We will discuss important issues in English pronunciation in a global world: intelligibility (understandability), credibility and personal identity. We will also outline the learning objectives of week 1.

You and your fellow students will share your English pronunciations and experiences speaking English. This hands-on exposure and exchange of information will raise your awareness of variation in English pronunciation.

The goal of the needs assessment is to identify your current needs regarding English pronunciation. We will use the results of the needs assessment to determine directions for your learning in the course.

You have discussed, shared and reflected on a number of issues regarding English pronunciation in a global world. You will now set personal English pronunciation goals that you would like to achieve in this course.

You will make an audio-recording of your English pronunciation. Your recording will be peer-reviewed by another learner in the course. You will, in turn, peer-review the recording of another learner.

You will watch a video that explains the feature of rhoticity. Rhotic and non-rhotic accents will be illustrated in the word list and in the reading passage. You will also practise a (non-)rhotic accent in two exercises.

You will have the opportunity to consult with your educator and your mentors online. You can discuss the goals that you have set for your English pronunciation, ask them for advice, or raise any other questions that you may have.

At the end of the first week you will reflect on what you have learnt in the past week and the outlook for the next three weeks.

We will list the vowels in English and examine their properties. We will also indicate the way in which non-native speakers may pronounce them and the impact on intelligibility. We will end with this week's objectives.

You will watch a video that explains two different notions of vowel length. You will listen to long and short vowels in English and analyse them. You will practise pronouncing short and long vowels in four exercises.

The sound /æ/ (from 'ash' tree) is known as the TRAP-vowel because it occurs in the word 'trap'. You will watch a video that explains the history of /æ/ and variation in its pronunciation. You will practise /æ/ in three exercises.

The NURSE-vowel occurs in words like 'turn', 'word' 'bird' and 'heard'. The pronunciation of the vowel is no longer predictable from spelling and some languages don't have it. You can analyse and practise the vowel here.

In English, many words are not pronounced like they are written. The mismatch is due to various language changes that have occurred in the history of English. We will focus on the development and pronunciation of the STRUT-vowel.

In British English, several words that are pronounced with the short vowel [ɒ] and the long vowel [ɔː] have an unexpected spelling. In American English, these words are pronounced with the unrounded vowels [ɑ] and [ɑː], resp.

You will listen and repeat phrases and sentences with the diphthongs FACE and GOAT. You will also analyse the different way in which many speakers of English pronounce these diphthongs.

You will apply what you have learnt regarding rhoticity and the vowels of English by practising the word list. Further, you will take a test to assess your learning and analytical skills.

At the end of the second week you will reflect on what you have learnt in the past week and the outlook for the next two weeks.

We will list the consonants in English and examine their properties. We will also indicate the way in which non-native speakers may pronounce them and the impact on intelligibility. We will end with this week's objectives.

Just as there are clusters of stars in the sky, English has consonant clusters (CCs). You will watch a video that describes CCs and analyse how CCs are broken up by some speakers of English. You will practise CCs in an exercise.

There are a number of features that are associated with consonants in English. You will read about these features in articles, listen to the way they are pronounced in videos, and practise them in exercises.

You have the right to remain silent ... In some English words, letters are not pronounced. Why? We will explain the reasons for their being silent and you will do an exercise that will help you memorise silent letters in English.

In some languages, words only end in a vowel. In English, however, it is important to pronounce consonants at the end of a word or you may not be understood. You will analyse and practise word endings in two exercises.

There are a number of consonants that are difficult to pronounce for non-native speakers (see step 3.3. again). You can practise them here.

In week 4 we will hold a LIVE session in which you will be able to interact with your educator and mentors. In this step you are invited to submit a question or a contribution for the live session.

You will apply what you have learnt this week regarding the pronunciation of consonants in English by practising the word list. Further, you will take a test to assess your learning and analytical skills.

At the end of the third week week you will reflect on what you have learnt in the past week and the outlook for the next week.

Suprasegmental features apply to speech units larger than sounds. They can be used to convey meaning in addition to the meaning of words. We will discuss four suprasegmental features and outline this week's learning objectives.

We invite you to participate in our live session! We will answer and comment on the queries that you submitted in week 3. We will also announce the winner of the most insightful comment made during the past three weeks.

We will discuss English stress patterns and explain how they differ from other languages. You will examine the ways in which stress can convey meaning and you will analyse the stress properties of commonly mispronounced words.

In English, speakers lower or raise their pitch over stretches of speech to conduct speech acts, like making statements, asking questions etc. You can analyse and practise intonation here.

We will discuss the phenomenon of 'linking' in English. You will practise and analyse linking in three video's. There's also an exercise for you to practise fluency.

You will take a test to assess your learning and analytical skills. You will be asked to spot suprasegmental features in the reading passage, which you will record for a second time this week as a final assessment.

In this exercise, you listen to the words in the word list in a British or American English accent. You will then record your own version of the words and compare your pronunciation to the audio file. How similar do they sound?

You will make a second audio-recording of your English pronunciation. You will select at least TWO pronunciation features to work on. We will compare your first and second recording to assess the progress that you have made.

At the end of the fourth week we have come to the end of the course. You will reflect on what you have learnt during the week and look beyond the course.