American Phonetics and Pronunciation

Course content

This course provides you with the opportunity to acquaint yourself with and - more im-portantly - to practice the sounds, rhythms and intonation patterns of American English through oral and transcription practice. In addition, you will also learn to use the IPA (Inter-national Phonetic Alphabet) and address pronunciation difficulties encountered by German students.

  • Introduction to American English pronunciation
  • IPA transcription of American English
  • Discussion and examples of accent and dialect awareness in American English; factors: region, class/social group, age etc.
  • Discuss and practise problem phonemes
  • Discuss and practise word stress
  • Discuss and practise spelling and pronunciation issues, especially as they relate to German students
  • Discuss and practise connected speech (brief introduction): weak forms vs strong forms etc.

Course information

Code 4412501, 4412502
Degree programme Double major Bachelor’s degree English Studies
Lecturer(s) and contact person Dr. Kenton Emery Barnes
Type of course Exercise course
Semester Winter and summer semester
Language of instruction English
Level of study Bachelor
ECTS credits Please contact the lecturer