ACCENT REDUCTION PROGRAM

Bilingual Education Institute's Accent Reduction Program is designed to improve the speech intelligibility of advanced learners of American English as a Second Language. It has been developed with the general ESL population in mind, but is especially useful for learners who wish to communicate more clearly in academic, business, scientific, and professional settings.

BEI's Accent Reduction Program addresses the pronunciation needs of students from a variety of language backgrounds. The body of the program focuses on problems of sound/spelling patterns, syllables, word endings, linking, stress, rhythm, and intonation common to students of most language backgrounds. The course provides practice for consonant and vowel problems, which can vary widely in most groups of students.

BEI's learner-centered, interactive Accent Reduction Program offers the following distinctive features:

• An introductory session for identifying individual pronunciation needs and priorities
• A gradual progression from controlled practice into relevant, natural communicative contexts
• An approach that encourages peer monitoring and self-evaluation
• Integration of pronunciation with other skill areas, especially listening and discourse-level speaking formats
• Emphasis on stress, rhythm, and intonation as the features of speech that have the greatest impact on intelligibility
• A comprehensive overview of all consonants and vowels, as well as intensive practice with problematic segmentals
• Activities that maximize student talking time and provide sufficient practice enabling students to assimilate elements of clear speech into oral communication

ORGANIZATION OF THE COURSE

The primary organizational focus is pronunciation. Each pronunciation point is integrated with listening activities, a hierarchy of speaking activities moving from structured to more spontaneous tasks, with linguistic and cultural information to support the suggested communicative activities.

BEI's Accent Reduction Program Core Modules:

The course is comprised of the following core modules, in addition to custom designed sessions that may be added to meet the specific needs of a particular group of students:

• Your Pronunciation Profile

includes an individualized evaluation instrument and tools for learner self-evaluation and goal setting. An accent assessment will be administered at the beginning of the course to survey pronunciation difficulties with consonants, vowels, diphthongs, word-stress, past tense verbs and plural nouns. This accent assessment will be used again to measure students= progress when they complete the program. Students participate in a Needs Assessment activity, which encourages them to think about their speaking needs and abilities and aids the instructor to further develop the course to meet those needs.

• Using a Dictionary for Pronunciation

explores the use of the dictionary for pronunciation purposes and simultaneously introduces students to pronunciation points covered more extensively in later modules.

• Consonants & Vowels

contain an overview of all consonants and vowels, as well as intensive practice with problematic segmentals.

• Sound/Spelling Patterns

clarify some unusual sound/spelling patterns in English and provides concentrated practice with final consonant sounds.

• Syllables and Word Endings

cover syllables and grammatical endings.

• Stress in Words (part 1)
• Stress in Words (part 2)
• Rhythm in Sentences
• Sentence Focus and Intonation & More Functions of Intonation Phrasing, Pausing, and Blending

These modules address the stress, rhythm, and intonational features of American English.

• Beyond the Accent Reduction Class

This module contains suggestions for retaining and strengthening pronunciation skills acquired during the course.

Addtional Accent Reduction Modules

Customized for specific individual, group, or corporate needs. A standard format is used in these modules:

• Each module begins with a section designed to enhance aural awareness of the target pronunciation feature and to build skills for peer and self-monitoring.

• In the next section, students are encouraged to discover pronunciation rules and regularities. Structured and semi-structured practices help students gain control of the pronunciation features before applying the skill in the communicative contexts.

• In the communicative practice sections, learners incorporate pronunciation concepts into contextualized speaking activities. These activities guide learners as they bridge the gap between a focus on the accuracy of a pronunciation feature to a focus on the meaning. Following communicative activities, most modules recycle the target pronunciation skill into discourse-level speaking formats (i.e., explaining a graph, solving a problem, participating in a discussion, completing a contrastive analysis, and describing a process).

• Most modules end with a short oral review, which students can complete on audio cassette, in an individual consultation, or within a small group.

Length/ Frequency/ Schedules/ Tuition

Most modules take 2-3 class hours to complete, depending on the size of the group. The modules on Consonants and Vowels take considerable more class time, and are interrelated with all other modules. A minimum of 60 hours of class time is recommended, with classes held at least twice a week. For Modules of 60 hours, tuition is $______, plus a one-time registration fee of $50.00 for new studeents. However, decisions about deleting or extending program activities can be based on the needs and assessment of the class, which can be scheduled at a convenient time for our students.

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Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
Preparation Course Bilingual Education Institute

Bilingual Education Institute offers a comprehensive, step-by-step TOEFL Preparation Program which reflects the changes in format and content recently announced by Educational Testing Service (ETS). BEI's TOEFL Preparation Program teaches the candidate critical test-taking techniques, helps to polish the language skills needed for the exam, and makes the participant a smarter test taker. BEI has designed an efficient approach to prepare for TOEFL, concentrating only on the points that are actually tested on TOEFL and allowing the candidate to make the most of his/her preparation period.

Description of the TOEFL Test

The TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) is a test designed to measure the English language ability of people who do not speak English as their first language. A high score on this test (550+) is an essential step in being admitted to undergraduate or graduate programs at almost all colleges and universities in North America. The test is divided into the following three sections, each with its own time limit: Listening Comprehension, Structure and Written Expression, and Reading Comprehension. The whole testing process takes about 2.5-3 hours.

Getting Started

The first module of BEI's TOEFL Preparation Program serves as an introduction to the exam. It provides the candidate with information about the format of the test, guides you through the process of registering for the exam, and helps you understand your scores. The Asecrets@ of being a good test taker-picking the right test date, arranging your preparation time, using the process of elimination, coping with test anxiety, pacing yourself during the test, and other important techniques.

The main section of the course is divided into three parts, reflecting the main sections of the test: Listening Comprehension, Structure and Written Expression, Reading Comprehension.

The Listening Comprehension Module prepares the candidate for Section 1 of the TOEFL Test, which measures the ability to understand conversations and talks in English. The recorded material in this section is similar to what you might hear if you were with a group of North American students at a college or university.

The Structure and Written Expression Module prepares the participant for Section 2 of the TOEFL Test, which measures the ability to recognize grammatical structures and word usage of standard written English as used in colleges and universities in North America.

The Reading Comprehension Module prepares the student for Section 3 of the TOEFL Test, which measures the ability to read and understand short passages that are similar in topic and style to those that students are likely to encounter in North American colleges and universities.

Each of these modules will contain:

• An introduction with basic strategies for that portion of the test.

• Sample test questions to give the candidate a feel for each part of the test and to provide a basis for understanding the lessons.

• An introduction to each subsection of the test, with specific tactics for attacking the items in each portion.

• Lessons that break down the knowledge and skills needed for each part of the test into comprehensible Abites@ of information. Each of the lessons contains sample items that illustrate exactly how the point brought up in that lesson is tested on TOEFL. Furthermore, each lesson contains one or mor exercises that practice the relevant points.

• Mini-tests that review the points brought up in the previous lessons. These test put together the points practiced in isolation in the lessons and allow the candidate to chart his/her progress.

The Test of Written English Module (optional) introduces the TWE and present the best methods for planning, writing, and checking the essay you must write if you take this portion of the exam.

The Practice Tests Module. Taking practice tests is one of the best ways to get ready for TOEFL, because they draw together all the points the candidate has studied for. These practice tests are utilized for final review, as well as a diagnostic at any point during TOEFL preparation.

Placement evaluation Interested students may call to schedule a free placement evaluation. Walk-ins are welcome. Based on this evaluation, we can determine how long it would take before the candidate is ready to take the TOEFL test.

Scheduling/ Tuition/ Frequency

TOEFL preparatory classes are usually scheduled 6 weeks before the actual test date. The classes usually meet 2 hours a day, 5 days a week until the actual test date. The tuition for this 60-hour course is $_________. There is a one time registration fee for new students of $ 50.00. Because student needs and schedule demands are varied, TOEFL preparatory classes may meet only 2-3 times a week for more weeks.

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