Accent modification

It is natural and beautiful to have an accent! However, Standard American English, for better or worse, is the language of choice in many professional, academic, and certain social circles in the United States, and your non-native or non-standard accent may be attracting unwanted attention in your spoken interactions. A number of speech parameters can contribute to an accent. Areas for improvement may include the following:

• Articulation

• Stress and rhythm

• Intonation

• Blending

• Overall speech fluency

• Linguistic and cultural comparisons

I use linguistic analysis to identify your speech skills and determine how they relate to your native language or dialect. Audio and video recording often is key to building awareness and making small but important changes in your speech.

Quick tips

Listen to a radio or TV news broadcast, and repeat back tricky words as you hear them.

Compile a list of tricky words and practice them.

Try to notice the stress patterns of words and phrases that challenge you. It may be the stress that's the problem rather than your articulation of a particular consonant or vowel.

Speak more slowly to give your listener a better chance of understanding you.