The ESL Lab is an individualized ESL laboratory. Audio-visual materials, tutoring, and small group instruction are available to aid students in developing language proficiency. Instructors and tutors try to help students overcome the anxieties common in the process of learning to speak a new language. The lab uses a systematically organized program to help students develop listening and speaking skills.
Students work on accuracy as well as fluency.
Based on the theory that listening precedes speaking, the program first teaches students to listen and distinguish sounds before it demands practice in the production of the sounds. Pronunciation activity is an important part of the language lab, and it involves active student participation. Through the use of the lab facilities, students are able to monitor their own progress and make corrections in their pronunciation. Students are also introduced to the importance of stress, intonation, reduction, and linking in oral English, and they practice creating the distinct rhythm and melody found in English speech. Special attention is paid to vowel and consonant groups that are particularly troublesome for learners from certain cultural backgrounds.