The London School of English - How good is your British accent and English Pronunciation?

www.londonschoo... - In this video by London Live TV, participants including The London School of English, discuss the importance of British accent and English pronunciation.
How good is your British accent? How good does is need to be?
Last week, one of the Voice Trainers at the London School of English, Dolly, demonstrated her voice training techniques for a London-based TV show. Our Chief Executive, Timothy Blake, then took part in a debate on the importance of accents live on their lunchtime news bulletin.
While it's undoubtedly important to use correct grammar and have a good range of vocabulary, when it comes down to the speaking, there is a lot more to it than just the right words. Accent plays a key role in communication.
Find out more about voice training:
Find more about our Voice Training course details: www.londonschoo... on our website or just send an e-mail to: [e-mail]

[@londonschoolofenglish]

⭐Book your English language courses - either face-to-face in London or in virtual groups online - and improve your language confidence! www.londonschool.com/ 📥 If you have questions, contact us at www.londonschool.com/contact-us/

[@thiagoaugusto9262]

We will never lose our accent. Accent is my own identity, it can tell others people where I came from. I wouldn't like to lose my accent. I'd like to be a good speaker but without losing my Portuguese accent.

[@ela_seo]

It's rather funny how the back feet of the table seem to be the feet of the presenter. She seems like she is sitting so relaxed :))

[@mansaru1541]

Ela Iliesi i would like to ask do you native English speaker ? If yes please help me to speak English

[@amelioussaidene5745]

Thanks God I'm not the only one😅

[@raol635]

Ela Iliesi Hehe I noticed that also 😁😁😁

[@dillmanclark2260]

I just had the same thought! 😆

[@dillmanclark2260]

Jesús Enrique López Zapata 😂😂

[@joseluismaranonbenavides170]

This is a program in British English for me is ver useful for practicing and improving my English

[@englishhive5735]

I simply really love 100% British accent!!!! Hugs from Brazil

[@marcmarc8524]

As a foreigner I find RP being the clearest accent.

[@altybor3054]

I love the Scottish, Welsh and Irish accents.

[@LukesEnglishPodcast]

This was fascinating because the producers of this show were clearly trying to create some big argument about diversity, but they totally missed the point! Many people want to change their accent in order to communicate more successfully. It's nothing to do with becoming less diverse, and it's nothing to do with accent snobbery or forcing others to speak with a RP accent. In fact, I expect some people choose to lose their RP and get a slightly more 'regional' accent. Also, it's interesting how accent training is viewed differently by native speakers and foreign learners of English. Native speakers are understandably defensive of their accent, but the foreign learners often try their best to lose the influence of their first language on their English accent. These issues got a little bit confused in this feature. Timothy did well to prevent this debate getting out of hand. The producers of the show were clearly looking for an argument, but it didn't work!

[@londonschoolofenglish]

Hi Luke, thank you for your comments! How have you been in Paris? We agree with you, the role that accent plays in communication is a very interesting topic, and it’s only natural that there will be differing views between native English speakers and foreign speakers; for foreign speakers, their ultimate goal is to sound more like native English speakers and communicate well in English without any misunderstandings. We think that’s why a number of our clients find it useful to take some hours of voice coaching alongside their English course in London - our English courses helps them improve their vocabulary and grammar and the Voice Training course helps to highlight and improve those areas of their speech that are holding them back in their communication. For us, voice coaching is not about changing their identity, but rather about helping our students to communicate in English with greater ease and authority.

[@renekrsnadasa14]

What a surprise to see you here, Luke. I love you so much. Keep podcasting, I love it.

[@agustinabenenati9241]

Luke's English Podcast thanks you for your comment! I'm an English student and my teachers are all the f*cking time forcing me to "imitate" the British accent because they believe is the only and correct one. That makes me feel awful about my learning process since it doesn't care how much I study and try, how much I improve, they say my accent is "too Spanish". 😟😰

[@AudyGuerrero]

Why not cause it's awesome to have accent's like the British Accent and I would love to learn the new castle accent!

[@jonassanctus199]

cool I can practice my English with this!

[@shoukatmehar1311]

Can you write a paragraph of the video for 5 minutes plz

[@draukumarreang1659]

I love posh accent.

[@ey1806]

"Posh" definitely does not correspond to a "correct" form of language, it means a whole range of things suggesting class and background. Unlike languages like French and Italian, which have an Academy or some sort of institution to regulate their languages, nothing like that exists in the UK. And unlike many other languages, the fact that English is the international language means that a 'standard' form of English is nigh impossible to clarify as it is spoken as the official language by so many countries. In addition, while one may contend that a "standard" form of British English is the RP accent, foreigners do not realise that the vast majority of British people do not speak pure RP, and even in southern England most people's accents are influenced by regional differences. The class system is a HUGE issue in the UK, and significantly more apparent than in many other countries purely because of its history. While having an RP accent has connotations of being well educated, it also carries connotations of snobbery and the upper class. The problem lies in the fact that people may not want to lose their native accent because it is part of their identity, however, others feel like their accent immediately conveys their class and therefore how they will be treated, and having regional accents can be an issue in things like job interviews, where someone might be really intelligent but is ignored because of a strong regional accent.

[@iparipaitegianiparipaitegi4643]

The RP accent is the clearest one to understand for the foreigner I am. It looks like the Brits have been ashamed of it, recently.

[@ericxyuhardy9436]

Hello sir and Ms It is amazing things that you discuss because the change of accent is to speak clearly and easily to understand. Thank you very much. I am yuhardi from Padang. West Sumatera Indonesia

[@abdulraheemdosunmu5249]

Av been wanting to speak like the british. I think this is a good avenue for it

[@postscript67]

I come from a small island with a distinctive dialect and accent, but when speaking to outsiders, I always ditch the former and tone down the latter. On my way home from my first term at university (over 30 years ago now) I met a girl from my class at school. She said she would be glad to get home and go back to speaking "normal". I assumed she had been speaking more standard English. Oh no, she said, she had been laying on the dialect and accent far more thickly than she did at home just to show where she was from! I've known several people like that, who would rather take a delight in no-one understanding them than be thought to be softening their native speech. But to me it is stupid. As St Paul said of speaking in tongues: "except ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken? for ye shall speak into the air."

[@BBOYILJAVM]

I love the accent from Rhian Hughes

[@MohammedTolan]

I love the British accent 💚💚

[@catcastle4377]

I love the British accent. As an asian I would love to learn Glasgow accent or the southern accent (like Oxford?)

[@doug932]

"The British accent" which one? We have several :)

[@pradeeptudu5974]

Beautiful and enriching..

[@charlest8153]

We Americans LOVE the British accent. Please don't lose it. You could rub off on American as so many Americans born and raised can't even speak proper English.

[@saralampret9694]

Why do you think they don't speak properly?

[@judeyeoman318]

*the* British accent doesn't exist

[@AudyGuerrero]

I Love the BRITISH ACCENT!

[@nkenchington6575]

+Audy Guerrero There isn't just one, far from it! Which one in particular do you like the sound of?

[@TheRovniy]

+Nick Kenchington cockney

[@Andy-wv2xj]

me tooo :) i love RP Brittish Accent

[@shoshoazim9377]

Audy Guerrero me as I love the British accent

[@athulabar1]

Yes, it is a great idea!

[@edwardrolling1411]

+Bimal Rathnagoda WRONG! yOU'RE NOT LISTENING! It's "It's a great idea!" Moreover, your sentence has no context. You FAILED - get out!

[@gomezfrancisco4577]

Edward Rolling dafuk?

[@saifalssafy3166]

I like British accent

[@romanvladimirovichpetrikov4947]

I like the accent which the beautiful woman in the video has. Thanks for the wonderful video! Keep it up!

[@Gadavillers-Panoir]

For foreigners, learning regional British accents is tough. They are better off learning RP which is already taught in foreign schools.

[@Sakscw]

As an English teacher in a foreign country; If only they knew that foreigners wish they had the British accent....they actually try to change their accent to the British or American accent

[@RetroResearch]

What is the problem? There are standards when it comes to pronouncing Russian, German or Japanese. There should be a standard/correct way to speak English. What is "posh" in English, is simply "correct" in other languages.

[@diegoyuiop]

That's what I don't understand. In every language there's a correct standard way

[@RetroResearch]

@@diegoyuiop I think it's a kind of misguided political correctness. Also, it could be a way to preserve the class system. By not promoring universally correct standards of speech, it is easier to maintain class distinctions and hierarchy.

[@ey1806]

This is where you may misunderstand. "Posh" definitely does not correspond to a "correct" form of language, it means a whole range of things suggesting class and background. Unlike languages like French and Italian, which have an Academy or some sort of institution to regulate their languages, nothing like that exists in the UK. And unlike the languages you suggested, the fact that English is the international language means that a 'standard' form of English is nigh impossible to clarify as it is spoken as the official language by so many countries. In addition, while one may contend that a "standard" form of British English is the RP accent, foreigners do not realise that the vast majority of British people do not speak pure RP, and even in southern England most people's accents are influenced by regional differences. The class system is a HUGE issue in the UK, and significantly more apparent than in many other countries purely because of its history. While having an RP accent has connotations of being well educated, it also carries connotations of snobbery and the upper class. The problem lies in the fact that people may not want to lose their native accent because it is part of their identity, however, others feel like their accent immediately conveys their class and therefore how they will be treated, and having regional accents can be an issue in things like job interviews, where someone might be really intelligent but is ignored because of a strong regional accent.

[@RetroResearch]

@@ey1806 No, I understand all this. I believe only 1% of Brits speak RP. And I'm aware of the class connotation and tthe rather oppressive baggage that comes with it. I am only expressing a wish that a standard, correct accent in English could be established. It is regrettable that such a standard might have negative sociological overtones in a way that is uncharacteristic of other languages by and large. My feeling is that this tendency to equate "correctness" with snobbery actually has the effect of reinforcing class divisions. The unfortunate result is that learners of English are kind of adrift when it comes to pronunciation and that this results in an imprecision that often becomes a permanent handicap, in that it is a struggle to understand them. This is a big problem at international legal or scientific conferences where English is the official language. Some non-native speakers, on the other hand, are quite talented at adopting a native accent. I have some students in Mongolia who speak English with almost no accent at all! The trouble is, they have adopted some rather poor habits of pronunciation acquired from listening to certain native speakers on KZbin. These poor habits grate on me probably because I went to drama school and was trained for several years in Standard American English (sort of the American equivalentof RP), which almost no one uses in reality anymore, even on television or in film. My point is simply that there ought to be an international standard. It should reflect the beautiful of the language and it should ensure that learners of English are easily understood.

[@ey1806]

@@RetroResearch You are definitely right, an international standard would help considerably, but I just don't see it happening any time soon. The situation of English is truly remarkable and unique, thinking about how despite evolving in the UK, it now finds more native speakers in the USA, which itself has innumerable accents. But this, therefore, makes the idea of a single, standard form of English very difficult to establish, as it would be impossible to choose between a language form from its country of origin and the language form from a country with the leading world economy and most native speakers (UK vs USA). The two forms are remarkably different in terms of vocabulary, orthography, slang, intonation, and pronunciation that choosing between the two, or even an amalgamation of both forms, would completely ignore and undermine their unique cultural value. Narrowing a standard form down to the UK and US forms would also disrespect the value of Australian, Canadian and NZ English which are completely legitimate in their own rights. I have to disagree with you concerning the notion that native speakers are 'adrift' when it comes to pronunciation (perhaps more in the USA than the UK?); it is simply the result of having different accents that have evolved over centuries - this shouldn't exactly be seen as a problem but celebrated! I know for non-native speakers that regional accents may be much harder to understand, but in the end, it is up to these foreign countries to decide which form of English to teach their students. In almost all countries where English is taught as a foreign language, most students are taught to achieve either Standard British English (RP) or American English, and in the end, understanding either of them will grant the learner a wide competence of the language. English itself is so diverse, however, that learning a single "standard" form is not enough to cover all elements of the language. Coming from the UK myself, I have grown up with all sorts of English elements both from growing up in England, as well as a massive exposure to American media (to which we are far more susceptible than non-English speaking countries; after all, sharing the same language makes it so much easier!). International conferences, whether legal or scientific, are almost always conducted in the standard forms of English (US,UK), and if not, there are always interpreters at such events which completely negates any issue of speakers having an accent. Whilst RP (BBC) English is widely considered the standard form of British English, most British people would contest that their own accent is equally as important, it is only when it comes to foreign learners where an issue arises around which form of English to learn to learn. As previously said, if somehow we succeed in agreeing upon a standard form of American English, as well as standard British English, how unfair it would be to choose a SINGLE standard of English between these two legitimate forms of the language. Ultimately, due to the global proliferation of English, I really feel that it has gone past the idea of a standard form, what is most important is that people can understand each other fluently, regardless of accent. As a native speaker, I would never expect anyone learning English to have a 'native' accent because there are so many to choose from! The accent itself is not an issue, it is just important to keep in mind the differences in particular between US English and British English, which importantly employ different spelling and vocabulary. Pronunciation is not truly an issue as long as your word choice and orthography are faithful and consistent with the form of English you are trying to emulate. If you are learning American English, one has to ensure they do not mix up vocab and spelling used in British English, and vice versa. A true native accent can only really arise upon immersion in the home country, so English learners should really not be put off by pronunciation.

[@pshtiwananwar3734]

What’s exactly the presenter’s accent? She sounds really good

[@romario65344]

I love Scottish accent very much. Especially when they say "you key" which means UK:)

[@luis3252]

Love British accent....

[@wenewanggigwijangge6160]

In fact, who are the tribes & indigenous peoples of London & what languages have they used for generations until now? Anglo-English or Briton-British? If it is confusing, what is the general accent which both English and us other nations want to learn as an international language in building relationships for various purposes & interests? Either RP or whatever?

[@Bizz2k]

I love my Brigerian accent with a twang of Standard London. All is i pronounce well and my diction is good. My brother went to a British private school and speak a mix of cockney and received pronounciation. So who cares....London is diverse, let the accents reflect the change of the demographic change and diverse culture.

[@mariamchale8866]

I have a scouse accent and i want to learn london accent

[@leonbahati6520]

Helpful

[@DamonAndJo]

omg we need HER accent

[@Nicki-jk9th]

British accent is awesome

[@imdadhussain9553]

Great.

[@erinalexander4017]

spot on! 🤓

[@kyle880413]

I would like watch the whole interview, where can I get it?

[@360wheelz5]

2:46 I thought they were her legs

[@mohandasdixit9315]

Exactly 😁😄 That’s what I thought 😁😄

[@ealdredaruspex5819]

Beyond pronunciation, grammar on the BBC is often atrocious. I hear "between you and I" on a regular basis.

[@saralampret9694]

You all sound so cute, why would you change when all british accents are so cute, stoooop it :P

[@MRCOOLBOY12345]

I like south east London accent compared to northern.

[@JohnMacbeth]

I’m from Devon, bollocks with it

[@AjayKumar-or1zs]

Good

[@sunkaraeliya2889]

What is the difference between going to happen and likely to happen ?

[@walterwhite5578]

It is fine if you don't want to change your accent but you have to make sure people can understand you. If no-one can understand your accent then no-one will want to speak to you so the woman getting defensive about her accent is pointless. The woman missed the point is not about someone asking you to change your accent is how you feel. Do people ask you to repeat yourself when you talk, do people look confused when you talk, do people finish your sentences, etc then you know you need to at least sound clearer.

[@samiware1704]

The Truth that would be spoken about, is much more important than all languages, dialects, and accents that are in the world. What matters is knowledge not the language. lolllllll Although it is important to learn languages, dialects, and accents of the world, but the much more important is the facts that are being exchanged.

[@contrinxscity5040]

It just an Identity

[@easyenglishmethod3602]

Wow really amazing discussion it was From india

[@TheMaru666]

If you are clearly undestood, have enough vocabulary grammar is all right and don, t make funny mistakes for too bad pronunciation , it is not necesary to change a thing . In any language.

[@sedan1814]

I would like to tell you what I can't understand in English. It means writing, reading and homophones. They don't have logic.

[@NightfallShadow]

I want to change my accent to a Brittish one. Just don't know which one. Pacific Western is easily understandable, yes, but it's so god damned boring.

[@englishkaustad7587]

What is the name of this black lady

[@cosminu.4519]

Where i come from, accent is a sign of lack of education. For me , this chaos of accents it's madness . Native english have problem's understanding each other . When i first listen people from England speaking with other accent then RP , i thought that i'am in germany.

[@sedan1814]

If you want to understand each other you should learn a Russian language and you could understand each other at last. 😝 😁 😊

[@gustavoviana7212]

Wtf

[@aucourant9998]

There isn't a British accent.

[@VerbaleMondo]

There are british accents but there's not only one british accents. Couldn't agree more.

[@budaddicted8429]

This video is appropriate for advanced students. Not for me yet.

[@jecreangesutka8140]

if you really want to keep your identity, please learn.your mother tongue , don't speak english with your accent, it is worst

[@the-thane]

Learn both, it's incredibly helpful

[@purpleanex]

東方美女 ...why wouldn't I speak English with my accent. ..I'm English!

[@walterwhite5578]

@Kim Boom Joong What he saying is you want to keep your identity then learn your mother tongue well, learn to speak along with the nuances, intonation that goes with your native language. But whey you speak English don't let your native sounds carry over into the language because that what creates the accent. In some cases, it is difficult to understand. He has a point.

[@c.martinez1409]

nonsense, rather learn articulation and tons of vocabulary, (read!) increase knowledge ... accent is linked to "a sense of privilege " that is why this archaic view of reducing one's accent is (rolling eyes) still in vogue ... accent reduction must fall