Teaching Tones to Foreigners Learning the Thai Language

Abstract

The academic article aims to present the teaching of tones to foreigners learning the Thai language, which follows the teaching of Triyang (the three classes of Thai consonants). While some consonants within each class share inherent sounds, others have distinct inherent sounds. After mastering the inherent sounds of the consonants in these three classes, learners can then connect them to learning tones. The use of tone marks is rather complicated. The high tone mark and the rising tone mark are used only when the mid-class consonants are used as initial consonants. However, when the low tone mark and the falling tone mark are used, the sounds do not correspond to the tones. Therefore, teaching Thai tones to foreignersnecessitates teaching the tone marks and usage conditions, the relationships between the tone marks and the associated vowel sounds, and the final consonant sound of words. Transferring the knowledge about tones, the principles of Traiyang (the three classes of consonants), and the principles of tones contribute to promoting effective communication in Thai at an advanced level. This understanding serves as a foundation of analysis for more complicated everyday communication.