Difficulties in Pronunciation Encountered by English Major Freshmen at Saigon University

Abstract

In learning a language, it is necessary to master four skills including listening, speaking, reading and writing. Out of them, speaking skill is one of the most useful skills that the learners can use in both the process of studying English and in the future. However, to be able to speak well, the learners need to have correct pronunciation. On this account, English major students usually face many difficulties, especially the freshmen. Therefore, this study aims to find out the difficulties in pronunciation encountered by English language majors freshmen. This study applies the quantitative method. Then, through the questionnaire, the researcher analyzes the data of 106 participants. The result showed that although most of the participants appreciated the importance of pronunciation because of its benefits, they still have many difficulties in pronunciation. Specifically, some difficulties about first language, regional accent, their teacher and the transcription. Besides, the participants also confuse the sounds of vowels and consonants, and they have problems with stress, intonation and rhythm. As English major students, it can be a serious problem if they cannot overcome these difficulties. Therefore, this study helps English major freshmen at Saigon University know their own difficulties and  find the suitable solutions to overcome.