Investigating the Impact of Silent Consonants and Phonetic Transcription on the Pronunciation of ESL Learners at BS level

Abstract

Pronunciation plays a vital role in effective English communication, particularly for learners of English as a Second Language (ESL). One of the key difficulties faced by ESL learners is recognizing and pronouncing words containing silent consonants. These letters, though unspoken, influence word structure and spelling. Additionally, the use of phonetic transcription can serve as an effective instructional tool to enhance learners’ pronunciation accuracy. However, many students at the BS level continue to struggle with pronunciation due to insufficient exposure to phonetic principles and limited awareness of silent consonants. This study consisted of three hundred BS-level students who were enrolled in the English (Language and Linguistics) Department at the Islamia University of Bahawalpur's Rahim Yar Khan Campus. The reason these students were selected is that they have studied English orthography, phonetics, and pronunciation—all of which are directly relevant to understanding silent alphabets in English words. English words with silent letters are commonly encountered by these pupils in their scholastic pursuits, including reading, writing, and oral communication. This demographic was therefore deemed suitable for the current study, "A Correlational Study of Silent Alphabets in English Words and Pronunciation." Three hundred BS English (Language and Linguistics) students from the Rahim Yar Khan Campus of the Islamia University of Bahawalpur provided the data for this study. The researcher was able to investigate the connection between students' pronunciation accuracy and their awareness and comprehension of silent alphabets because to this inclusion. For the purpose of doing a quantitative correlational analysis of the two variables chosen, their ongoing academic involvement in English language studies supplied authentic, valid, and trustworthy data.