Understanding Nonnative Speech: Speech Training and Cognitive and Attitudinal Factors

A free research webinar from TESOL's International Teaching Assistants Interest Section (ITAIS). Native-nonnative communication research has focused mostly on how nonnative speakers can sound more nativelike; this session flips the lens to native listeners' role in perceiving and understanding nonnative speech. Dr. Jimin Kahng (University of Mississippi) presents a study of 127 American English speakers comparing training with scripted vs. unscripted L2 speech, and examines how listeners' cognitive and attitudinal factors shape comprehension — with implications for language teaching and international teaching assistant training.