Pronunciation / Rapid Listening Skills

If you cannot hear a sound, you cannot pronounce it - and if you cannot pronounce it, you cannot hear it. This principle of language learning means that adult learners have great difficulty learning to hear and speak a second language. The only way to overcome the difficulty is to practice extensively, using good models of speech. In this course, students will not improve miraculously, but they will learn study habits and identify materials they can use for the hundreds of hours of practice necessary to improve their English speaking and listening. Key elements in the course will be sample materials for practicing sounds, stresses, and intonation typical of English pronunciation. It is the goal of this course overall to improve clarity, accuracy, and understanding of spoken English through study and practice of pronunciation as they occur in real speech.

1. Develop effective study habits and routines to improve their pronunciation and speech clarity without compromising their speech identity.
2. Gain insight into the ways in which native English speakers use elision, reduction, and linking (prosody) when speaking which enables them to speak faster, swifter, and smoother than non-native speakers.

English language learner who would like to improve their clarity of speech and develop a more finely tuned ear for listening to English.
English Level: Intermediate to Advanced

No required textbook

Ron Scott

Ron Scott has been teaching English in and around Tokyo since arriving in Japan in July 2005. From Canada, Ron obtained both an honours Bachelor's degree in Drama and Psychology from McMaster University and a Master's in Drama Therapy from Concordia University.
An avid traveler, Ron travelled around the world on a cruise ship, running a recreational facility for children. Ron has also been acting and making people laugh since an early age, and is very active in the Tokyo English theatre community.
Due to his interest in acting, and particularly in comedy, Ron is very interested in and specializes in teaching both natural English and how we can use comedy and humor to communicate, connect, and create deeper relationships with others.