by Heather Chetwynd | Aug 11, 2010 | Accent Modification
Many of us know the English idiom, “It takes two to tango.” This saying applies very much to communication between native and non-native language speakers – especially in a multicultural, immigration-rich society like Canada. It is common for non-native...
by Heather Chetwynd | May 22, 2010 | Accent Modification
A guy walks into a bar. He’s relatively new to Canada and he likes beer. So, he orders his favourite imported beer. As he finishes his beer, he asks the bartender a question. “Next time I visit your bar,” says the new Canadian, “I’d like to order a Canadian...
by Heather Chetwynd | Apr 22, 2010 | Voice to Word Post - Other
So, a woman walks into a yoga studio to ask about their classes. She sees a class in progress and asks the administrator who it was for. The administrator smiles confidently, and answers: “It’s a divers’ group.” The woman is confused. “Divers?” she asks. She also...
by Heather Chetwynd | Jan 14, 2010 | Voice to Word Post - Other
So, a woman walks into a grocery store to pick up food for a dinner party. She’s running late, and has to get home to start cooking. She’s stressed. Fortunately, she finds everything on her shopping list in short order. Well, almost everything. She wants to make fruit...
by Heather Chetwynd | Feb 11, 2009 | Culture and Values
Canadians are often considered indirect because we often soften our comments with questions and suggestions rather than criticizing in a very straight forward manner. (This the subject of another post.) But we are also generally expected to be direct in Canada,...
