I was cheered when I heard that from now on this class will
focus on pronunciation. Finally an English lesson which is not about writing! Sure writing is a very important part of our
studies, I can cope with that but I really missed using the language more in
real life than on a piece of paper. So I am already curious to what extend my
pronunciation will change if I follow the guidelines provided by Rachel and Amy.
My goal is to speak clearer. I sometimes realize that instead of speaking in a clear tone, I just start to mumble. I don’t know the reason why. Maybe because I think that way no one realizes that I pronounce something wrong. Another problem I often get confronted with is that I place the emphasis incorrectly. I have to learn emphasizing the right part of a word, because mistakes like a mispronounced word make it obvious that you have deficiencies. As I live every semester with at least one native speaker of English, I have often the opportunity to speak with someone and I try to learn as much as possible from these conversations. For example, I ask them to correct me as soon as they hear something pronounced wrong.
Music must have been the biggest help for me in learning English pronunciation. Honestly, my English teachers in High School were all good teachers but they all had a very strong accent and if I would have listened more to them, then I wouldn't be here. Watching movies in English and listening to a lot of lyrically more complex music helped me more in practicing pronunciation than English class in High School. Analyzing lyrics and listening to them a hundred times helps you remember certain words and not just the word itself but how it is pronounced.
I know, listening to music and analyzing lyrics won't be enough to sound like a native speaker, so I will apply the same strategy for pronunciation practice as for vocab learning. Start early enough and do it every day. Step by step I go through Rachel's videos according to what I want to get better at. I'm already curious how it will change my pronunciation.
My goal is to speak clearer. I sometimes realize that instead of speaking in a clear tone, I just start to mumble. I don’t know the reason why. Maybe because I think that way no one realizes that I pronounce something wrong. Another problem I often get confronted with is that I place the emphasis incorrectly. I have to learn emphasizing the right part of a word, because mistakes like a mispronounced word make it obvious that you have deficiencies. As I live every semester with at least one native speaker of English, I have often the opportunity to speak with someone and I try to learn as much as possible from these conversations. For example, I ask them to correct me as soon as they hear something pronounced wrong.
Music must have been the biggest help for me in learning English pronunciation. Honestly, my English teachers in High School were all good teachers but they all had a very strong accent and if I would have listened more to them, then I wouldn't be here. Watching movies in English and listening to a lot of lyrically more complex music helped me more in practicing pronunciation than English class in High School. Analyzing lyrics and listening to them a hundred times helps you remember certain words and not just the word itself but how it is pronounced.
I know, listening to music and analyzing lyrics won't be enough to sound like a native speaker, so I will apply the same strategy for pronunciation practice as for vocab learning. Start early enough and do it every day. Step by step I go through Rachel's videos according to what I want to get better at. I'm already curious how it will change my pronunciation.
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