The Positive and Negative Effects of Tonal L1 on the Acquisition of Tonal L2: A Case of the Standard Thai Tones and the Chinese Zhuang Learners
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Published:
Jul 20, 2021
Keywords:
Chinese Zhuang learners standard Thai tone tone language tone error patterns L2 tone acquisition
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Abstract
This study is a case study of the effects of tonal L1 on the acquisition of tonal L2, comparing two groups of tonal L1 learners, namely, Chinese Zhuang (C+Z) and Chinese non-Zhuang (C-Z) in the same classroom. The two groups of learners read aloud 60 words from a Thai wordlist, then their tone production was analyzed in two dimensions. The phonological analysis focused on tone error patterns while the acoustic analysis focused on the fundamental frequency (F0) compared to the Thai native speakers. The Praat Program was employed for the acoustic part. The analysis of tone errors showed positively that the C+Z group had higher rates of accuracy than the C-Z group, arguably due to their familiarity with Tai tone patterns, with no confusion stemming from Zhuang tone patterns. Contrastingly, the phonetic characteristics findings showed negatively that the C+Z group shared less similar production with Thai native speakers group than the C-Z group’s ones, arguably due to L1 interference. The current study confirmed both positive and negative effects of tonal L1 on the acquisition of L2 tones. Therefore, tonal problems should be investigated closely and identified clearly for the efficiency and effectiveness of tone acquisition training.
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Phonphanich, S. H., & Burusphat, S. (2021). The Positive and Negative Effects of Tonal L1 on the Acquisition of Tonal L2: A Case of the Standard Thai Tones and the Chinese Zhuang Learners. LEARN Journal: Language Education and Acquisition Research Network, 14(2), 28–58. Retrieved from https://so04.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/LEARN/article/view/253260
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Research Articles
References
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113003/7/JSEALS-4-2.pdf#page=66
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Ruangjaroon, S. (2006). Consonant-Tone Interaction in Thai: An OT Analysis. Taiwan journal of linguistics. 4, 1-66. http://DOI:
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Sathiansukon, S. (2005). Teaching Thai to Chinese students: Condition, problems and solutions. Humanities. 18(1), 127-140.
Selinker, L. (1972). Interlanguage. IRAL, 10(3), 209-231.
Sinthawashewa, T. (2009). The Bangkok Thai Tones Produced by the Japanese Speaker: An Acoustic and Perception Study. [Master’s thesis, Chulalongkorn University]. http://cuir.car.chula.ac.th/
handle/123456789/20001
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So, C. K. and Best, C. T. (2010). Cross-language perception of non-native tonal contrasts: Effects of native phonological and phonetic influences. Lang Speech. 53(2), 273–293. https://doi.org/10.1177/
0023830909357156
Teeranon, P. (2007). The change of Standard Thai high tone: An acoustic study and a perceptual experiment. Journal of Theoretical Linguistics. 4(3), 12–20. http://www.skase.sk/Volumes/JTL10/
pdf_doc/1s.pdf
Teeranon, P. and Rungrojsuwan, R. (2009). Change in the Standard Thai high tone: An acoustic study. MANUSYA: Journal of Humanities. 12(3), 34-44. https://doi.org/10.1163/26659077-01203003
Tienmee, W. (1992). Classification by tone shapes and patterns of tonal splits and coalescences [Thai dialects of Thailand]. The Mon-Khmer Studies Journal. 21, 229-236. http://sealang.net/sala/archives/
pdf8/wanna1992classification.pdf
Wang, X. (2006). Perception of L2 tones: L1 lexical tone experience may not help. Proceedings of Speech Prosody 2006—Speech Prosody 2006, Dresden, Germany. http://www.isca-speech.org/archive
Wang, Z. (2014). Review of the Influence of L1 in L2 Acquisition. Studies in Literature and Language, 9(2), 57–60. http://52.196.142.242/
index.php/sll/article/view/5721/6456
Wayland, R. & Guion, S. G. (2004). Training English and Chinese listeners to perceive Thai tones: A Preliminary Report. Language Learning. 54(4), 681-712. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2004.00283.x
Wei, Y. (2012). Error Analysis of Thai Pronunciation: A case study of Chinese Students Speaking Mandarin and Cantonese as the Mother Tongue. [Master’s thesis, Chiang Mai University]. https://archive.lib.cmu.ac.th/full/T/2555/thai41055yw_abs.pdf
Winskel, H. & Iemwanthong, K. (2010). Reading and spelling acquisition in Thai children. Read Writ. 23, 1021–1053. https://doi.org/
10.1007/s11145-009-9194-6
Zhang, Y. & Wei, X. (1997). Regional variants and vernaculars in Zhuang.
In A. E. Jerold and D. B. Solnit (Eds.), Comparative Kadai: The Tai branch (pp. 77–96). Summer Institute of Linguistics and the University of Texas at Arlington. https://www.sil.org/resources/
archives/8806
Anttonen, A. (2017). Zhuang language vitality: A sociolinguistic survey based on the ELDIA EuLaViBar Model [Master’s thesis, University of Helsinki]. http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:hulib-201705044009
Burusphat, S. & Qin X. (2006). Northern Zhuang-Chinese-Thai-English Dictionary. Ekphimthai Ltd.
Corder, S. P. (1981). Error analysis and interlanguage. Oxford University Press.
Chao, Y. R. (1930). A System of Tone Letters. La Maître phonétique, 45, 24-27.
Diller, A. V. N., Edmondson, J. A., & Luo, Y. (2008). The Tai-Kadai Languages. Routledge. https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/
10.4324/9780203641873
Flege, J. (1995). Second language speech learning: Theory, findings, and problems. In W. Strange (Ed.), Speech perception and linguistic experience: Theoretical and methodological issues (pp. 229–273). York Press.
Gedney, W. J. (1972). A Checklist for Determining Tones in Tai Dialects. In M. E. Smith (Ed.), Studies in Linguistics: In Honor of George L. Trager (pp. 191-205). Mouton.
Jitwiriyanont, S. (2012). To convert the fundamental frequency from Hertz to semitones: An approach of representing the tone analysis. The Journal. 8(12), 19-45.
Juwarahawong, W. (2000). Tones in Bangkok Thai Spoken by the Thai, the Chao Zhou and the Sikhs. [Master’s thesis, Chulalongkorn] University]. http://cuir.car.chula.ac.th/handle/123456789/5949
Khamphut, C. (2002). The Study of Thai language Usage of the 4th year Chinese students majoring in Thai Language at Yunnan Institute of Ethnicity, People's Republic of China. [Master’s thesis, Chiang Mai University]. http://cmuir.cmu.ac.th/handle/6653943832/23000
Lapyai, R. (2016). Guidelines and the Best-Practices in Teaching Thai as a Foreign Language for Chinese Students. Rangsit University Journal of Faculty of Liberal Arts. 12(21), 37-47. https://rsujournals.rsu.
ac.th/index.php/jla/article/view/144
Lee, S. (2011). Tonal OCP and consonant-tone interaction in Thai. Journal of Southeast Asian Linguistics Society. 4, 61–76.
https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/
113003/7/JSEALS-4-2.pdf#page=66
Lianghiranthaworn, S. & Chapoo, L. (2019). Thai Language Pronunciation Problems of Chinese Overseas Students of Maejo University, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Journal of Liberal Arts Maejo University. 7(2), 114-129. https://so03.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/liberalartsjournal/article/
view/232300
Luksaneeyanawin, S. (1998). Intonation in Thai. In D. Hirst and A. Di Cristo (Eds.), Intonation systems: A system of twenty languages (pp. 376–94). Cambridge University Press.
Luo, L., Qin, Y., Lu Z., Chen F. (Eds.) (2005). Zhuang–Chinese–English Dictionary/ Cuengh Gun Yingh Swzdenj. The Ethnic Publishing House.
Luo, Y. (2008). Zhuang. In A. V. N. Diller, A. E. Jerold, & Y. Luo (Eds.), The Tai–Kadai Languages (pp. 317-376). Routledge. https://www.
routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.4324/9780203641873
Morén, B., and Zsiga, E. (2006). The lexical and post-lexical phonology of Thai tones. Natural Language and Linguistic Theory. 24, 113–78.
Nartsupha, C. and Lohacharoon, U. (2017). Chonchat Tai nai Pratet Jeen.(In Thai) [Tai Race in China]. Sangsan Publishing House.
Perkins, J. (2013). Consonant-tone interaction in Thai. [Doctoral dissertation, Rutgers University]. https://doi.org/doi:10.7282/
T3765CCQ
Permkesorn, N. (2008). Thai usage problems of Chinese TFL Students. Vannavidas. 1(8), 146–159.
Pittayaporn P. (2009). The Phonology of Proto-Tai. [Doctoral dissertation, Cornell University]. oai:ecommons.cornell.edu:1813/13855
Pongprairat, R. (2011). A study of interlanguage English intonation in Thai learners, and the degree of intelligibility and comprehensibility in native speakers' judgements. [Doctoral dissertation, Chulalongkorn University]. http://cuir.car.chula.ac.th/handle/123456789/36619
Qin, X. (2011). Changes in Zhuang Induced by a Language Contact with Mandarin Chinese. [Doctoral dissertation, Chulalongkorn University]. http://cuir.car.chula.ac.th/handle/123456789/22245
Roengpitya, R. (2007). The variations, quantification, and generalizations of Standard Thai tones. In M. J. Sole, P. Beddor, and M. Ohala (Eds.), Experimental Approaches to Phonology (pp. 270 –301). Oxford University Press.
Ruangjaroon, S. (2006). Consonant-Tone Interaction in Thai: An OT Analysis. Taiwan journal of linguistics. 4, 1-66. http://DOI:
10.6519/TJL.2006.4(2).1
Sathiansukon, S. (2005). Teaching Thai to Chinese students: Condition, problems and solutions. Humanities. 18(1), 127-140.
Selinker, L. (1972). Interlanguage. IRAL, 10(3), 209-231.
Sinthawashewa, T. (2009). The Bangkok Thai Tones Produced by the Japanese Speaker: An Acoustic and Perception Study. [Master’s thesis, Chulalongkorn University]. http://cuir.car.chula.ac.th/
handle/123456789/20001
So, C. K. (2006). The influence of L1 prosodic backgrounds on the learning of Mandarin tones: patterns of tonal confusion by Cantonese and Japanese Naïve listeners. Proceedings of the 2005 annual conference of the Canadian Linguistic Association. http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.111.969&rep=rep1&type=pdf
So, C. K. and Best, C. T. (2010). Cross-language perception of non-native tonal contrasts: Effects of native phonological and phonetic influences. Lang Speech. 53(2), 273–293. https://doi.org/10.1177/
0023830909357156
Teeranon, P. (2007). The change of Standard Thai high tone: An acoustic study and a perceptual experiment. Journal of Theoretical Linguistics. 4(3), 12–20. http://www.skase.sk/Volumes/JTL10/
pdf_doc/1s.pdf
Teeranon, P. and Rungrojsuwan, R. (2009). Change in the Standard Thai high tone: An acoustic study. MANUSYA: Journal of Humanities. 12(3), 34-44. https://doi.org/10.1163/26659077-01203003
Tienmee, W. (1992). Classification by tone shapes and patterns of tonal splits and coalescences [Thai dialects of Thailand]. The Mon-Khmer Studies Journal. 21, 229-236. http://sealang.net/sala/archives/
pdf8/wanna1992classification.pdf
Wang, X. (2006). Perception of L2 tones: L1 lexical tone experience may not help. Proceedings of Speech Prosody 2006—Speech Prosody 2006, Dresden, Germany. http://www.isca-speech.org/archive
Wang, Z. (2014). Review of the Influence of L1 in L2 Acquisition. Studies in Literature and Language, 9(2), 57–60. http://52.196.142.242/
index.php/sll/article/view/5721/6456
Wayland, R. & Guion, S. G. (2004). Training English and Chinese listeners to perceive Thai tones: A Preliminary Report. Language Learning. 54(4), 681-712. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2004.00283.x
Wei, Y. (2012). Error Analysis of Thai Pronunciation: A case study of Chinese Students Speaking Mandarin and Cantonese as the Mother Tongue. [Master’s thesis, Chiang Mai University]. https://archive.lib.cmu.ac.th/full/T/2555/thai41055yw_abs.pdf
Winskel, H. & Iemwanthong, K. (2010). Reading and spelling acquisition in Thai children. Read Writ. 23, 1021–1053. https://doi.org/
10.1007/s11145-009-9194-6
Zhang, Y. & Wei, X. (1997). Regional variants and vernaculars in Zhuang.
In A. E. Jerold and D. B. Solnit (Eds.), Comparative Kadai: The Tai branch (pp. 77–96). Summer Institute of Linguistics and the University of Texas at Arlington. https://www.sil.org/resources/
archives/8806