Thorn Tree travel forum

1

I suspect that it is the North American accent that they prefer. After all, they do more business with North America than they do with OZ.

Ruth

First check: Everbrite's travel pages, the New RU sticky,and New RU train sticky

Since I have taken the time to answer your question, it would be nice if you took the time to respond as to whether the information was helpful.

2

It's definitely the accent. More specifically, the accent the Chinese prefer is the standard North American "newcaster" accent (as opposed to New York Brooklyn, or thick Southern drawl, or California Valley Girl). This is obviously going to be easier to model and imitate from a USA or Canadian (let's not forget our north of the border friends, shall we?) English speaker. Sorry to break it to you, but many Chinese (and others) find Aussie accents--particularly the vowel eccentricities--hard to understand. I have met a small minority that prefers upper-class British English to North American English, but as #1 says, you tend to look to who you plan to do the most future business with.

3

Uh, that's "NEWScaster." Good thing I'm not an English teacher.

4

I think indeed it has to do with future business.

Photos, travel stories, travel tips for various countries in Asia, Africa, Middle East, Latin America and Europe in Around the World

5

Personally I would take any accent in China as long as they speak English.

Jeer that noise? Wodger reckna itiz? Scettin lairder.

6

English might not have developed in America, but whether you like it or not, the world standard is American English at the moment, which just plain isn't the same as British English. You want people to prefer to learn your style? Become the #1 world economic power again, and that is what will happen.

Plus many people in east Asia feel that the North American accent is clearer and easier to understand/mimic. Since I have just that accent, I can't be objective about it, though I can sort of see where they're coming from when it comes to our flat, almost blunt-sounding vowels. Easier to discern than vowels in British English.

Don't worry, soon we'll all be learning Chinese anyway. ;)

Everybody should be somebody's Poke Thing. Lao Ren Cha

7

I am a big fan of Australians.
I even love Vegemite, Tim Tams, and Cherry Ripes.
But I still have trouble understanding your accents.
THAT is the reason why the Chinese loved my 'standard' west coast Canadian accent and would prefer to hire one of me rather than one of you.
Nothing personal.

cheers from Ruth

8

By the way, it's the rest of the world that have accents, not I.

9

G'daymatehowyagoin' orright?

At our first English Corner, the students asked me if I could speak with an American accent. "No" I replied while guessing they wanted the news reader one rather than the Southern Drawl I was thinking of ;)

My wife's students initially had problems with our NZ accent but eventually they trained their ears. Also, the slang that we Australasians use is completely different to that from US or UK English.

IIRC, when I watched CCTV9, they had a mix of English accents in their presenters (Aussie, UK, North American,...)

For some of the Chinese we met, the USA / "American Dream" is the pinnacle of the west. Most didn't know where NZ is but they (said they) knew where Australia is.

10

Well... It's because the universal language in the world right now is American English, not British English. I had a on going debate, more of a fight, with this English guy teaching English in China. I kept running into him all over China. He made it a point to teach all his students the British words for items instead of the American words. I told him he was doing his students a disservice since according to the news show I saw on CCTV 9, the government in China wants the people to speak American English. Hence they should learn the American words for this and not the British ones. For example, elevator instead of lift. But he was stubborn about it and insisted that he would only teach his students the British words with a British accent. Whatever.

He was a strange fellow. He was English, but had lived in Australia for a few years. So he would take it as an insult if someone called him English and not Australian. He also would make fun of how he couldn't understand half of the people from England because of their accents. That he could tell which part of the country people are from purely from their accents.

Personally, I have difficulty understanding about half of the people from England when they speak English. Their accents are horrible. People that speak American English are at least understandable no matter where they are from. Many if not most of the people I travel with that aren't native English speakers say they don't have that much trouble understanding Americans, but have a lot of trouble understanding people that speak with an English accent. The funny part is that they ask me to translate.

11

When I was very very young (in the early 90s), I taught English for a bit at an English-language school chain in Taipei. They actually made a point of having teachers from lots of different English-speaking countries: there were teachers from Britain, Ireland, Canada, the US, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The students would be taught all the different meanings of words (trousers/pants, boot/trunk, plastic/American cheese, etc), as well as all the tomayto/tomahto stuff.

It meant that the students weren't confused when, later in life, they went on to do business with different English-speaking countries. I thought it was a great idea.

12

It's simple competition. If you want run an English school in China, you will be more desirable if all your teachers are speaking American English.

13

Quote

---

Many if not most of the people I travel with that aren't native English speakers say they don't have that much trouble understanding Americans

---

That would be due to the 10dB higher volume level when Americans speak.

14

Quote

---

People that speak American English are at least understandable no matter where they are from.

---

That's a bit parochial, isn't it? (Assuming you're American).

For me, American English is like simplified characters -- it just feels so wrong! But I accept there is space for both.

Read about The Man Who Owned All the Opium in Hong Kong