Pronunciation Matters - re-thinking goals, priorities and models

What is the connection between pronunciation and other areas of learning English? How do we choose a model and priorities for ourselves and our learners? What do we do if our own accent isn’t 'BBC'? This thought-provoking talk by Robin Walker took place at the Creative ELT Conference, organised by the British Council in Madrid, September 2014.

Robin Walker

The arrival of communicative approaches in the early 1980s has led us to the point where pronunciation now occupies an uncomfortable place in the world of ELT. As a result of this, pronunciation teaching raises a number of questions, such as the exact connection between pronunciation and other areas of learning English, the right choice of priorities and models for learners, or what we do as teachers if we don't have a standard native speaker accent? This talk looks at all of these issues and provides clear guidelines as to how we should proceed in each area.

This talk was part of the Creative ELT Conference, organised by the British Council in Madrid, September 2014.

About the speaker

Robin has worked in English Language Teaching since 1981. He now works as a freelance teacher, teacher educator, ELT author, and ELT consultant, and regularly collaborates with teacher training centres around Spain, with Oxford University Press,  Oxford University Press España, Trinity College London, and  Servicios y Gestión Educativa. His main interests are pronunciation, teacher education, and English for Specific Purposes (ESP).

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Find out more about pronunciation on Robin Walker’s excellent blog.

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