Prosodic accommodation in teachers’ speech: Non-native pre-service EFL teachers adjusting to students’ age

Abstract Classroom management in a foreign language requires the teacher’s control of vocal delivery, especially prosodic features such as tempo and intonation. Although prosody is well-studied in public speaking, research on teachers’ prosody is limited. For non-native pre-service teachers, effective prosodic delivery is challenging: they must manage the classroom in a foreign language and serve as linguistic models for learners of varying ages and proficiencies. This study examined (i) Czech EFL teacher-trainees’ beliefs about student-directed speech (SDS) and (ii) trainees’ abilities to adjust to students’ age, providing data that can inform teacher education programs. In a questionnaire, 40 trainees rated the importance of phonetic vis-à-vis non-phonetic SDS features and selected phonetic adaptations relevant for younger students. Mixed-effects ordinal logistic regression revealed that phonetic features were rated as more important. Lively intonation and articulation were highlighted as general SDS features and speaking tempo as particularly important for younger learners. We then measured tempo and pitch range in additional 21 trainees’ scripted speech directed at images of 9th-graders vs. 4th-graders. Speech intended for younger students was slower and had a wider pitch range. However, adjustments in tempo and pitch were not consistently aligned. Variability in prosodic control highlights the need for targeted SDS training.