How will accent reduction help my organization?
Accent reduction training at ARI:
- Increases sales and maximizes profitability
- Removes language barriers and miscommunications
- Facilitates effective teamwork
- Creates inclusive environments
- Contributes to the bottom line
- Removes language barriers and miscommunications
How can my organization measure the benefits of an accent reduction course?
ARI's ROI Calculator measures how much money an organization saves, in dollars and cents, by providing our accent reduction programs to their workforce.
The data provides ROI metrics specific to each program, each participant, and each client.
ARI's ROI Calculator consistently shows that the cost of an ARI accent reduction course pays for itself after the second, one-hour session.
How will an accent coach help my employees?
According to a 2008 survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, communication skills are the number one quality sought by employers.
Improved pronunciation:
- Creates opportunities for career advancement
- Raises confidence
- Facilitates effective teamwork
- Improves employee-customer relations
Will people be offended if I offer accent reduction training?
Our experience has been that non-native English speakers welcome the opportunity to build effective communication skills and “level the playing field”.
Accent reduction at ARI is built around eliminating language barriers while helping people maintain their unique cultural identities. We recognize that an accent is a speech pattern; we all have an accent.
Accent reduction training is typically offered as part of an American Diversity initiative. Our faculty members are experts at culturally competent training.
How long does it take to get results?
Using ARI's accent reduction methodology and curriculum, improvement is noticeable in just two hourly sessions. A full curriculum is determined by the client's level of proficiency.
Instruction does not typically go beyond 20 total hours.
Where do accent reduction classes take place?
Classes and workshops are offered at any of the following:
- The client's workplace
- At our offices
- Via tele-conferencing, video-conferencing, and web-conferencing
Are Accent Reduction Institute instructors qualified?
ARI's faculty of accent coaches are certified speech language pathologists, linguists, and/or university level instructors who are certified in the Ravin Method®of rapid language acquisition. They have the most comprehensive training available for effective teaching of accent reduction techniques.
All instructors are highly trained in cultural competency.
Are results measurable?
ARI students have preset objectives with a specified length of coursework duration.
A language proficiency assessment is available prior to the start of the program.
A progress report is also available for students and/or employers at the conclusion of each course.
Does the Accent Reduction Institute offer customized programs?
Yes; ARI will customize our training programs to fit your organization’s needs.
We create customized software learning tools to support your training objectives.
Our programs are scalable to meet national and/or global initiatives.
Does accent reduction really work?
Yes; ARI training with a certified accent coach allows our clients to quickly, decisively, and permanently change the motor memory of their speech apparatus.
In doing so, our clients easily master English sounds that had previously been impossible to pronounce.
What will I learn in an English pronunciation class?
ARI's English pronunciation classes teach the aspect of English fluency that is typically left out of a traditional ESL course: pronunciation.
Pronunciation training includes standard American English vowels and consonants, as well as the patterns of rhythm, stress, and intonation that are used in everyday speech.
Does ARI teach intonation as part of its American English pronunciation training?
Yes, intonation is an essential part of American English speech patterns.
Your intonation, or the pitch of your voice, helps your listener understand your message and will also allow them to determine if you are asking a question or providing information.
Furthermore, intonation patterns engage your listener, give vitality to your speech, and indicate when you have completed your thought. Patterns of intonation in American English differ from patterns in other languages, so they are an indispensable component of any English fluency course.
I've been in the US a long time. Why is English pronunciation still difficult?
One of the most difficult things about English pronunciation is that English is not a phonetic language.
A person cannot look at a word and determine from its spelling how that word should be pronounced. For instance, although there are only five vowels (or six, if you include 'y') in the English alphabet, there are twenty-one vowel sounds in spoken English.
To further complicate things, when it comes to English grammar, there are no absolutes. Children in every English classroom in the United States are taught there is an exception to every rule in grammar.
Another difficult aspect of English pronunciation for non-native English speakers is the muscle movements you must learn to create in producing standard American English sounds. At first, these movements may feel unnatural and strange. They are often very different from the movements made while speaking in one's native language. However, through pronunciation training, which must include instruction and guided feedback, we know everyone can produce every sound in every human language.
Do you teach American pronunciation or British English pronunciation?
We teach standard American English pronunciation to serve the needs of US-based corporations and people who do business with the American workforce and client base.
What software do you use? Why don't you use voice recognition software?
The Accent Reduction Institute uses proprietary software developed by Menlo Innovations, a company that creates software learning tools with the end user in mind. Our software is easy to use and combines text, video, and audio input to teach patterns of standard American English pronunciation.
We've found that voice recognition software has two inherent problems:
- It is difficult to use, in that it identifies mispronunciations but does not inform the user how to correct them.
- Speech recognition has become "too good" in recent years, so that it "understands" what the speaker is saying even when a mispronunciation occurs. Hence the learning opportunity is lost.
What is the difference between accent reduction, accent modification, and accent neutralization?
These are three terms used to describe the same kind of accent training.
They all share a common objective: to learn articulation techniques needed for speaking with standard pronunciation
Is an English pronunciation training class the same thing as a course in presentation skills?
No.
Although English pronunciation training includes intonation and voice projection skills, which are critical to a successful presentation, the focus is on accurate articulation.
Presentation skills typically address how a speaker can present information and field questions. English pronunciation, on the other hand, teaches the best ways to produce consonant and vowel sounds, as well as patterns of rhythm, stress, and intonation that don't occur in other languages.
How does the Ravin Method® differ from other methods of pronunciation training?
While many other pronunciation training methods rely on a "listen and repeat" process for speech training, the Ravin Method® is different because it is auditory, visual, and kinesthetic.
- First, the Ravin Method® is based on the recognition that many people cannot initially hear the difference between various sounds of a new language. If you can't hear the difference, you cannot simply listen and repeat the sound.
- However, with the Ravin Method®, learners are taught the kinesthetic differences between sounds, or the different placement of one's speech apparatus (tongue, teeth, gum ridge, lips, and jaw). Thus, even if you can't hear the difference, you can feel it and you can see the way your speech apparatus should look.
- Through pictures, video clips, and training, the Ravin Method® reinforces the production of sounds that occur in standard American English but may not occur in other languages.
The methodology is rooted in the core disciplines of cognitive neurology, speech pathology, and applied linguistics.