A Brief Look at Phonology and Phonetics


With all this in mind, the aim of this blog entry is to introduce another facet of the subject: different accents. Thanks to different accents found throughout the English-speaking world, the pronunciation of certain words changes radically. For example, let’s look at the practice of intervocalic alveolar flapping, or simply, ‘flapping.’ It’s a phonological process …

English Exams


When you receive your exam paper, use the first two minutes of the exam to look at the exam paper from the first page to the last page. Compositions are not guaranteed to be part of the paper but if one is requested in the exam paper, then make sure you leave enough time to …

Pronunciation in English


  E.g. “ship” (English word) and “sheep” (Spanish sound when spoken) “kiss” (English word) and “keys” (Spanish sound when spoken) This is one of the main reasons why you are always corrected on your pronunciation because depending on how you pronounce a word, your answer will either be correct or incorrect, and can make it …

“American Dialects”


  In 2003, Dr. Bert Vaux, a former Harvard professor who now teaches at the University of Cambridge, devised a list of various vocabulary terms and expressions and, armed with this ‘test,’ asked tens of thousands of people across the country how their personal lexicons compared to the distinctions he had come up with.  His …

Callan School of English Barcelona

American Dialects


As with practically every country in the world, the accents found throughout the United States change from region to region, and at times from state to state. However, as easy as it can be to pick out a Boston or Southern accent and still understand it, another concept exists that presents more difficulties when it …

“Growing up with Grammar. Prepare your Exam”


    Wednesday, 28th of May 12,30-14,00 h.: Stage 4. 14,15-15,45 h.: Stage 6. 16,00-17,30 h.: Stage 1. Thursday, 29th of May 12,30-14,00 h.: Stage 3 and Stage 5. 14,15-15,45 h.: Stage 5 and Stage 7. 16,00-17,30 h.: Stage 2 and Stage 8. 17,30-19,00 h.: Stage 4. 20,30-22,00 h.: Stage 5. Friday, 30th of May …

The Conversation Club and Seminars


     The Conversation Club “News with Emily” Thursday, 15th of May  Stages 3 to 8: 14,15 – 15, 45 h.   Cycle of Seminars “Survival English: Taking the fear out of travelling” Thursday, 15th of May Stages 1 to 5: 17,30 – 19,00 h.  “Curriculum Vitae in English: How to write your CV step …

Cycle of Seminars


  Wednesday, 7th of May. 12,30-14,00 h. Survival English Seminar: “Taking the fear out of travelling“. Stages 5 to 12. 14,15-15,45 h. Phonology Seminar: “The Art of Speaking”. Stages 2 to 5. 16,00-17,30 h. Writing Styles Seminar: “How to write compositions, emails etc”. St. 3 to 8.   Thursday, 8th of May 17,30-19,00 h. Curriculum Vitae in English: “How to write your CV …

Eulogy for Mr. Robin Callan.


  “My life is being poured away as a libation, and the time has come for me to be gone.” (2 Timothy 4)   Robin Callan was an innovator and a visionary in the true sense. He saw the world of English teaching in the 1950s as clearly lacking in a few key respects, and …