Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
Home> Volumes> Volume CHR Vol.67> Article
Research Article

Study on Dialectal Transfer in English Vowel Learning: A Case of Jinan, Shandong Province

Tianrun ZhangSchool of Foreign Languages, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China*

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

As the strategic importance of English continues to grow within China’s educational system, the interference effects of Chinese dialects on English phonetic acquisition have shown a notable upward trend. Specifically, learners from Shandong dialect regions serve as a paradigmatic case, where native language negative transfer exerts significant influence on their English pronunciation. This study focuses on English learners in Jinan, Shandong Province, adopting a contrastive analysis theoretical framework. By integrating qualitative research methods such as semi-structured interviews and acoustic corpus analysis, it systematically investigates the acoustic positional characteristics and discrepancies between Shandong dialect vowels and interlanguage English vowels. The study identifies three primary manifestations of negative transfer in English vowel acquisition among Shandong dialect speakers: forward displacement of back vowels, excessive centralization of schwa, and monophthongization of diphthongs. These findings inform pedagogical strategies such as articulatory visualization training, prosodic rhythm reinforcement, and diphthong decomposition exercises, offering a systematic framework to enhance pronunciation accuracy and prosodic fluency in dialect-influenced learners.

Keywords: English phonetic acquisition; Negative transfer; Shandong dialects; Contrastive analysis; Teaching efficacy
Published: June 13, 2025
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2025.BO23907
Volume: CHR Vol.67
pp. 176-181
Download PDF

References

  1. Tang, Jing. (2013). Analysis of Incorrect Pronunciation among Adult English Learners in Some Dialect Areas of Southern China. Journal of Nanchang Education College, 28(07), 165-166.
  2. Sui, Hua. (2009). The Influence of the Shandong Eastern Dialect on the Acquisition of English Consonant Phonemes and Its Countermeasures (Master’s Thesis, Ocean University of China). Master. https://kns.cnki.net/kcms2/article/abstract?v=2Z_8GvOTliXKfBh01yORhcIvgoe1qwe4CDQsU7J29jikowVm3FkwfVvxa9sM6DF8b4OIxURE8G831a6d_brwpTWdRnzFC-k5VSGRaO6Lqarrhw1ffPlPdwIE6w8DRI_zHUohk-FDaNKfX8ayLeI__wKIAmhsCEdi-xQgJ86nkqGmSckGQkagnBtRNcNACFxq&uniplatform=NZKPT&language=CHS
  3. Kong, Jian. (2001). On the Influence of the Shandong Dialect on the Acquisition of English Consonants. Journal of Shandong Agricultural University (Social Science Edition), (04), 98-100.
  4. Li, Yuhua. (2009). Analysis of Common Pronunciation Errors of Shandong Students in English. Journal of Liaocheng University (Social Science Edition), (01), 118-121. doi:10.16284/j.cnki.cn37-1401/c.2009.01.016
  5. Dai, Yan. (2013). Research on the Influence of the Shandong Dialect on English Pronunciation Learning. Educational Materials, (22), 189-190+192.
  6. Zhao, Hanqing. (2012). An Exploration of Negative Transfer of the Shandong Dialect in the Acquisition of English Vowels. Forum on Education and Teaching, (06), 150-151.