Improving accent
ESTIMATED TIME: 30 minutes
If you were born and raised overseas, it is very likely that you will never speak in exactly the same way as people born and bred in Australia. Unless you are an extraordinary linguist, or an extraordinary mimic, you will always have a ‘foreign’ accent. But relax! It's not a problem. Here’s why:
- Having an accent is not a barrier to being an effective communicator. You can be very fluent in a foreign language even though you speak with an ‘accent’.
- Australia is full of highly respected, admired people who speak with an accent.
- Many immigrant Australians feel that their accent is part of their cultural and personal identity. They don’t want to lose that, and they don’t need to.
The only reason to work on your accent is if it negatively impacts on the patient's understanding. If this is the case, you can improve your accent by working on your pronunciation and the emphasis you place on key words.
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