Can Pronunciation Be Taught? Theory, Politics, and Practice

Presented by Joan Saslow

Research indicates that relying exclusively on native-speaker models in the teaching of pronunciation may be unrealistic, unnecessary, or even unwise. But there’s very little consensus on an actual approach to pronunciation that enables students to be intelligible, comprehensible, and fluent speakers. This workshop will offer a positive approach to the teaching of pronunciation and demonstrate specific practical activities that lead to better pronunciation.

About the Speaker

Joan Saslow

Joan Saslow is a foreign language teaching specialist and author. She is coauthor with Allen Ascher of a number of prize-winning* best-selling English-language textbook series for adults and teenagers, most recently Pearson’s Top Notch and Summit, now available in third edition.

In addition, Ms. Saslow is author of the Workplace Plus, Ready to Go, and Literacy Plus series, as well as of English in Context: Reading Comprehension for Science and Technology. Earlier, she was series director of True Colors and True Voices.

Ms Saslow is a frequent speaker at international teachers’ conferences and participates in the English Language Specialist Program of the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. She has lived and taught in Chile and is fluent in Spanish.

Ms Saslow has a BA and MA in French from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She and her husband live in Chappaqua, New York, and have two adult children.

*Top Notch and Summit are both recipients of the Association of Educational Publishers’ Distinguished Achievement Award. Top Notch third edition is the 2016 recipient of a Textbook and Academic Authors’ Textbook Excellence Award. Summit third edition is the 2017 winner of the same award.