How do I get rid off my student's accent?

[Zelicious]

Hello, I have started giving private one-on-one English lessons to my Thai student, who is studying intermediate level English. She needs to focus on conversational English, and needs to get rid of her accent.

I literally have no experience in teaching adults. I would like get some suggestions from other teachers from this forum. I, myself, am still a student and currently doing for my IELTS. Any suggestions are welcome and thanks in advance.

Crystal

[konungursvia]

You can't get rid of an accent without exposure to a community that doesn't have that accent. Studying phonetics will help, like poor Eliza Doolittle, but then you'd still have to choose an accent to emulate.

[TheParser]

Hello, I have started giving private one-on-one English lessons to my Thai student, who is studying intermediate level English. She needs to focus on conversational English, and needs to get rid of her accent.

I literally have no experience in teaching adults. I would like get some suggestions from other teachers from this forum. I, myself, am still a student and currently doing for my IELTS. Any suggestions are welcome and thanks in advance.

Crystal

NOT A TEACHER


(1) Several years ago, I knew an outstanding teacher at the

best adult ESL school in the United States (only in my opinion,

of course) who did not do accent reduction per se, but who did

teach them how to pronounce every letter of the alphabet

correctly (that is, where to put the tongue). She also told her

adoring students that they would never get rid of their

accents completely. I guess that she was right, for I guess that

an adult will always have a trace of accent.

(2) She also wrote a fantastic book showing the students

exactly where to put their tongues to produce the desired

sound. I assume that you have bought a book of this kind to

guide you.


Respectfully yours,


James


P.S. I have placed the following information here so that a moderator

can easily and cleanly delete it if she/he decides to do so. This website

allows posters to recommend books if it feels that the poster is not

sneaking in an advertisement. The book is entitled Realistically

Speaking. The author is Planaria Price.

[GUS22]

How do you get rid of your accent ?
We all have accents they arent a problem - what is a problem is when someones accent is so strong you cant understand them. Then you have to teach phonetics. Thais will mix r and l a lot. They will also have problems with TH sounds. You have to teach them where to position their tongue etc.

[AlexAD]

Hello.
I'm not a teacher nor a native speaker

I am sorry to intrude but may I ask you Zelicious what's the point of getting rid of local accent by a one who is understood by natives? I recognize that the question migh have raised by a student but if I were you I would ask them about it. It can hardly ever be something tied up with the skills required by an employer. Please reply if I'm wrong.

I think that if you're a native you'll speak like a native, otherwise you won't and you can't help it.

In addition I agree with TheParser in that you couldn't speak like natives if you didn't grow up among them.

Thank you,
Alex.

[konungursvia]

Hello.

I'm not a teacher nor a native speaker

I am sorry to intrude but may I ask you Zelicious what's the point of getting rid of local accent by a one who is understood by natives? I recognize that the question might have raised by a student so if I were you I would ask them about it. It can hardly ever be something tied up with the skills required by an employer. Please reply if I'm wrong.

I think that if you're a native you'll speak like a native, otherwise you won't and you can't help it.

In addition I agree with TheParser and konungursvia in that you couldn't speak like natives if you didn't grow up among them.

Thank you,
Alex.

I think it's pretty common for a learner not to want interference from their mother tongue in the second language. Isn't that obvious? Would you aim to keep an American accent while learning French?

[suikerbossie]

If one speaks correctly and can be understood, why complicate life by trying to get rid of an accent?

Maybe I wouldn't keep an American accent when trying to speak French, but a French accent when speaking English is attractive.

My opinion only.

[GUS22]

My father is/was Czech and is now a leading Psychologist in the UK. He came to England in 1968 . As a top academic his use of English is far more advanced and sophisticated than many people born in the UK and his vocabulary a lot larger seeing as he has a brain the size of a planet. He still has a Czech accent though.

[AlexAD]

I think it's pretty common for a learner not to want interference from their mother tongue in the second language. Isn't that obvious? Would you aim to keep an American accent while learning French?

Yes that's pretty obvious, but I think it's a mistake when some people stick to its own language while learning foreign one.

[GUS22]

Actually the only person who I have ever met in my life who actually fooled me into believing they were a native speaker was a Thai (I taught in Pak Chong 180 km north of Bangkok) . I sincerely thought she was American. My jaw dropped when she told me she was Thai. Astonished, I asked her where she learnt English - the answer - watching movies !