Download or read book Contributing Factors of Second Language Pronunciation Goals written by Rebecca Rose Turk and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Before entering American university graduate programs, many international students must attend Intensive English Programs (IEPs) to improve their English proficiency (Redden, 2018). Their English proficiency is tested via the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Once they pass the TOEFL and are admitted into a graduate program, IEP students will also often obtain graduate teaching positions as International Teaching Assistants (ITAs), where speaking and pronunciation skills will be a vital part of their success. Given a lack of focus on pronunciation within the TOEFL exam (Educational Testing Services, 2019) and a lack of explicit pronunciation instruction in IEP curriculum, how might these factors influence IEP students' language and pronunciation goals that lead to pronunciation outcomes? Through a mixed methods design, I used quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews to explore students' goals for their English pronunciation, specifically the influence of second language testing, IEP students' future goals, and IEP students' knowledge and beliefs about pronunciation. First, findings revealed that the speaking-specific requirements of the TOEFL did not directly influence IEP students' specific second-language pronunciation goals. Instead, participants had a pronunciation goal of general 'intelligibility' with respect to passing the TOEFL. Second, participants described both integrative goals (e.g., desire to integrate into the L2 community) and instrumental goals (e.g., understanding L2 proficiency would help achieve a larger goal) for learning a second language. Results suggest that their pronunciation goals were similar to their language goals (e.g., language goal: join L2 society; pronunciation goal: be intelligible). Third, findings revealed that participants had both fixed and growth capability beliefs about English-language pronunciation and that their capability beliefs influenced their pronunciation goals. Grounded theory analysis brought to light additional factors that influenced IEP students' L2 pronunciation goals. Internal factors that influenced participants' pronunciation goals included their value of effort and time for improving pronunciation, potential methods of improvement, and their value or usefulness of the L2 for their future goals,. External factors that influenced participants' pronunciation goals included expectations/societal pressures to reach native-English pronunciation within their primary culture or their future career.