Call for a 30 minute no cost, no obligation telephone consultation.
We will offer a customized course proposal for your organization or corporation.
At Clear Speech Specialists, our goal is to teach non-native English speakers exactly what to do differently in order to be clearly understood the FIRST time they speak!
Our emphasis is on training the standard "intonation" (or word stress, rhythm and musical cadence) of English, as this carries 60-70% of the meaning of your message to your listeners. Correct pronunciation of vowels and consonants is also emphasized, to polish your pronunciation and help listeners hear the words and phrases you intended. Do you avoid certain words because of the embarrassment you might experience if they are misunderstood? With a little polishing of your vowel pronunciation, you can speak without hesitation or fear!
Clear Speech Specialists offers effective, short-term American English speaking programs for corporations and self-referred professionals to help improve pronunciation in professional, public, and social speaking situations. Class size, format, and content varies to meet the needs and interests of our clients.
We offer group training sessions and individual (one-on-one) instruction as well as workshops that focus on specific pronunciation topics. Our courses teach Standard American English (SAE) intonation and pronunciation, also referred to as American Broadcaster English (as you might hear from news anchors on national television newscasts). This "accent" is considered a neutral accent, not strongly influenced by the regional dialects of coastal states or other regions. Our programs are designed to cover a wide range of learner interests from basic, introductory level learning to advanced level courses. We support and encourage clients' success and provide the means necessary to achieve greater speech clarity and reduced speaking frustration. Accent elimination is not our goal!
All training is conducted or supervised by a state licensed speech-language pathologist who is nationally certified by the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA).
Are you fluent in English but still misunderstood often?
Learn to apply rules of Standard American English (SAE) intonation and pronunciation (as well as voice quality and resonance modifications) to help listeners understand you the first time you speak. Learn to polish your grammar by using all the sounds in English words, so that past tense and plurals are marked in conversation. Keep your unique accent, but improve your speech clarity! Why? Because speech clarity impacts so much more than just speech!
If you were born in America and speak English as your first language, you may have a "regional dialect" that tells people where you are from just by your accent. In some cases, the non-standard pronunciation (or non-standard grammar) may leave a different first impression than you desire. Learn Standard American English pronunciation and improve your professional image!
Effective communication in the workplace is critical for efficiency. In some professions, where decisions are made under time pressure or emergency conditions, being misunderstood can compromise safety or waste precious time in a crisis. Take our specialized medical terminology courses (which also include common medical setting idiomatic expressions) to fundamentally improve clear, efficient communication among healthcare workers and between providers and their patients!
Do you speak English proficiently, but notice there are many phrases Americans use that make no sense to you? You may want to take one of our courses on idioms and figurative language. You'll work on pronunciation while learning what people mean when they say things like:
"That's over my head" or "Back to square one" or "Bite your tongue!", "It's touch and go", and others.