| Many Koreans have spent a great deal of time | | | | practice speaking English as much as you can with |
| and money trying to learn English, yet their | | | | native English speakers. Ask them to help you by |
| proficiency rate is very low. Even though some | | | | kindly pointing out your mistakes. If you find that |
| do learn to speak English reasonably well, others | | | | people are having trouble understanding you |
| still have a hard time understanding them. In fact, | | | | because of your accent, then consider working |
| a survey taken by the Political and Economic Risk | | | | with an accent reduction specialist. This person will |
| Consultancy in Hong Kong asked foreigners to | | | | be able to identify exactly which sounds are |
| rate how easily they could understand speakers | | | | causing you trouble and will help you speak English |
| of English from 12 different Asian countries. | | | | more clearly. |
| Koreans ranked at the bottom of the list. | | | | You should look for someone with a background |
| Most Koreans do seem to be aware of the | | | | in speech pathology, as this person is highly |
| problem, however. In 2003, 74.2% of people | | | | trained in how different sound are produced. |
| polled in a government survey admitted that they | | | | Depending on your preferences, you can take |
| had difficulty communicating in English. But what | | | | small group classes or private instruction. |
| can be done for people like you who want to | | | | A wonderful option now is private lessons via |
| speak English more fluently? First, you must look | | | | webcam. You can connect with a specialist |
| for ESL classes taught by native English speakers | | | | anywhere in the world and set up private classes |
| who are trained ESL teachers. It is wonderful to | | | | that work in your schedule and are in the privacy |
| find English speaking friends to chat with, but to | | | | of your own home or office. As long as you have |
| master the nuances of the language, you should | | | | a computer with a microphone and a good quality |
| work with a professional. | | | | webcam, you are ready to begin! |
| Once you can speak conversational English, | | | | |