Pronunciation Courses Online

• Focus: Introduction to key U.S. English sound patterns, from individual sounds to rhythm, stress, and intonation.
• Activities: Understanding quizzes; vowel, consonant, and cluster sound shadowing; self-recorded videos for reflection and personalized feedback.
• Ideal for: Learners who are just beginning to work on their pronunciation or who want to build a strong foundation.
• Goals:
  • Build awareness of U.S. English sound patterns.
  • Begin using phonemic symbols (IPA) to support self-correction.
  • Develop control over vowel and consonant articulation.
  • Learn to identify and produce syllables and word stress.
  • Increase intelligibility in everyday communication.

These courses are typically divided into two focus areas:

• Segmentals
  • Focus: Improving accuracy of individual sounds (like /θ/ vs. /s/, or /r/ vs. /l/) based on your specific language background.
  • Activities: Minimal pair practice, International Phonetic Alphabet practice, targeted listening, and self-recorded videos for reflection and personalized feedback.
  • Ideal for: Learners who have completed the fundamentals course and who are generally fluent but still experience misunderstandings due to sound substitutions.
  • Goals:
    • Improve accuracy of individual US English sounds that are often challenging based on the learner’s language background (e.g., /θ/ vs. /s/, /r/ vs. /l/ for speakers of Chinese).
    • Use minimal pair drills to fine-tune listening and production.
    • Practice self-monitoring using recordings and visual feedback tools.
    • Strengthen phonological awareness to support clearer speech.
• Suprasegmentals
  • Focus: Rhythm, stress, intonation, and linking.
  • Activities: Video recorded shadowing exercises, improvisation games, and rhythm drills to help learners adapt to the stress-timed rhythm of U.S. English and for reflection and personalized feedback.
  • Ideal for: Learners who have completed the fundamentals course and who want to sound more fluent and expressive in daily life (community events, shopping, transportation, restaurants) and professional life (presentations, meetings, public speaking, or teaching).
  • Goals:
    • Master the rhythm and melody of U.S. English (stress-timed rhythm).
    • Practice sentence stress, intonation patterns, and thought groups.
    • Improve speech flow through linking and reductions.
    • Use shadowing and improvisation to build fluency and naturalness. 

• Focus: Integration of segmental and suprasegmental skills.
• Projects: Students may create podcasts, video presentations, or storytelling performances for reflection and personalized feedback.
• Ideal for: Learners who have completed the fundamentals and intermediate-level pronunciation courses and who have a strong command of both segmental (individual sounds) and suprasegmental (rhythm, stress, intonation) features but want to refine their pronunciation for academic, professional, or public communication.
• Goals:
  • Develop natural, intelligible, and confident spoken U.S. English in academic and professional settings.
  • Integrate all pronunciation skills into authentic, high-stakes communication.
  • Use self-recording and peer feedback to refine delivery.
  • Develop confidence and clarity in spontaneous and rehearsed speech.