different sentence stress sections: Sentence Stress 1 and Sentence Stress 2. Sentence Stress 1 focuses on hearing stressed words in a sentence. Sentence Stress 2 focuses on hearing where a speaker pauses, and thus divides the sentence into "thought groups" (Gilbert, 1993, p.77).

To interpret the results, count the number of incorrect or "I don't know." items for the entire section. If the majority of responses are incorrect or "I don't know.", the student may need some practice in this area. If the majority of incorrect responses are for a specific type of sentence stress (i.e. from Sentence Stress 1 OR from Sentence Stress 2), you may want to use items similar to that section for practice exercises. See below for some suggested practice exercises.

There are many different ways to help improve speech perception skills. An excellence resource for practice speech perception and pronunciation is Pronunciation Matters. This book contains stories that help isolate each vowel and consonant contrast, as well as each word stress, intonation, and sentence stress pattern, and that make learning these patterns and contrasts fun.

Below are some suggested ways to practice speech perception. This list is not complete. If you have any suggestions of ways to practice speech perception, please feel free to contact us.

• Vowels and Consonants
  • Create some minimal pairs that contain the two contrasts you wish to practice. Sentences work best, but are harder to create. Remember that consonant contrasts may be word-initial or word-final. Write these sentences or words on cards, or draw pictures on the chalkboard. Then, have someone say each sentence or word in a random order. The listener points to the picture or card that illustrates the correct sound. Keep practicing until the listener can point to the correct card/picture each time.
     
• Word Stress
  • Please look at this excellent website on word stress in English (http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/articles/word-stress). This site discusses word stress in English and gives some good practice exercises to help improve students awareness and skills in perceiving word stress.
     
• Intonation
  • Create some sentences that fit the pattern of either Intonation 1 or Intonation 2 (see our preview page for some examples). Have the student practice saying the sentences using rising or falling intonation, and you or someone else telling the student what you heard. This will help the student understand how others hear him/her when speaking.
     
  • Create some sentences that fit the pattern of either Intonation 1 or Intonation 2 (see our preview page for some examples). Say the sentences using either rising or falling intonation. Have the student point or indicate what they heard (rising or falling). Keep practicing until the student can correctly perceive each sentence as it is said.
     
• Sentence Stress
  • Please look at this excellent website on sentence stress in English (http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/articles/english-sentence-stress). This site outlines the importance of sentence stress and its impact on understanding spoken English. It also gives some good practice exercises to help raise student awareness of sentence stress issues.