Perspectives on Reduced Forms Instruction in Portuguese

Abstract

Reduced forms or connected speech are an important aspect of spoken language. Examples of reduced forms in Brazilian Portuguese include reductions such as né for não é (translated into English as ‘it is not’) and tá bem for está bem (translated into English as ‘it is all right’). The present study aims to examine perspectives, opinions, attitudes, and practices on the role of reduced forms instruction in Portuguese language courses. Data were collected via an online questionnaire sent to ninety-five university-level Portuguese language instructors in the United States. Overall results show that instructors perceive reduced forms as a fundamental aspect of the language and an important component of listening comprehension and oral production. This study further identified three major needs: further research on reduced forms in Portuguese, professional development and training on reduced forms for Portuguese teachers, and greater development of teaching materials that deal with reduced forms and connected speech.

Keywords

• reduced forms
• connected speech
• portuguese
• teacher perspectives
• portuguese as a foreign language
• listening comprehension