Phonetic Symbols in Contemporary Pronunciation Instruction

Abstract

This article explores the potential of phonetic symbols in pronunciation teaching/learning, with a focus on English language teaching (ELT). After a brief contextualisation of current views of pronunciation instruction in the second-language (L2) teaching literature, the article reviews some of the potential advantages of, conditions for, and alternatives to the use of phonetic symbols together with research investigating their potential empirically. The exploration then focuses on the use of phonetic symbols for pronunciation instruction in contemporary linguistically superdiverse contexts, marked by shifting teaching goals, as well as accent varieties, ELT learner profiles, learning/teaching environments, and notions of L2 English. The discussion concludes with some suggestions as to how to use phonetic notation in contemporary ELT instruction.