Identification of the Sources and Treatment of ESL Pronunciation Errors: A Case Study of Igbo Speakers of English

Abstract

The notion of competence is the central issue in language learning, especially in the light of error analysis. Learning theorists and language teachers want to know the answers to certain questions. What does the learner know? How did he learn what he knows? Can we measure or define this knowledge? In some respect, error analysis can answer these  questions. A person exposed to a foreign/second language makes errors. Anything he speaks before he attains proficiency is called interlanguage, that is, the intermediate stages between the native and target language observable in learners’ language. The Igbo speaker of English   interlanguage is characterized by errors. The sources of second language learners’ errors were identified to be related to material presentation, factors within the language itself and the psychology of the learner. This paper did not only characterize learners’ interlanguage; but also suggested methods the teacher should adopt in handling them for learners to achieve proficiency in the target language.