Anyone else noticing elocution lessons becoming popular again?

[Redroktim]

I used to do speech and drama at school and really enjoyed it. I think it's helped my career in journalism and marketing.

I've noticed amongst my peers that they have wanted to have elocution lessons. These are people from all backgrounds wanting to know how to speak clearly.

I would be interested to hear if anyone else has also noticed a rise in people wanting to speak proper!

[rocking]

Hi, it seems to me that more and more people in big cities in CHina now have the chance to improve their voice presentation - not only are there foreigners (mainly English speakers) running classes, but there are Chinese tutors offering private lessons - it was something unheard of a decade ago except formal voice traning for broadcasters or acting.

[Raymott]

Originally Posted by Redroktim

I would be interested to hear if anyone else has also noticed a rise in people wanting to speak proper!

Maybe you would, or maybe you're just advertising your product.
But no, I haven't heard of an increase in native English speakers wanting elocution lessons recently. In fact, there's probably a trend in the other direction - retaining one's accent for purposes of social identity.

[realxandspeak]

I have taught speech for over 10 years in the U.S., and have difinitely noticed more teachers getting involved in this fascinating profession. However, I'm not sure about the rise in students ratio. I suspect that with the interest in news and entertainment in the past few years and the conversion of news reporting becoming more and more video based, (as opposed to print) I can only assume people are wanting to jump on the band wagon of sounding like thier favorite "celebrity' or "political leader". Whatever the cause for action, I think it is better for all to want to speak better. Your never too late to learn something new. Accent reduction, American pronunciation, American accent training classes.