Fonetiks is a site designed for practicing pronunciation in a variety of languages. The home page is organized as a language matrix that serves as the main menu. The user can select to explore the phonetic system by single vowel sounds, two vowel sounds, three vowel sounds, voiced and voiceless sounds, tones, etc. for the following languages: seven forms of English, two forms of French, two forms of German, four peninsular and non-peninsular variations of Spanish, one Italian, Brazilian Portuguese, Mandarin (pinyin), Japanese (romanji), Indonesian, and Thai. The languages include appropriate reference and dictionary links for word definitions.
Type of Material:
Drill and practice, reference.
Recommended Uses:
Language learners can use the site for independent work on pronunciation skills.
Identify Major Learning Goals:
Pronunciation practice in a variety of languages.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
Although limited to a few languages, the fact that pronunciation variations are considered is commendable; especially the variations of English pronunciation. For each audio file, the author identifies the speaker's cultural origin and age - helpful information when becoming familiar with the ways the target language sounds.
Concerns:
The Spanish pronunciation provided is peninsular and is less commonly used worldwide than non-peninsular Spanish.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
This site is particularly effective for the teaching of pronunication because the author uses colors to differentiate vowel and consonant sounds - this is an important feature in remediating dyslexic learners in sound-symbol correspondence as well as drawing attention to specific features of the written form for all students. This feature is also useful to the process of developing decoding skills for reading in a second language.
Concerns:
Although the emphasis is clearly on pronunciation, context should be provided for the focal words; otherwise students are practicing words detached from meaning.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
The matrix menu makes it easy for teachers and learners to focus on specific pronunciation patterns in the target language. The audio quality is high, and the mouseover audio feature is easy to use.
Concerns:
Fonts are small and difficult to read on the main page. There are some broken links.
Creative Commons:
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