The Clear Talk Method Includes:
- Directed instruction with interactive video and additional mp3 audio speech sound lessons for specific training of problem speech sounds and strategies for most efficient and long lasting learning. The student interacts with a different video lesson each week. The student is doing direct speaking practice throughout the entire lesson. Students, of course, can repeat all or part of that lesson as much as they desire.
- A 30 minute tutoring session by a trained and supervised tutor which focuses on the core or foundation skills. Remember, it is not practice makes perfect, but perfect practice makes perfect. So a primary purpose of this tutoring is to ensure that the student is accurately pronouncing English speech sounds. The second purpose is to ensure that students are doing their homework in the accurate manner and for the appropriate amount of time to ensure efficient and long lasting learning.
3. Homework for this training course: Based on evidence from 800 people, minimum standard is 5 days of direct practice at least 30 minutes. One day can be the interactive video lesson. Another day can be the session with the tutor. Of course, many people do more than 30 minutes of direct practice or homework practice. People who practice more gain more.
4. From the first instructional session on students never get a chance to forget the clear talking strategies and tactics and the perfect and accurate pronunciation. They learn the importance and scientific basis of each element in the interactive video and audio lessons. They learn and practice how to master each crucial element, how to know when they have succeeded, and how use of the strategies and tactics can become second nature and habitual.
5. Assessments to determine progress include: a) Mid-course full assessment which is used to modify instruction through the tutoring session , b) An end of the course assessment to evaluate change and to determine future direction for optional further instruction, c) Brain tests within each video lesson so the student can self judge mastery on learning for the previous week’s work
6. Program duration of 10 instructional lessons to give time for enough practice to form new habits and assure long-term retention. Total course time is about 14 weeks, which includes the pre instruction assessment and post course assessment and consultations.
Students get answers to questions like the following:
- What do listeners need to understand you comfortably, with and without a noisy background (as in the workplace, restaurant, in public)?
- How do you shift from your native-tongue English (such as Spanish English or Chinese English) to your clear way of talking?
- Which speech sounds require more or less volume?
- How do you train your voice to hit the correct number of decibels or loudness?
- How do you change the stiffness of your speech muscles for different circumstances?
The Clear Talk training provides answers that go well beyond these strategies. For example:
- What is the easiest way to produce unfamiliar sounds not spoken in your native tongue?
- Rules, rules, rules. For example, how does the position of a letter within a word determine its pronunciation?
- What about vowels? English has five letters for vowels but 14 different vowel sounds with rules dictating when to use each one.
- Of all the dozens of possible things to change, which few make the biggest difference in your intelligibility?