How can learners improve their pronunciation of long vowels in Japanese

Learners can improve their pronunciation of long vowels in Japanese by practicing techniques such as the minimal pairs technique, which helps distinguish long vowels from short vowels by contrasting similar sound pairs. This technique has been found effective in improving learners’ ability to correctly pronounce long vowels, along with other difficult sounds in Japanese. ¹

In addition, awareness and focused practice on the duration of vowel sounds are key, since long vowels are characterized by being held longer than their short counterparts. Paying attention to timing and lengthening the vowel sound consciously during practice helps internalize the difference. ²

Using visual feedback tools, such as ultrasound tongue imaging or speech training software, can assist learners by providing concrete visualizations of tongue position and length of sound, improving accuracy in vowel production. ^{3, 4}

Listening carefully to native speakers and repeating long vowel sounds in context, ideally with guided practice and feedback, is also beneficial. This trains the ear and muscle memory to produce long vowels more naturally over time. ^{5, 1}

In summary, methods to improve Japanese long vowel pronunciation include:

• Using minimal pairs technique to distinguish vowel length
• Practicing vowel duration and timing deliberately
• Employing visual feedback tools for articulation
• Listening and repeating native speech with feedback

These combined approaches can significantly improve long vowel pronunciation in learners of Japanese. ^{4, 1, 2, 3, 5}

References

• The Effectiveness of the Minimal Pairs Technique in Learning Japanese Pronunciation

• The Phonetics of Multiple Vowel Lengthening in Japanese

• Ultrasound tongue imaging as a visual feedback in L2 pronunciation training

• Nihongo Speech Trainer: A Pronunciation Training System for Japanese Sounds

• Analisis Kesalahan Pelafalan Chouon dan Sokuon Pada Peserta Lomba Roudoku Tingkat SMA/SMK Sederajat di Yogyakarta

• Comparison and contrast of English diphthongs and Japanese long vowels for improving pronunciation of English

• Identification training adapted to the learner’s vowel space aids in improving native Japanese speakers’ pronunciation of American English vowels

• The influence of explicit phonetic instruction on pronunciation teaching in EFL settings: the case of English vowels and Japanese learners of English

• An Analysis of Students’ Hiragana Letters Mastery at Japanese For General Purpose Course of Universitas Negeri Padang

• The Role of ASR Training in EFL Pronunciation Improvement: An In-depth Look at the Impact of Treatment Length and Guided Practice on Specific Pronunciation Points

• SONG-BASED LESSON IN IMPROVING VOCABULARY : “ AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF THE SECOND YEAR STUDENTS OF MTS NEGERI BANTAENG ”

• [Using Songs Effectively to Teach English to Young Learners][12]

• Effects of phonotactic predictability on sensitivity to phonetic detail

• Durational Evidence That Tokyo Japanese Vowel Devoicing Is Not Gradient Reduction

• Durational Evidence That Tokyo Japanese Vowel Devoicing Is Not Gradient Reduction

• Articulatory correlates of consonantal length contrasts: The case of Japanese mimetic geminates.

• Learning Phonemic Vowel Length from Naturalistic Recordings of Japanese Infant-Directed Speech

• JSUT corpus: free large-scale Japanese speech corpus for end-to-end speech synthesis

• The Utilization of the “Tsutaeru Hatsuon” Online Media in Learning Japanese Accents and Intonations

• Lexical Category and Downstep in Japanese

• Tonguescape: Exploring Language Models Understanding of Vowel Articulation

• Consequences of High Vowel Deletion for Syllabification in Japanese

• More foreign-accented but more comprehensible: Attrition and amelioration of L1 speech in proficient L2 learners

• More foreign-accented but more comprehensible: Attrition and amelioration of L1 speech in proficient L2 learners

• Some Issues In Japanese Accent

• Applying adaptive recognition of the learner’s vowel space to English pronunciation training of native speakers of Japanese

[12]: http://www.leia.org/LEiA/LEiA VOLUMES/Download/LEiA_V2_I1_2011/LEiA_V2I1A11_Millington.pdf