Phonological Errors In English

A study of English Phonological Errors Produced by

English Department Students of Petra Christian University

Introduction

1.1 Background of the Study

By end of the 20th century, the language of English has already been regarded as the most dominant language in the world (Graddol, 1997). The major domains of English include tertiary (university) education, working language of international organizations and conferences, international banking, economic affairs and trade, technology transfer, and internet communication. English is also the most used foreign language in book publishing and up to 28% of books published worldwide are written in English (Graddol, 1997, p. 9). David Crystal, a fellow British linguist and academician, also supported the “English dominance” claim. Crystal stated in his book “English as a Global Language”, that it is estimated that English is used by 85% of the world’s international organizations and 99 % of European organizations list English as its official working language (Crystal, 1997). That being said, it is easy to conclude that the ability to speak fluently and accurately in English is imperative for an individual who wants to compete in this ever evolving world.

The ability to produce the sounds of English words accurately is undoubtedly important. However, despite being able to fluently speak English without any interruption in their speech, many students still lack accuracy in pronouncing English words. Pronunciation is regarded as an