April 2026 Vol 8 Issue 4
Tell Your Story Newsletter (TYSN):
Teaching English as a Second Language
Let us help you tell your story!
Welcome Mid-April 2026!
After enduring a long, very grey winter in Saskatoon, locals are more keen than ever to jumpstart spring! Seed packets and germination kits, as well as tulips and hydrangea appeared several weeks ago in local grocery stores. But the recent freezing drizzle and the forecast of another 10 cm of snow to fall tonight are taking us in the opposite direction!
That said, recent days have brought us more sunshine and warmer temperatures, so we are ushering “Ol’ Man Winter” out the “EXIT” door!
Since my last issue of “Tell Your Story Newsletter,” I have been busy teaching ESL to students including a Ukrainian newcomer, with a second returning to classes next week. I’ve also received inquiries from Chinese students, as I reach out to friends-of-friends in that community.
In the Western calendar, we recently observed Easter for another year. Some of us listened anew to the Biblical story of Christ’s Resurrection. Whether you observed the religious holiday, spent the days working, or enjoyed a secular break with family and friends, I hope that Easter has brought lightness and hope to your lives.
In “Article One” of this issue, I approach the thorny problem caused when ESL learners (or non-native speakers generally) mispronounce English and/or have heavy accents. Decades of British TV comedy (not to mention comedy elsewhere) have turned the problem into a source of laughter and derision (i.e. racism). And native speakers aware of newcomers’ pronunciation challenges sometimes try to suppress the issue altogether. What is this “elephant in the ESL classroom” about?
And in “Shop News,” I express gratitude for some of the amazing people with whom I occupy time and space, as fellow teachers, believers, editors, estate managers and other friends.
May the (albeit delayed) dawn of spring still bring peace and fulfillment to you, good readers, even in these troubled times.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth
Principal
Storytelling Communications
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IN THIS ISSUE:
ARTICLE ONE: The elephant in the ESL classroom: discussing racist pronunciation (in three 20th-Century British TV shows)
SHOP NEWS
ABOUT US
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Article One: The elephant in the ESL classroom: racist pronunciation comedy in three 20th-Century British TV shows
Recent discussions in the business world about non-native English speakers’ need for accent reduction (or better-termed, accent modification), tend to skirt the problem of speakers who are not understandable. On Linkedin last week, several colleagues or supervisors of non-native speakers of English wrote comments that reflect a politically-correct view: “accents aren’t that important; it’s the ideas that count.”
And yet many of us have (or have lived) evidence to the contrary. **Plenty of challenges have arisen over the centuries when non-native speakers of English who have heavy accents immigrate to English-dominant countries. The history of accent modification is evident when one researches the significant number of English as a Second or Additional Language textbooks that focus on “accent reduction” or modification:
After working for more than 15 years with Chinese professionals in the US, Lauren Supraner, an American intercultural communications specialist, authored Accent Reduction for Chinese Speakers: A Pronunciation Course for Chinese Speakers of English (2019). She has written openly that “accent reduction” is sometimes needed for Chinese speakers of English to succeed in English countries (in the West).
Two other, seminal guides for English pronunciation tend to be recommended by teachers frequently and have been published by Cambridge UP, namely Pronunciation Pairs: An Introduction to the Sounds of English (2008), and Ship or Sheep: An Intermediate Pronunciation Course (2006).
There are also numerous volumes from authors like North American speech-language pathologist, Rebecca Bower, that offer strategies to learn a “general American accent.”
As these resources show, there are learnable (and teachable) skills of mouth, tongue and lip movements that can alter the sounds of spoken English for non-native speakers. These are skills that help them to be better understood and so to achieve greater outcomes in their careers and lives.
Post-colonial insights matter here. None of these books suggest the racist assumptions that the English language should always come first; or that the additional/second language speaker is speaking in an inferior way, or that they will work at “dead-end” jobs in English-speaking countries so their lives will ostensibly gain greater value (!). Instead, the task is a practical one: non-native speakers need to have understandable accents when they speak English in an English-dominant country.
As the history of ESL/EFL/EAL education shows, when non-native speakers are educated in, conduct business in, or live in a dominant or monolingual English cultures, they need to be understood by native speakers, even though the latter should (and often do) strive to listen their way “through” a non-native speaker’s accent.
Mocking second or additional language speakers’ mistakes and the challenges they face toward comprehensibility is offensive to committed English language teachers (me included) and, far worse, to the non-native speakers, themselves. (As I’ve often said, to my students, my early inability to acquire quickly the tone-based pronunciation of Mandarin, my late father’s first language, would have made me the laughing stock of Chinese speakers, worldwide, and not furnish me with a career in China!) But we’re specifically addressing English here.
And yet racism sometimes still arises from social media discussions and in representations of ESL/EFL/EAL speakers’ pronunciation. Even the phrase “non-native speakers” can offend populations of Indigenous people worldwide, who have historically used the term “native” to describe themselves.
Popular late 20th-Century British drama (not so long ago) portrayed multiple “foreign” characters who speak English badly: their heavy accents result in misunderstandings that are exploited for comic effect. One that comes to mind is the much-abused, Spanish servant, “Manuel,” in “Fawlty Towers.” As you likely know, many such comedies are now archived on YouTube.
For instance, the popular British TV drama (1982-1992), “Allo, Allo” (originally broadcast on the BBC), features a French café owner, Rene Artois, in the town of Nouvion, France, during the German occupation of France in World War II. As researchers of “Wikipedia” write (I confirmed by cringe-watching the show), Rene struggles “with problems from a dishonest German officer, the local French Resistance, the handling of a stolen painting and a pair of trapped British airmen, all while concealing from his [tone-deaf but singing] wife the affairs he is having with his waitresses.”
Much of the humour, online sources say, inheres in “classic farce set-ups, comedy of errors, physical comedy, visual gags, alongside a large amount of sexual [and sexist] innuendo and a fast-paced running string of broad cultural cliches.”
“Allo, Allo” features British actors pretending to be French, speaking English “with theatrical foreign accents to distinguish each character’s nationality.”
Particularly central to “Allo, Allo” is “Officer Crabtree,” a “hopeless British undercover officer, constantly disguised as a local French policeman during World War II. Much of the character’s humour derives from his supposed inability to pronounce French words correctly in conversation. The show features his ludicrous exaggeration and mispronunciation of common English words. For example, he mispronounces “Good morning” as “Good moaning,” and “I was passing by the door and I thought I would drop in” becomes “I was just pissing by the door and I thought I would drip in.”
The actor playing Crabtree was English (and was a native-speaker of English). But “while portraying a Frenchman, the actor extensively deployed malapropisms” to represent his character’s lack of English fluency. One finds it hard to deny it’s a clever device.
Online promoters of “Allo, Allo” mention that this device works by “altering certain words in the character’s sentences, substituting different vowels or consonants, changing them into different or nonsensical words, usually laden with innuendo.” Although no character in “Allo, Allo” is depicted favourably, the humour arises consistently by the portrayal of foreigners who speak English with bad accents and ineptitude.
Here is a sample (you may have to copy and paste into your browser):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilhJvFngWcY&list=PLiZCl6XIGf-iIZzvWDqcD_UOWAqTDjs7M&index=1
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And, as you might expect, other BBC comedy is replete with more of the same sexist and stereotypical portrayals of foreigners with absurdly bad accents.
Consider “The Two Ronnies” (Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett, in the 1970s and 80s), who, Wikipedia writers tell us, “frequently use . . . the misunderstanding and parody of foreign languages, as a cornerstone of their wordplay-driven comedy. Their sketches often highlight the absurdity of language barriers, mispronunciation and the pomposity of lessons. Their work [is] full of puns, mispronunciation and stereotypical linguistic misunderstandings.”
For instance, “Ali Baba” is the stereotypical (racist) name given to a wealthy Arab Sheikh who visits an English deli in “Pronunciation Problems,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzeEq5MvNFg
As the English shopkeeper insists on correcting the Arab’s mispronunciations, the latter man takes back his significant supply of British currency from the counter between them, with the result that “money talks” louder than his heavily accented mispronunciation.
Another of The Two Ronnies’ sketches, “Swedish Made Simple,” centres on a language lesson in a restaurant setting. The older Barker plays a putative Swedish teacher, pretending to be a waiter, teaching basic restaurant Swedish, using single-letter words (in subtitles) to the younger Corbett.
The dialogue is not Swedish at all, Wikipedia authors tell us, but a ridiculous parody of Norwegian (perhaps later mimicked by the “Swedish Chef” on “The Muppet Show?”). Corbett’s efforts to learn “Swedish” are full of mispronounced vowels, laden with sexist innuendo. (Note also the addition to the story of the stereotypical blonde “bimbo” waitress.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cc3M1nppd3c&t=1s
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Finally, perhaps the worst offender in the genre of English mispronunciation comedy premiered on ITV in 1977, “Mind Your Language.” Like the two programs cited above, the racism of this show also relies on misogyny to meet its comedic goals. Running until 1979, and briefly revived in the late 1980s, “Mind Your Language” features adult students of different social backgrounds, religions and languages “set in an adult education college in London and focuses on an ESL class taught by Jeremy Brown, to a group of enrolled foreigners.”
Teacher Brown (Wikipedia tells us; I have cringe-watched episodes to confirm) is an ESL teacher who provides the point-of-view. He is a congenial, “single man in his 30s who lives alone . . . and holds a BA from Oxford University.” In the series’ pilot, when he’s hired, the school administrator tells him that the prior teacher was driven insane by the students. Brown manages the mayhem but is often “exasperated by these students’ versions of the English language.”
Prominent in the series is also the stereotypical Italian Catholic chef, Giovanni Cupello, who seems unable to understand English metaphors and long words, although he often answers mistakenly to amuse his peers. Similarly, Maximillian (“Max”) Papandrious is a Greek Orthodox shipping worker from Athens, who often spars with Giovanni.
Giovanni and Max become good friends, flatmates and ironically “have the best command of English of all the characters in the class.” Yet their progress is shown to be minimal, at best.
Other characters animate historical stereotypes of tensions between Chinese and Japanese; Indian and Pakistani cultures, rivalry between French and Swedish au pairs, and the competition of physically attractive or assertive women characters (often portrayed with hourglass figures and heavy makeup) who vie for teacher Brown’s affection.
Stereotypical language issues are portrayed—the Chinese character confuses “r” and “l”; the German mixes “w” and “v” sounds; religious and class differences abound. And yet, some episodes after conflicts arise, the hostile characters inexplicably return as friends (apt for a sitcom). Conflicts are tidily resolved off-stage. Laughter becomes a safety-valve that relieves the pressure of such conflict without addressing its significance.
“Allo, Allo” “The Two Ronnies” and “Mind Your Language” are only three examples of what could be called late 20th-Century British pronunciation comedy. Further research into TV and radio programming from the period would undoubtedly find many more.
But these three sample programs readily suggest not only that pronunciation problems are an inherent challenge for non-native speakers learning English, but also that such problems are socially acceptable to laugh at (and therefore, the racism).
The characters’ speech is driven by stereotype, sexism/misogyny and racism, at the expense of ethnic minorities and women (often both at the same time). These groups are regularly “thrown under the bus” for cheap laughs and are portrayed by actors whose physical features (e.g. large noses, hairy skin and large busts) are easily exploited for comic effect.
While comedy that mocks minority races, classes, women and sexual identities is a staple of late 20th-Century British TV and radio programming, the world of ESL/EFL/EAL teaching tends to tread gingerly through such domains. Decades after these shows revelled in racist pronunciation of English, native English speakers today (such as on Linkedin) sometimes bracket off the complex challenges that arise from non-native speakers’ mispronunciations and accents.
Comedy (especially satirical) is a notoriously slippery genre, so few language teachers I’ve encountered ever refer to such TV programs for their disempowering effect on racial minorities and women.
Given more contemporary awareness of homosexual, transgender and other non-binary identity issues, one can only imagine new layers of satire which 21st-Century English pronunciation comedy could exploit (and already does, in European programming not as well known on this side of the Atlantic).
When authoritarian politics have overwhelmed our world, increasing the disempowerment of racial minorities and women, it’s worth wondering whose interests are served when minorities’ speaking challenges are dismissed by political correctness—i.e. when native speakers write on social media, “it’s the ideas, not the accent that matter.” Language proficiency and fluency, including pronunciation, are never simple. Comprehension challenges don’t disappear on their own.
On Linkedin, where some native speakers try to reassure non-native English speakers that their “ideas are more important than their accents,” we need to acknowledge that these two aspects of language are always already intertwined. Ideas can only be understood if a speaker’s accent is decipherable. While racist pronunciation comedy from past decades is not (socially) acceptable, today’s trite statements of political correctness seem to deny (“whitewash”) decades (or longer) of Anglophones’ racism toward non-native speakers. What happens to the frustrations and injustices experienced by non-native English speakers, and, at the same time, where do Anglophones’ contempt and racism go?
Are we not simply burying (in what might seem a new way), what happens to the suffering of our cultural, linguistic, sexual and gender minority groups? For a speaker’s ideas to matter, they must be understandable by others. Accents are an inextricable part of the delivery of ideas.
One of the unresolvable difficulties of accent modification when one learns new languages is that power inheres in one’s ability to sound similar, and with pressure to sound “the same.” But refusing to recognize the limiting effects on comprehension that come with non-idiomatic “accents” can become its own kind of homogenizing (“whitewashing”) activity, masquerading as tolerance and acceptance. Denial does not efface the loss and difficulty.
The human condition, including its reliance on linguistic communication, inherently includes loss, which ultimately demands empathy and tolerance for non-native speakers at a time in history (now) when both are in short supply.
And now it’s your turn: What do you think about racist pronunciation comedy? And might contemporary social media sometimes cause us to bury the complexity of comprehension, including our potential intolerance (as native speakers)?
Please share your thoughts; I’d be delighted to hear from you.
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SHOP NEWS:
It seems hard to imagine that Easter passed just one week ago, when many of us listened anew to the story of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection.
Special thanks to Rev. Devon Pattemore of Regina, SK (a graduate decades ago of Presbyterian College in Montreal), who has preached so movingly to the church I attend, while substituting for our regular minister, Rev. Roberto De Sandoli (currently on parental leave).
Rev. Devon’s insights and empathy through the Easter season have been challenging and inspiring to reflect on and absorb.
And those words have provided spiritual armour in the week since Easter, when American dictator Donald Trump has gleefully continued to support Russia’s war in Ukraine; murdered civilians and destroyed much of Iranian civilization; and most recently, usurped the role of Christ-the-Healer in a heinous, AI-generated and blasphemous Easter portrait he posted online.
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During times of autocratic leadership in our world, I’ve been especially concerned to read about the devolution (and imminent disappearance) of a tremendously vital and deep educational resource English language curriculum, “One Stop English” (OSE).
Recommended to me several years ago by TEFL.org’s webinar host, advisor and teacher-trainer, Carl Cameron-Day, I have used “OSE” to create timely and thought provoking, one-on-one ESL classes for adults and youth. The platform also has resources for teaching children.
Drawing on sources such as “The Guardian,” “The Times (of London),” the BBC and the British Council, “OSE” has been invaluable to many English language teachers, worldwide for decades.
The development of AI has overtaken much in the publishing world. The developers of “OSE” have found the costs of maintaining and building of the platform exceed available resourcees.
Sadly, “OSE” will close its online “doors” in June. But in the meantime, ESL teachers and learners who have memberships are well-advised to download resources, which has been generously encouraged by the platform’s directors and developers.
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Thank you to small business and estate lawyer, Ben Nussbaum, and his very able assistant, Ingrid Atkinson, for their fine work, insights and patience shared on even the busiest of days.
The kind of legal support they provide is essential when a family has “grieving brains.”
Thank you, Ben, Ingrid and their team!
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It’s been a privilege to review and edit one of several articles by my long-distance friend, midwife Christel (originally from South Africa, now living in BC).
Christel is developing several articles on midwifery out of her recently defended PhD dissertation on midwifery in her native South Africa.
It’s been a privilege and pleasure to read Christel’s work and to learn more about midwifery standards and practices in South Africa, Europe and America.
Christel plans to build a midwifery-led birthing centre in the future in BC, Ontario or Alberta. (Unfortunately, the SK Health Authority was not interested in this prospect, so she and her family have relocated for further accreditation purposes to BC.)
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I’ve been delighted to work for a month with a lovely Ukrainian a local charity. While it is painful to hear from her about the political and cultural losses that Ukraine has suffered in its war with Russia, we have also found space for genuine learning and enjoyment, as we practice English conversation each week.
Shortly, this student will start online language classes with one of our local settlement agencies. I will be delighted to see how that opportunity will allow her to develop her life in Canada.
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Thank you to my Chinese cousins Jian-Yu (Jenny) and Deming (David), who have retired in British Columbia, for their recent interest in my English-language classes (ESL), which they are promoting to more distant contacts both in China and Canada.
Although we’ve always respected and enjoyed each others’ friendship, for many years the demands of education and careers took us in different directions.
So it has been such a mid-life blessing to return to closer communication! I cherish all of my relatives’ interest, support and affection.
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Special thanks go out this month to Beth Brimner and Joann Brimner for including me in their Easter Sunday feast in Erindale. The delicious ham, scalloped potatoes, all accompanying side-dishes and desserts were delectable!
Beth and Joann’s company, along with a good visit with their local Chinese friends, made for a wonderful Easter celebration, and a reunion from last Christmas Eve!
Thank you, dear friends, and Easter Blessings upon you.
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At Easter and in this fledgling spring, good reader, I hope you have found emotional and spiritual refuge, whichever faith you follow (or don’t), and among family and friends, as we continue to care for our beautiful, but very broken, planet.