Category Archives: Pronunciation

TV's only phonemic chart quote?

Posted on 25/03/2008 by alexcase

“No children, you are not seeing things. This, my little friends, is a schwa!”

Posted in Phonemic script, Pronunciation, Schwa, TEFL, Weak forms | Leave a comment

Changing your accent with your whole body

Posted on 09/03/2008 by alexcase

“Only half of the activations in the brain were to do with the speech and language areas. The voice is not just coming from your lips. It’s coming from the whole body and you need to think about that when … Continue reading →

Posted in English as an International Language/ Lingua Franca, Pronunciation, TEFL villains- Jennifer Jenkins, TPR | Leave a comment

For your information

Posted on 25/02/2008 by alexcase

Thought I’d pass these tongue twisters onto everyone, because that is after all what the internet is for… With translations in Italian left in, just to prove that all TEFL teachers are exactly the kind of cultured, sophisticated people that … Continue reading →

Posted in Difficult sounds, Pronunciation | 1 Comment

Why are there so many bad English teachers in Japan?

Posted on 10/08/2007 by alexcase

After training, recruiting, observing and chatting with English teachers and students in Turkey, Thailand, Spain, Italy, the UK (meaning teachers and students from everywhere) and spending 4 years in Japan, I have come to the conclusion that the average level of … Continue reading →

Posted in Classroom management, Learner motivation, Learner training, Pairwork and groupwork, Phonemic script, Pronunciation, Teacher training, Teaching English in Japan, TEFL, TESOL | 4 Comments

Read article + talk about article = learn a language

Posted on 07/08/2007 by alexcase

This is the one simple recipe that teachers all over Japan are using to raise the level of their students’ English: Take one copy of the Japan Times that you were going to read anyway Cut out one topical and/ or cultural article … Continue reading →

Posted in Business English and ESP, Classroom management, EFL exams, Learner motivation, Lesson planning, Linguistics, applied linguistics and SLA, Mixed ability classes, Pairwork and groupwork, Phonemic script, Social English, Speaking, Staging, TEFL | 3 Comments