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English phonetics is not the most accessible material to master. Some professional linguists are seriously involved in phonetics. Several hours are allotted for this subject in specialized higher education institutions.
People who are just learning English usually do not go deep into it. Still, understanding phonetics is essential to establishing pronunciation and understanding how certain words are read.
Is it essential to suffer from phonetics if you are not going to study linguistics deeply? In the case of English, the answer to this question is yes. As already mentioned, without mastering the basics of this science, you will not be able to pronounce words correctly.
Due to several historical processes, pronunciation in English does not always coincide with spelling. That is, words are rarely read as they are written.
For example, you have probably heard more than once that it is effortless to recognize a Russian person speaking English. Ideally, you know grammar and have an extensive vocabulary, but this incorrect pronunciation will make you appear as a citizen of another country, not a native speaker.
Once you have mastered the phonetics of the English language, it will be much easier to communicate, including to native speakers. There are three so-called pronunciation levels.
The first is incorrect pronunciation, which is not always easy to understand. The second is when the interlocutor needs to make an effort to understand you.
Finally, your pronunciation is clear and pleasant to the ear when you speak without mistakes, and the interlocutor immediately understands you.
A unique study was conducted, which revealed the most common mistakes in pronunciation of frequently used words.
Britons who took part in the survey admitted that they spoke Xtera rather than et cetera. As you can see, even a native speaker is not safe from mistakes in English pronunciation, but that does not mean you should stop learning it.
In addition, mastering the phonetics of the English language will help you start speaking quickly and make it easier to understand written speech. Linguists claim that a person also learns his native language through phonetics and only masters the sounds. The same principle should be followed when learning English.
Why are courses needed to master the phonetics of the English language?
This is no secret to anyone: to speak correctly, and you have to listen a lot. Of course, you also need to remember phonetic rules, but they are easy to learn in practice. Therefore, students are encouraged to watch English language movies, listen to songs and audio recordings.
Of course, you can do all this on your own and not resort to the help of a teacher, but in this way, you will hardly be able to achieve the desired result. At least not as soon as we would like.
Nevertheless, classes with a teacher will be more meaningful. The main advantage of such lessons is that they will quickly point out your mistakes and help you correct them. In addition, it's advantageous to study with a native speaker - if not, does he know how to pronounce words correctly and get rid of accents?
You can work on the pronunciation at any stage of learning the English journey, but do not delay it. As long as you focus on grammar or vocabulary, speech errors will keep piling up, and it will be more difficult for you to get rid of them over time. For beginners, special introductory classes are suitable, in which they will acquire the necessary basic knowledge.
Some English schools allocate a class or two for this, and some prefer to sit on pronunciation for several weeks. However, in this case, it is essential to find the so-called golden mean.
If you are starting to study English, it does not make sense to spend too much time memorizing this principle. On the other hand, suppose you do not yet have a sufficient base of the English language. In that case, you are unlikely to apply the rules in practice and correlate the knowledge gained with the knowledge already in your memory.
However, it is necessary to acquire basic knowledge in this area at the initial stage of learning English.
If you do not have time to attend classes, you can practice pronunciation via our artificial intelligence platform. This will help you save time, and the effect will be significant, as you will still be studying with a teacher who will help you learn to speak correctly.
All classes, regardless of their format, follow roughly the same schedule. It is impossible to do anything new in this field. If you want to master good English pronunciation, you have to listen and repeat it many times. You listen to the recording or speech spoken directly by the native speaker and then repeat it while trying to copy the English features.
Another help in learning English pronunciation is to record your speech. It will also be beneficial if you study the language yourself. When you speak, you can't hear yourself, and you can't even guess how you speak in English. But when listening, all errors will become immediately noticeable. So arm yourself with a voice recorder and learn to pronounce English words correctly.
Therefore, mastering English by taking courses in pronunciation offers the following benefits:
1. You will pronounce the words correctly, emphasize or stress the necessary syllables and intonation.
2. You will get rid of your strong accent, which prevents many people from communicating confidently in English. Because of incorrect pronunciation, many people are embarrassed to speak with native speakers and fear that they will not be understood.
3. It will become easier for you to understand the language by ear. You will learn to differentiate between the different pronunciation patterns in the United Kingdom and other regions of the United States.
4. In the end, you will realize that English is not as difficult as it might seem initially.
If you master the most challenging pronunciation, there will be far fewer problems with future learning. This will motivate you to keep going.
Many English learners struggle with pronunciation for the longest time. Some people start speaking immediately with no accent or mistakes. These difficulties can be repulsive and destructive, but it is essential not to give up: language is given only to those who want to master it.
As a rule, those who cannot master pronunciation by any means make the same mistakes in English. Yes, most foreigners do not manage to get rid of it entirely, but this should not be an obstacle in the way of full English. In addition, there are pronunciations in the language itself. For example, an Englishman, an American, Scotsman, and Welshman can pronounce the same word entirely differently.
Trust me, and even if you don't pronounce a couple of sounds correctly, they will still understand you. However, it's awful if you make the following mistakes in English pronunciation:
1. speak too loudly
2. swallow sounds
3. wrong emphasis
4. pronounce wrong sounds (target with sound j)
5. Confused Voice (Heat and Hit)
You need to eliminate these mistakes, and then your English language will become apparent to any interlocutor.
Don't try to memorize all the sounds at once. Start with one and give it enough time until you are good at it. You spend a day or two on it, but then it will sound like it should in your language.
And most importantly, remember: nothing is impossible! Come to exceptional classes on pronunciation in English, listen, repeat and practice the language in conversation as much as you can. You will soon see that you have become much more fluent in English.
How can we help you?
For many years, our school has been helping students to learn English, including its pronunciation. We use the best techniques to help you master the language better and do our best to ensure that you can speak English in the shortest amount of time possible.
Our main advantage over other schools lies in using an innovative artificial intelligence methodology, which is also valuable for setting pronunciation.
It is based on four elements - visual, musical, and - most notably in this case - auditory. Our students watch movies, listen to speeches, songs, and other audio recordings in the classroom.
All this helps to remember how certain words sound correctly. The more often you speak, the sooner you will get used to the sound of words. Sooner or later, the process will come to automatism.
Classes at our school are conducted in various formats, and you can always choose what is suitable for you. However, whichever option you choose, much attention will be paid to pronunciation because you cannot master the language without it.
