ELT thoughts, news and updates

Here we've got ideas, observations on ELT, including Mark's Pronunciation Blog and loads of conference and speaker reports...

Acoustic Drills and Audio Concordances

Sunday - November 13th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Acoustic Drills and Audio Concordances - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/acoustic-drills-and-audio-concordances

There is something missing at the heart of the listening component in most ELT course materials. They fail to dig deep into the actual raw material of the skill – what Richard Cauldwell calls the ‘sound substance’.

  • Materials design
  • Listening
  • Pronunciation

Accent by Numbers

Tuesday - October 25th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Accent by Numbers - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/accent-numbers

Eighth and last in the series Accent through the keyhole. Scroll down for the mp3 podcast version.

What’s the correct answer to the accent by numbers puzzle?

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

Hancock McDonald ELT Reveiw

Wednesday - October 19th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Blog - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/68

Happy to see a review of our website in IATEFL Voices Issue 253, by Jennifer St.John of the University of Ottawa. Here are a few excerpts

  • General
  • Pronunciation

Twang!

Sunday - October 16th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Twang! - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/twang

View 7: Twang!

Seventh in the series Accent through the keyhole. Scroll down for the mp3 podcast version.

So what’s this post about?

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

Getting Rid of your Accent

Saturday - October 8th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Getting Rid of your Accent - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/getting-rid-your-accent

Sixth in the series Accent through the keyhole. Scroll down for the mp3 podcast version.

Why are you illustrating this post with a picture of a mouthless face?

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

Accent Creep

Sunday - September 25th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Accent Creep - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/accent-creep

Fifth in the blog/podcast series Accent through the keyhole. Scroll down for the mp3 download.

So who’s this accent creep you mention in the title?

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

The Bad Boy of English Pronunciation

Thursday - September 22nd, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
The Bad Boy of English Pronunciation - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/bad-boy-english-pronunciation

Fancy an accent tattoo? Fourth in the series Accent Through the Keyhole. Scroll down for the mp3 podcast download.

Speech sounds are just neutral, aren’t they? So how can there be a ‘bad boy’?

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

The Reverse Lisp

Wednesday - September 14th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
The Reverse Lisp - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/reverse-lisp

One person's prestige accent is another person's speech impediment. Third in the series Accent through the keyhole. Scroll down for the mp3 podcast version.

Can you remind us what a lisp is?

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

The Brogue Meridian

Tuesday - September 6th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
The Brogue Meridian - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/brogue-meridian

This is the second in the blog/podcast series Accent Through the Keyhole: small views of big pictures. Scroll down for the mp3 podcast.

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

Accent Through the Keyhole: small views of big pictures

Tuesday - September 6th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Mark Hancock's blog on accent in ELT

This series of 8 podcasts / posts looks at key questions relating to accent and English teaching by focusing on specific instances and generalizing out from them. This page serves as a contents list for the series:

View 1: Either will do. In which we look at what's not important in pronunciation teaching.

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

Either will do

Tuesday - August 30th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Mark's Pronunciation Blog - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/topic/marks-pronunciation-blog

ACCENT THROUGH THE KEYHOLE: small views of big pictures. This series of posts looks at key questions relating to accent and English teaching by focusing on specific instances and generalizing out from them. Check out the podcast too - it's at the bottom of the page...     

  • Culture
  • Pronunciation

An Intensive Course in Teaching Pronunciation

Friday - August 26th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Event date: 
Friday, August 26, 2016 (All day)
Calendar of events by day - hancockmcdonald.com/talks/calendar/day/2014-11-11

Manchester in summer is not always something to write home about, but this summer was different. Norwich Institute of Language Education (NILE) offered their first ever pronunciation teaching course, and I was the tutor and course designer. It took place as part of NILE’s summer programme at their Manchester site.

  • Pronunciation

Materials Writing: Turning constraints into assets

Sunday - July 31st, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Materials Writing: Turning constraints into assets - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/materials-writing-turning-constraints-assets

ELT materials writing is a creative process, and the prospect of creating something from nothing on an empty white page can be quite daunting. But the materials writer has to do just that, and moreover, do it within very tight constraints. For instance, if you are writing a narrative for ELT purposes, it must not only be engaging as a narrative, but it must also be useful as a learning tool.

  • Materials design
  • Pronunciation

TESOL Spain interviews

Thursday - March 24th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Event date: 
Thursday, March 24, 2016 (All day)
Calendar of events by day - hancockmcdonald.com/talks/calendar/day/2016-03-12

On the TESOL Spain website (click here), you can now see videos of various speakers from the 2016 conference in Vitoria, conducted by Gerard McLaughlin.

  • Pronunciation

TESOL Spain 2016

Tuesday - March 8th, 2016
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Annie McDonald
Event date: 
Friday, March 11, 2016 - 09:15 to Sunday, March 13, 2016 - 14:15
TESOL Spain 2016 - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/tesol-spain-2016

We're off to the north of Spain this weekend for the 39th annual TESOL Spain convention, which is taking place in Vitoria-Gasteiz. Mark will be presenting a complete pronunciation workout.

  • General

A 2-week course on teaching pronunciation

Tuesday - December 1st, 2015
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Event date: 
Monday, July 4, 2016 (All day) to Friday, July 15, 2016 (All day)
A 2-week course on teaching pronunciation - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/2-week-course-teaching-pronunciation

This course is aimed at teachers of English who wish to broaden their knowledge of the various issues involved in teaching pronunciation.

More information in the Talks section .

Pronpack Sound Chart explained

Wednesday - September 2nd, 2015
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Pronpack Sound Chart Infographic by Mark Hancock

This infographic gives a brief explanation of how the new Pronpack Sound Chart is organized. You can download colour or black and white versions below. Download versions of the actual chart/poster itself here:

1. The version with phonemes and guide words in colour or black and white.

  • Pronunciation

Hot Topics in Prague

Monday - May 25th, 2015
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Hot Topics in Prague - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/hot-topics-prague

The 4th International Conference on English Pronunciation: Issues & Practices (EPIP) was a three day event in Prague.

  • Pronunciation

Pronunciation in Prague!

Tuesday - May 19th, 2015
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Pronunciation - hancockmcdonald.com/focus/pronunciation

The 4th International Conference on English Pronunciation: Issues and Practices is being hosted by the Institute of Phonetics, Charles University, Prague, this weekend. This conference happens every two years, with previous venues including France, South Africa and Spain. See a programme for the event here.

  • Pronunciation

Pronunciation at IATEFL 2015 - some reflections

Wednesday - April 15th, 2015
Posted by: 
Mark Hancock
Pronunciation at IATEFL 2015 - some reflections - hancockmcdonald.com/blog/pronunciation-iatefl-2015-some-reflections

I can’t remember ever having seen so many pronunciation-focused talks on an IATEFL programme as there were in Manchester this year. Too many to fit into a single PRONSIG strand day. What’s more, many of them were so over-subscribed that there wasn’t even space to sit on the floor, as I found out to my own disappointment. I did get to see a fair number, nevertheless.

  • Pronunciation

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