foreign instructors

Thu Apr 7 20:40:59 UTC 2005

Francis,

There's a website http://www.cnam.com/non_flash/language/american.html and
there are some "products" that can be purchased there; there are a lot of
recorded segments on the website, voices, accents, etc.

HS

On Thu, 7 Apr 2005, Francis M Hult wrote:

> Do you know if there are video or DVD versions of American Tongues for
> different international zones?  I've only been able to find the US version
> which wouldn't play in European VCRs, for example (at least I think that
> would be the case).
>
> Francis
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 07, 2005 at 11:01:00AM -0700, Aurolyn Luykx wrote:
> > Hi Anthea,
> > the film "American Tongues" is an excellent
> > presentation both of different U.S. English accents
> > and of the prejudices surrounding them. If you don't
> > know it, check it out. I use it for undergraduate
> > teaching and it's a real eye-opener for students
> > unfamiliar with sociolinguistic issues.
> > Aurolyn
> >
> >
> > --- "Harold F. Schiffman"
> > <haroldfs at ccat.sas.upenn.edu> wrote:
> >
> > > Anthea and all:
> > >
> > > I just wanted to share a little experience I have
> > > had with this 'foreign'
> > > accent stuff.  I am American-born, "Caucasian", a
> > > native speaker of
> > > English, raised mostly in the east and midwest. I
> > > taught for 28 years in
> > > Seattle (on the west coast), and there I
> > > occasionally was asked (e.g. in
> > > linguistics courses or language-and-culture
> > > courses), by people from the
> > > west coast (some from rural areas, to be sure) if I
> > > was "from this
> > > country."  They meant from the US, not from
> > > Washington State. So the low
> > > tolerance for any difference, and the reports that
> > > students perceive a
> > > voice as "less comprehensible" if matched with an
> > > Asian face, resonate
> > > with me.  Many state universities have gone through
> > > this business about
> > > the lack of comprehensibility of "foreign" accents,
> > > and attempts to train
> > > TA's to "enunciate more clearly" or whatever have
> > > been mostly a waste of
> > > time, IMHO.
> > >
> > > I once participated (since I was chair of a dept. of
> > > Asian languages) in
> > > discussions in the UW graduate school about how to
> > > help these "foreign"
> > > students to be more comprehensible; my suggestions
> > > were ignored.  But note
> > > also the lack of training reported by some of these
> > > instructors--thrown
> > > into a classroom with no preparation.  Some might
> > > benefit from training in
> > > some kind of pedagogy (as we are forced to do in our
> > > language
> > > departments). Math and science courses are
> > > notoriously bad, from the
> > > pedagogical standpoint.  One math prof told me they
> > > don't care how bad
> > > Calculus is taught--the good ones will get it, and
> > > the rest will drop out.
> > >
> > > On the question about ordinary Americans talking
> > > about their accents--yes,
> > > stigmatized accents (New York, southern) are
> > > discussed, mocked, ridiculed.
> > > Others not so much...  But the idea that Brits are
> > > more tolerant is new to
> > > me--we get the impression that there's a lot more
> > > fussing out class
> > > accents--like the fact that Mrs. Thatcher was hated
> > > (?) for her "fake"
> > > Oxbridge accent, which she hadn't acquired
> > > rightfully.
> > >
> > > Hal Schiffman
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Thu, 7 Apr 2005, Anthea Fraser Gupta wrote:
> > >
> > > > This seems a very fair and balanced article, that
> > > puts forward factors
> > > > concerning the speaker's skills, the hearer's
> > > skills, the cultural
> > > > setting, and prejudice.
> > > >  It strikes me that I have the impression that
> > > 'accented English' and
> > > > 'English with an accent' is more used in the US
> > > than the UK. People in
> > > > the UK talk about 'foreign accents' where foreign
> > > is shorthand for
> > > > 'assumed non-native', and make assumptions that if
> > > you are not from an
> > > > inner circle country you won't be a native speaker
> > > of English. There is
> > > > certainly this shared prejudicial system on both
> > > sides of the Atlantic.
> > > > But we also talk about British accents -- A LOT.
> > > Do ordinary American
> > > > talk about their own accents????
> > >
> > > >  This posting isn't very well thought through, but
> > > I do have the feeling
> > > > that there is something very different across the
> > > Atlantic in terms of
> > > > attitudes to accents. I notice on Ask-a-linguist
> > > that a lot of Americans
> > > > have a strong idea that there is a correct way of
> > > speaking, and that
> > > > there is a great deal of hostility to Southern
> > > accents. I just have a
> > > > vague feeling that there is a more normative
> > > attitude to accents in the
> > > > US than in the UK. In the UK people certainly have
> > > prejudices of a
> > > > rather complex sort, but diversity seems to be
> > > better accepted.
> > > >
> > > > Anyone got any thoughts??? Evidence???
> > > >
> > > > Anthea
> > > > School of English, University of Leeds
> > > >
> > > > 	-----Original Message-----
> > > > 	From: owner-lgpolicy-list at ccat.sas.upenn.edu on
> > > behalf of Harold F. Schiffman
> > > > 	Sent: Wed 06/04/2005 21:14
> > > > 	To: Language Policy-List
> > > > 	Cc:
> > > > 	Subject:
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > 	>From the Chronicle of Higher Education, April 8,
> > > 2005
> > > >
> > > > 	http://chronicle.com/free/v51/i31/31a01001.htm
> > > >
> > > > 	Teach Impediment
> > > >
> > > > 	When the student can't understand the instructor,
> > > who is to blame?
> > > >
> > > > 	By JOHN GRAVOIS
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
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