Unit 2. Accents (2).

English as an International Language

Unit 2; Part A

In this book...
... you will use British English as a model for pronunciation.	In particular, you will use the variety that has come to be known as'BBC English'. BBC English is the pronunciation used by speakers suchas newsreaders and announcers on television and radio, including theWorld Service. Some of these speakers have regional accents from theUnited Kingdom, such as Scottish, Welsh or Northern Irish accents, butthe accent you will hear is typical of those with anEnglish accent. This accent is taken as the 'model' because it is awidely broadcast and respected variety, and for most people is easilyunderstood.
... you will hear a wide variety of English accents.	Recorded material used mainly for listening includes speakers withdifferent English accents. Some have English as their first language(e.g. from Australia and the United States), while others have Englishas a second or foreign language (e.g. from Japan and Poland). This willhelp prepare you to understand different pronunciations of English.Information about where speakers come from is given in the Key.

Unit 2; Part B

Important for listening!

The use of English has spread far beyond those countries where it isused as a firt language. In some countries, such as India, Malawi, thePhilippines and Singapore, 2.1.jpg

English is an important second language formany speakers, and has often become the language used in officialcontexts such as courts, parliament and higher education. Morerecently, many other countries, such as Brazil, China, Thailand andRussia, have recognised the importance of English as an internationallanguage of communication, and encouraged its teaching in schools andcolleges. In each country, the English spoken is influenced by otherlanguages widely used there, and each variety is different in featuresof its grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.

The widespread use of English as an international language means thatmuch of the interaction in English that now goes on around the world isbetween speakers who don't have English as a first language. Forexample, when German and Spanish politicians meet to discuss policiesof the European Union, their chosen language of communication mightwell be English. The same might apply when Saudi Arabian and Japanesepeople meet to do business.

Unit 2; Part C

Important for listening!
The consequence of this is that there is an enormous variety of accentsof English in addition to those of 'British English', 'AmericanEnglish', 'Australian English' and so on, and you may be more likely tospeak to people with 'Indian English', 'Singaporean English' or'Russian English' pronunciation.
It would be impossible, however, tolearn to 'switch' your pronunciation each time you were talking to aspeaker with a variety of English different from your own - to use anAustralian English pronunciation with an Australian, or Chinese Englishpronunciation with a Chinese person. Consequently, it is useful to'model' your pronunciation on one variety - but also recognise thatthis is just one of many equally acceptable varieties.

Exercises

1 Where do you think the speakers are from?

You will hear speakers with international accents of English fromfive countries talking about their families. Where do you think theyare from? Listen and write the name of the country in the space.

Speaker 1 is from ________________
Speaker 2 is from ________________
Speaker 3 is from ________________
Speaker 4 is from ________________
Speaker 5 is from ________________

Now check youranswers in the Key. Which of these accents do you find easiest tounderstand and which most difficult? Can you say why? Which of theseEnglish accents is closest to your own?

2 Listen. You will hear the same text read by different speakers.

Listen. You will hear the same text read three times: first by aspeaker of BBC English, second by a speaker of Jamaican English, andthird by a Polish speaker of English. They are talking about movinginto a new house and some of the things they have had to buy.
Hereare some notes on how the pronunciation in part of the reading by thespeaker of Jamaican English is different from that in the reading bythe speaker of BBC English.

2.3.jpg

Now do the same for
this part of the text
read by the Polish
speaker of English.

... I had to do quite a lot of decorating. I've
wallpapered the bedroomand painted the
bathroom so far but there's still quite a lot to
do.But I'm in no hurry and I'm really enjoying
it. It's great having myown place at last.

3 Practise listening to people with these accents.

Are there any accents of English that are of particular interest or importance to you?
Practise listening to people with these accents as much as possible.

Follow up:Record yourself reading the text in exercise 2. Practise a few timesbefore recording. Then write out the text again, and make notes on it,highlighting diferences between your pronunciation and that of thespeaker of BBC English. (Alternatively, you could get a friend orteacher to make notes for you.)

Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3

Офис - это место принятия самых ответственных решений, именно поэтому офисная мебель Киев должна быть комфортной и уютной.