(Notation Variations)

PROS AND CONS

NOTATIONAL VARIATIONS

page 1

II. Pros and Cons Page 3

(1) English Spelling

     Pro

          a) It is the most commonly used system

      Con

           a) One letter can be used to represent many  different sounds

           b) There is no clear way to represent sounds outside of language (i.e. nonsense

                sounds)

(2) International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

     Pro

          a) Specific symbols do represent specific sounds

          b) Symbols can represent sounds not used in of English

          c) The symbols are recognized by linguists

     Con

          a) Each symbol is based on the use of a specific sound in a specific word; the

              user must know the word in the language

          b) The symbols don't describe how the sounds are made

           c) There is no relationship between symbols; there is no sense of the movement

              of articulation as the speaker progresses from one sound to another