Podcast Tips
Is a Foreign Accent a Speech Disorder?
Have you ever thought of a foreign accent as a disorder? Most of the time it is absolutely not a disorder but sometimes it is. Let me explain.
A foreign accent which has developed following the learning of second language is not considered a speech disorder. Since second language learning differs from a first language, we are likely to develop an accent in the second language because we adopt the speech and language characteristics of our native tongue and apply the same rules to the new language. But a speech disorder implies that there is some neurological component that creates a disruption in normal speech.
Foreign accent syndrome (FAS) is a rare and acquired speech disorder. In many cases, it is caused by a stroke. Damage to the brain affects the rhythm and melody of speech. If you have FAS, you adopt what sounds like a foreign accent, even though you may never have traveled to that particular country.
A foreign accent acquired because of a stroke is considered a disorder but a foreign accent that develops because of second language learning is not a “disorder” If you would like to read more about this rare and unusual disorder, go to the websites listed below (or search Foreign Accent Syndrome for more articles):
http://health.msn.com/health-topics/foreign-accent-syndrome-for-beginners
http://www.vpr.net/npr/136824428/
What Does Aspiration Have to do with Speech?
What does aspiration have to do with speech? That is a good question! Aspiration has many different meanings. The word is always used as a noun but it has very different meanings.
- Having goals and ambitions
- Removing fluid or liquid
- Inhaling fluid or an object into the lungs
- Or in phonetics, articulation means using a puff of air to release certain sounds.
That is the definition I want to talk about today. Many languages fail to use this manner of speech in their native tongue. So when they speak American English, the component of speech is not present. When we make a speech sound we are changing the shape of the oral cavity and sending air through it. Sometimes, the air is completely unrestricted, sometimes it is partially obstructed or completely obstructed. The sounds that I am talking about today have airflow that is completely stopped by placing the tongue or lips in a certain position. When the airflow is stopped we hear a puff of air.
Listen for the puff as I say these sounds. I’ll exaggerate it a little.
/P, t, k/
Where problems arise with this type of sound is not being able to hear that puff of air. So, that the sound is UN-aspirated. If that is the case, the sound is very hard to hear or it sounds like another sound. Let me give you an example.
Pat
Top
Come
When they are pronounced without aspiration, they sound like bat, dob, gum
A lot of languages have difficulty with this puff of air on a least one of the aspirated consonants. Some languages have difficulty will all of the consonants listed above. See the list below of the 26 languages that struggle with this skill.
Arabic, Burmese, Catalan, Creole, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hindi, Hungarian, Ilokano, Indonesian, Italian, Malayalam, Polish, Portugese, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Tagalog, Tamil, Urdu, Vietnamese, Yoruba. (from Foreign Accent Norms of American English for 40 of the World’s Languages by Arthur Compton, Ph.D., 1996 Carousel House.)
If you see your native tongue listed above, would you be interested in a lesson around this skill? I would love to know and would create one for you. Please complete the quick survey below.
Thank you for your vote!
Are You Heard When You Speak?
Are you always heard when you speak? There are many people who wish to project their voice more to be better understood. In fact, many executives both male and female, ask me why others have a hard time hearing them and what they can do to project their voice."
There are two primary reasons that a voice can lack loudness:
1) Inadequate breath support
2) Inadequate mouth opening
First, an inability to project comes from inadequate breath support we’ve talked about . The vocal cords need to be supported by the muscular action of the diaphragm. Since our vocal cords vibrate because of the air we force from our lungs, it is a simple matter of forcing more airstream. Many people take inadequate breaths. If you would like to learn more about breath support, go to the podcast on my site that covers this skill in more detail. This skill can be developed so that you are using good breath support even while talking.
The second reason some people don't project well is because they don't open their mouth wide enough when they speak. There are native English speakers and non-native speakers who have learned to barely open their mouth when they speak. The mouth opening is more clenched.
If you think of your vocal tract as a megaphone that begins at the small opening of the vocal cords and opens up wider and wider so that your mouth is the end of the megaphone, the wider the mouth opening, the better the sound will carry out of your mouth.
Posture Yourself for Success!
I’ve talked about the importance of proper breath support for speech and how to do in previous podcasts. Good breath support hinges on good posture. Today, we are going to use the checklist below to check your own posture.
This is a modified version from a great book called, Training and Use of the Human Voice, Arthur Lessac, 1967.)
Pretend you are a puppet being held from a string attached to the crown of your head. As I PULL on the string, your body is straightened from head to toe.
- Your head is straight
- Your shoulders are level –back is expanded with maximum space between shoulder blades.
- Overall chest is expanded but active breathing is abdominal.
- Hands fall slightly in front of your thighs.
- Your hips are level.
- Your kneecaps face the front—knees are unlocked and loose
- Your ankles are straight
You are in the home position.
- Now turn to the side (or have someone else check you out):
- Your head is straight rather than slumped forwards or backwards
- Chin is parallel to the floor-not raised
- Shoulders are in line with the ears
- Knees are straight –feet are facing forward 6-8 inches apart.
- Slight forward curve to your lower back
You are standing with great support and not looking anything like this woman.
Now what about those of you who sit at a desk all day? Let’s talk about your sitting posture. For the appropriate sitting posture:
- Sit with your shoulders and back firmly against the back of your chair.
- Alternately, sit forward with your shoulders back and straight.
- Keep chin level, not raised or too far down.
- Breathe with the diaphragm.
Monitor your breathing as you sit—does your stomach rise and fall as you inhale and exhale? It should. Good breath support is essential for a great voice that projects and stays healthy. While there may be a temptation to slouch, posture yourself for success by standing and sitting tall!
American Vowels Are Confusing Part 2
Today we are going to talk about another vowel that has multiple spellings and can make English very confusing. I would think that it is extremely difficult for the non-native English to master! Spell check is nice in this case but what do you do when you are reading something that has unfamiliar words and you aren’t sure what vowel sound to use? For example, the "aw" sound. Look at the words below and see all the different spellings of this vowel.
Au as in author
Aw as in paws
O as in loft
A as in hall
Al as in balk
Augh as in taught
Ough as in ought
That’s seven different spellings! Any of those spellings with consonants indicate that the consonant(s) in that word is silent. You might have difficulties with this sound if your native tongue is Burmese, Hindi, Japanese, Navajo, Tamil, or Urdu. My suggestion to you is to buy a dictionary that uses the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). Spend some time to learn this phonetic alphabet, if you don’t know it already. With this tool, you can learn the pronunciation of any word because it will use one symbol per sound (unlike English which uses multiple spellings for one sound.) You could say this sentence without any difficulty (provided you could pronounce the sound).
Don’t be intimated. It is easy to learn this alphabet and significantly assists the language learner in great pronunciation. Not sure if you are pronouncing the sound correctly? Listen to my two pronunciations of two words. Can you hear a difference in the vowel sound between the pairs of words? I’ll say them twice each.
But—bought
Ma—maw
Boil—ball
The second word in each pair is the /aw/ sound. If you can hear a difference, then try to imitate the two words like I say them. Use the recorder below to practice.
Here is a suggested resource:
A Pronouncing Dictionary of American English by John Samuel Kenyon This book is only word pronunciation (no definitions) and it uses the IPA. Are you curious about that sentence written in IPA? Here is the answer: Good communication is key to success.
Would you like to learn about the American English Vowel system? Attend a webinar on the most popular vowel sound to learn English vowels. Find out more here.
Page 1 of 15
