SOUNDING OFF: AN IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF CONSONANT PRONUNCIATION DIFFICULTIES

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the difficulty in pronouncing consonants that faced by sixth semester students of English Education Study Program of STKIP PGRI Banjarmasin. The method used in this study is descriptive qualitative method. The data collection used tests and documentation through voice recording by smart phone. The participants of this study are six semester students with a total number 16 students. The results of this study stated that the difficulties of students in pronouncing consonant sounds are: elemental differences between the native language and the target language (/θ/, /ð/, /ʃ/, /tʃ/, and /dʒ/). Phonetic features that are the same in both languages differ in their distribution (/f/, /v/, and /ʒ/). Students' difficulties in place of articulation and manner of articulation Plosives /p/ bilabial, and /t/ alveolar. Fricatives /f/ and, /v/ labio-tooth, /θ/ and /ð/ dental, /ʒ/ and /ʃ/ palatal-alveolar. Affricative /tʃ/, and /dʒ/ palatal-alveolar. To overcome this, the students need to enhance their skills in English and practice a lot. In addition, it is necessary to motivate students and encourage their confidence to improve their skills in the acquisition of the english sound and good pronunciations.