• Saba Kamal

  Author

English language is one of the means of communication in the Sultanate of Oman. It is
the major tool or medium of communication between Omanis and foreigners/expatriates from
all over the world who are working here or who make a visit. Communication and exact
pronunciation are major difficulties in learning of any other language. Difficulty as defined in
literature is an act that is hard to accomplish, deal with, or understand. On the other hand,
learning is a process that has many categories of difficulties. Sometimes difficulties like
emotional and motivational barriers work as major hurdles. The study was based on two above
learning processes. Difficulties were considered as parameters to assess the capabilities of local
Omanis in learning English language. Data obtained from this study confirmed the effect of
studied factors on the learner’s ability in respect of communication and pronunciation. From
comparative study of both learning factors pronunciation and communication, it was noted that
sensitivity, showed most severity for pronunciation while idleness for communication. The main
reason behind this high severity might be the culture, hesitation to talk to others. In such cases,
the combined effect of fear and shame make it more severe. However, learners affected by
sensitivity have sufficient intelligence and they are very able to learn.

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