Have you ever noticed that you sound different depending on who you’re talking to? When certain ways of speaking are consistently valued more than others, speakers rarely remain unaffected. Instead, many begin to adjust to their social environment. A person may pronounce certain words differently at home than at work. A student may sound one […]
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Accent Hierarchies: The Native Speaker Myth
1. What are We Reacting To? If listeners react so quickly to accents, an important question follows: What exactly are they reacting to? From a linguistic perspective, the answer is simple: variation. From a social perspective, however, the answer is more complex: hierarchy. No accent is inherently superior to another. Every variety of a language […]
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Accent Bias: How We Judge Voices Before We Understand Them
Have you ever wondered what happens in the moment right after understanding becomes difficult?In my article From ‘Zoning Out’ to Understanding: Rethinking Communication Across Accents, I explored what occurs when listeners ‘zone out’ while hearing an unfamiliar accent. This moment is often described as a problem of comprehension. But it rarely ends there. When understanding […]
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From ‘Zoning Out’ to Understanding: Rethinking Communication Across Accents
Communication across accents is often treated as if it were the speaker’s responsibility alone. It is not. From the very first moment, communication is a shared responsibility. And when listeners “zone out” after a few seconds, this is rarely just about how something is said. It is about how communication is co-constructed or fails to […]
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Why Names Matter: Accurate Pronunciation Signals Inclusion and Respect
Practical strategies for educators, multilingual families, and policymakers to honor identity through name pronunciation.
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