Student-Teacher Conferences in an English Pronunciation Course: Goals, Characteristics and Views

Student-teacher conferences are considered an effective pedagogical tool for individualized writing instruction. Yet, little is known about the goals, characteristics and perceptions of student-teacher conferences for individualized English as a second language (ESL) pronunciation instruction. This article presents an exploratory study on student and instructor perceptions of mandatory student-teacher conferences in a semester-long ESL pronunciation course. Data were gathered from 24 college ESL students and five experienced ESL instructors via pre-/post-instruction read-aloud tests, four questionnaires and a focus group discussion. The results indicated pronunciation improvement during the course and participants’ overall satisfaction with the learning outcomes, goals, format and characteristics of the conferences. Participants’ views on benefits, drawbacks, and recommendations for these one-on-one meetings revealed valuable insights for pronunciation instructors.