Services / Pronunciation

Do you lack confidence speaking up at work because of your English pronunciation? Are you asked to repeat yourself on the telephone? Would you like to have better communication with clients and colleagues? Is it a barrier to your career advancement?

We focus on the elements of your speaking that make it difficult for people to understand you. We look at pronunciation from the listener’s point of view. Most other pronunciation courses focus on all elements of your pronunciation that are considered non-standard English pronunciation. We help you with the aspects of your pronunciation that are going to make a difference to your work and life.

Pronunciation Package

You will be required to submit a sample of your speech as audio (MP3) and text, responding to one of the following:

  • Tell me about yourself
  • Why have you applied for this job?
  • Tell me about a recent project

You will receive:

  • A diagnostic assessment – written report and consultation (1hr)
  • A model recording of your chosen text (MP3) in standard Australian English for you to use as a reference
  • A tailored remedial program (MP3 and text) for you to practise independently
  • Follow up advice

OBP Australia Pronunciation Training Technique

Learners of English tend to have difficulties with sounds that are not in their first language. For example, many Persian speakers have difficulty with the ‘th/th’( ᶞ /ᶱ ) sound because it doesn’t exist in Persian, and they approximate the sound with a ‘t’ or ‘d’. However, using a ‘t’ sound instead of ‘th’ rarely interferes with comprehensibility. Stress, intonation and vowel sounds, on the other hand, can have a major impact on comprehensibility. We will focus on the most critical elements of pronunciation particular to the influence of your first language.

Practise saying the things you need to say

Most job interviews in Australia are now conducted initially over the telephone as a screening device to check your communication skills. We help you with the pronunciation of your ‘elevator pitch’ (words used to ‘sell yourself’) when speaking to an employer.

For example, as a starting point, you practise your response to, ‘So, tell me about yourself’ – a very common interview prompt in Australia.Or, ‘Why have you applied for this job? If you can’t pronounce clearly the words critical to your profession, you are not going to make a good impression at interview. With a little practice, you can actually give the impression that your English is better than it really is, leaving the employer feeling that your communication skills are solid.

For example, a speaker of Korean may have problems with the word ‘distribution’ because of the consonant clusters, stress and vowel sounds. If that person is a logistics expert, he/she may have to say ‘distribution centre’ several times in the interview. It needs to be clear. We can help you identify your pronunciation issues and teach you how to overcome them.

What do you hear?

Before you can make changes to your pronunciation, you need to be able to hear the required sounds. We take you through a process that identifies what you are hearing, what you are producing, and what is the target pronunciation.

Pronunciation experts

We have vast experience working with learners of English and can show you time-saving techniques to improve your pronunciation, whether it is to secure that dream job or to advance your career with your current employer. We use a combination of one-to-one tuition and self-paced learning activities to help you speak English clearly and with confidence.

Five steps to better pronunciation

  1. You record and submit (MP3 & text) a workplace presentation or your response to an interview prompt. For example, ‘Report on the progress of your current project’, or‘Tell me about yourself.’
  2. We identify pronunciation issues, colour code the text (PDF) with explanations of each element and return a model version (MP3) of the spoken English.
  3. We provide separate model audio for each of the pronunciation errors, whether they are individual sounds, words or sentence stress & intonation, along with additional exercises focussing on your areas for improvement. We show you how to speak clearly by demonstrating a number of techniques focussing on your tongue, lips, voice, breath, jaw, etc. which enable you to make the required sounds.
  4. You submit your second attempt after you have had time to practise the elements identified as areas for improvement
  5. We provide a second critique and offer suggestions for future pronunciation development.

Our approach to pronunciation empowers you to take charge of your own learning and not be dependent on a teacher.