About our clients

All of our testimonials are genuine. We do not edit them and we do not provide incentives for writing them.

Recent Google reviews

Alex TruongAlex Truong
08:05 27 Nov 24
I highly recommend Ear & Speak for anyone looking to improve their English and Aussie accent. Dr Duncan Markham is extremely smart, knowledgeable, dedicated and humorous. His personalised lessons that focus on pronunciation, fluency, and cultural nuances make learning enjoyable and effective. I’ve seen huge improvements in my speaking skills and feel more confident than ever in both professional and social settings. Look no further, you've found the place. What a gem!
Graham AndersonGraham Anderson
02:37 19 Nov 24
Duncan is a highly experienced professional with an obvious desire to achieve great things for his students. Thank you for working with my colleague to achieve impressive results.
Elizabeth GarciaElizabeth Garcia
10:32 08 Aug 24
As someone whose first language is not English, I was looking for an elocution teacher who could help me improve my pronunciation in English. After so much research I decided to start classes with Duncan at Ear & SpeakWhat truly sets Duncan apart is his understanding of the challenges faced by non-native speakers. He took the time to explain the nuances of English pronunciation and intonation in a way that was both accessible and effective. Each lesson was tailored to my specific needs, focusing on the areas where I needed the most improvement. Additionally, he offers a website full or resources to help you practice outside the classes.After 20 lessons, I noticed a significant improvement in my confidence and clarity when speaking English. I highly recommend Ear & Speak to anyone looking to improve their English speaking skills, especially if you are a non-native speaker. Their expertise and personalised approach have made a world of difference in my ability to communicate confidently in English.
Michel FernandesMichel Fernandes
11:25 05 Aug 24
Recently, I completed 10 one-on-one sessions at Ear and Speak with Dr Debbie Loakes. Ear and Speak was the only institution that offered face to face sessions, which was really important to me to see the lips/jaw/tongue mechanics in person and see how important they are for correct pronunciation.The sessions with Dr Debbie were excellent. She helped me correct my pronunciation habits from my native language Portuguese.Overall, Dr Debbie was detailed, highly experienced, had very strong technical knowledge, explained and simplified the content very well, she was highly motivating and made it fun. I highly recommend her to anyone who is looking to improve pronunciation and confidence when speaking English.
MiaMia
06:36 28 Jul 24
Dr Duncan was great. He is professional and approachable.He offered personalised solution and also made the learning experience fun. Highly recommend.
N ChN Ch
13:18 16 Jul 24
Dr Duncan offers excellent professionalism and expertise as a linguist. Over the years, I have used a few different services, apps, and subscriptions, but no one has come close to the learning experience I received by attending my sessions with Dr Duncan. His unique way of instruction and scaffolding empowered me to take control of my continued practice and improvement in the problem areas he helped me identify.I would strongly recommend Ear & Speak to anyone willing to make a commitment and see results, with the tremendous support in person and via the learning resources on the website.
Gabriel BalderramaGabriel Balderrama
06:56 13 Jun 24
If you are self-conscious about your accent, this is the best place to start, and then continue. You get both the practice and the theory behind it so you can understand how to improve. And rest assured there will be some laughs along the way!
Duncan was great, always professional and personable, making our meetings super enjoyable and informative.Loved everything about it and totally recommend it. Thanks, mate!
乾亜弥子乾亜弥子
06:27 09 Feb 24
I learnt a lot in the classes even though I went to the class for only 2 months. He taught me not only the accent but also Australian culture and grammar for me. So he took care of my weak point. Also he was willing to answer my basic questions in English. I am so glad to find him and highly recommend the class.
Jaslie WuJaslie Wu
09:21 23 Nov 23
I had a great learning experience with Dr Debbie Loakes, another instructor in Ear and Speak. I’m pleased with Debbie’s teaching method and mentorship over the nine months. I like how Debbie demonstrates the pronunciation of the words and explains to me the rules behind them. Most importantly, these courses are tailored to my needs. I came to this course with an agenda, which is to be able to deliver my honour’s year presentation with confidence. With Debbie’s support, I successfully achieved my goal! Debbie is always warm and encouraging, and I continue to share my learning experiences with Debbie even after the courses are finished. I couldn’t recommend her classes more.Thank you, Debbie!
Michael VorozheykinMichael Vorozheykin
02:45 21 Nov 23
I want to recommend Debbie from Ear & Speak to anyone looking to improve their English accent (and it's not just about sounding Aussie!). Working with her was a positive experience. Debbie is knowledgeable and made the whole process of improving my speech clarity much easier. The personalised sessions with her have a good atmosphere for learning and I particularly appreciated the practical approach. Liked the sessions a lot!
Clarissa VidoClarissa Vido
07:20 08 Nov 23
I had the privilege of working with Duncan, and I highly recommend him. Duncan possesses a unique combination of skills and qualities that make him an excellent specialist for anyone looking to improve their accent and communication skills.Duncan's strength lies in his ability to identify the specific communication challenges that non-native speakers face. His impressive talent for diagnosing and addressing these issues is remarkable.Moreover, Duncan's honesty in providing feedback is invaluable. He doesn't sugarcoat things but delivers constructive criticism that motivates you to grow. His frank approach is rooted in his commitment to your progress, and he always keeps your best interests in mind. This honesty drives continuous improvement and ultimately leads to success.In summary, I couldn't be happier with the results. If you're looking to improve your accent and communication skills, Ear & Speak is the right choice.
Wilson YeungWilson Yeung
04:56 30 Oct 23
I have been Duncan's client for a few years (4+ years; I started to meet him before the long lockdown) and I must say that it is very fortunate for me to meet him!One thing that separates him from other speaking trainers and English speaking teachers is his pedagogy. You see, speaking is always a difficult part for non-native speakers because of several reasons. 1) Native speakers can still understand me even if I mispronounce/ misuse some words. From there, they dismiss the actual problems and just listen to you. 2) Even if I make noticeable mistakes, it is often difficult for others to correct them. Most of them just pronounce a word (at times with another heavy foreign accent) and ask you to repeat. If they feel like you are pronouncing correctly (and yes, 'feel' like it by looking at your lips instead of listening to you), they just move on. 3) My speaking performance can fluctuate, and things like the context must be considered to make the correct judgement. Some trainers have overlooked this and trained me to speak like a robot. Unlike others, Duncan doesn't just ask me to parrot sounds for each word. He also explains the principles and the phonetic alphabet in a dictionary for me to learn how to pronounce them myself. It comes to me that only a few speaking trainers/ teachers teach that way (because of the fact that they are going to lose a client if the client knows how to self-learn). For this, I am very fortunate to find him at last during my stay in Australia.The other thing about Duncan is that he is willing to contextualise the learning experience based on the client's background. Usually, speaking trainers/ teachers just instruct their students to mimic how they pronounce a word. It is not bad per se, but a far more useful and effective way is to use the knowledge of the client. Being a multilingual linguist, Duncan fluently demonstrates his rich knowledge in many languages by helping me with learning some sounds using my very own language. This is an exceptional feat I must say, considering my language is rarely spoken outside my home city and the fact that most speakers/ trainers only speak two/ three languages at best.In fact, Duncan also focuses on the language usage and tonality, something I didn't expect when I first met him. The thing about speaking is that fluency doesn't come from pronouncing each syllable correctly but also naturally. As a language learner, I always use some (wrong/ strange/ correct yet obscure) expressions that native speakers rarely hear of. Duncan has paid close attention and provided me practical advice in this regard. That is a key piece of information to all language learners: It's not enough to pronounce each word correctly with a native accent. Using (simple/ common) words and expressions also counts. Most other trainers and teachers may have had a hard time already by just focusing on correcting mispronunciation, but Duncan has managed to do both. This actually helps me a lot when I take the English language oral exam here. For the very least, I feel very natural and relaxed every time when I talk to the examiner (and don't forget the fact that I meet Duncan one-on-one, which is exactly how English oral exams are conducted). Furthermore, tonality is something that examiners may use to grade your speaking performance. It is common for non-native English speakers like me to pronounce each sound as if they are individual words. As a result, the overall tonality is strange and monotonous. Unfortunately, most teachers and trainers also use this approach to correct pronunciation. The overall result is that the client can pronounce each word correctly just like an AI. Duncan tackles this problem by listening to how I speak and instruct me to read a passage. While it may seem very mundane, his close attention to things like sound linkages and sound changes to put emphases on words have helped me to pass my oral exams and also speak more confidently.I hope to continue my training under him if possible. I will wait for his business expansion in my home city. Thanks and
Boyan PenevBoyan Penev
09:08 06 Sep 23
Arlen MendezArlen Mendez
12:16 03 Aug 23
Dr Duncan was great in helping me to understand the common mistakes I was doing while speaking. He was very direct and did not sugarcoat things, but in a kind way, I think this was great! as that is what is needed to improve pronunciation, as you want someone to provide you with feedback constantly. I also liked the handouts that are very good for practising.
LenaLena
00:54 09 Jun 23
I highly recommend Dr Duncan to anyone who wants to improve their Australian accent. He is an expert in his field and a great teacher. He always adapts his lessons to my goals and needs, and makes them fun and engaging. He has a professional and friendly attitude, and a good sense of humour. I have learned a lot from him in the past year and I am very satisfied with my progress.
Gennady FedorovGennady Fedorov
07:31 19 Feb 23
Highly recommend face-to-face elocution classes with Duncan. His personalised and focused approach coupled with a friendly delivery helped me to significantly improve my pronunciation and reduce the accent in only three month's time.
Joseph YangJoseph Yang
01:44 04 Feb 23
Lessons with Duncan have been incredibly rewarding. Duncan is highly knowledgeable about linguistics, extremely meticulous and delivers the lessons in a very personalised and (usually) patient manner. The progress I made here has not only made me a better communicator but also greatly helped with confidence and self-awareness. Initially hesitant due to the cost and the somewhat stringent administrative procedures but turned out to be worth every cent. Can’t recommend this enough for every non-native English speaker.P.s. be careful with how you say the word “leisure” during the lessons
Patrick RPatrick R
10:18 26 Dec 22
Duncan has been an excellent coach to me since Apr 2022. He is highly knowledgeable and professional. The coaching sessions are tailored to my needs and he focuses on areas of improvement that provides the greatest impact on communication. He explains concepts in a clear and effective manner, and he uses different techniques to get his point across.Admittedly I was hesitant due to budget concerns but I’m glad I went ahead - the investment is worth it and the results noticeable after multiple sessions.Note that the speed of improvement is dependent on the amount of practice outside the coaching sessions, as such, Duncan always provides gentle reminders to practice to yield the best result.I have no hesitation in recommending Duncan’s linguistic consultancy. Thank you Duncan, it is very much appreciated.
Yuxuan LinYuxuan Lin
05:23 19 Dec 22
I have studied under Dr Duncan for over ten months and it has been such a life-changing experience for me. Not only because how professional and customised educational service Dr Duncan provided, but also the wide spectrum of knowledges we exchanged and the rich cultural mindset I picked up from his brain. I highly suggest you to simply email Dr Duncan for any thoughts you have related to English language/culture to get things move on. The sooner the better!
SaranyaSaranya
12:27 17 Nov 22
I have been working with Debbie for around two years now . As a non-native English speaker, her sessions have helped me understand the nuance behind accents, speech delivery and have greatly improved my confidence conversing with clients and colleagues. She brings with her ample amounts of patience and a lovely non-judgemental neutral stance. She was guided by my pace and goal, which was to understand accents better and not to necessarily sound Australian. I cannot recommend her highly enough .
Ana Maria MejiaAna Maria Mejia
08:45 03 Nov 22
Dr. Duncan and his team are the best choice If you are looking for the best classes, training to gain confidence, and improve your english pronunciation skills. Rigth people, right place. I loved every session, everything was completely personalised accordingly with my needs. Highly recommended. Thank you for your support.
Danny HoDanny Ho
23:02 02 Nov 22
Wonderful experience. I have learned so much from you and I look forward to learning more by keeping on practice. Thank you for being a remarkable tutor and I was very grateful to learn the correct pronunciations from you, Dr. Duncan
Hari PriyaHari Priya
02:42 19 Sep 22
Dr.Duncan understood my needs and areas where I would like to develop and helped me accordingly. He helped me with a multitude of things in a short span. Highly recommend his classes.
Stanley DarmawanStanley Darmawan
04:39 22 Mar 22
I came from Indonesia and I have lived in Australia for a long time but I have developed the wrong habit in speaking English, therefore my accent doesn't sound like Australian. Within a short time, having a few sessions with Dr Duncan changed my speaking habit. While I'm currently still learning, I feel I can speak smoother with more Aussie accent now.
Luisa MolinaLuisa Molina
06:52 19 Mar 22
Duncan has been a fantastic couch in my English improvement journey. I am particularly grateful for Duncan's patience, guidance and honest feedback. Since day one, Duncan focused on the areas that were going to have a major impact based on my particular needs. I was impressed with his creativity, always using various techniques and ideas until there was one that could get me closer to the right pronunciation. Duncan's experience is invaluable too, he's worked with people from many backgrounds so he knows how to best tackle diverse needs.I would highly recommend Duncan's services, especially if you are serious about improving your English skills, with commitment and Duncan's help you can get to where you want to be in your English language journey... by the way Duncan is very dynamic and fun, so you will have fun along the way too.
Muss JameelMuss Jameel
06:56 25 Feb 22
I had 14 sessions with Dr Duncan and I think I learnt the right pronunciation of the words more than the time I spent in school studying English (12 years).I really did enjoy all the classes and how friendly he was especially when he would observe and correct my mispronunciation.I highly recommend his classes to anyone trying to sound more natural.Cheers,Muss
Leopoldo MoralesLeopoldo Morales
01:19 17 Feb 22
I would highly recommend Ear and Speak,. It was fun and challenging to go through the one on one sessions with Duncan.The sessions were tailored to my own personal needs and goals. I learnt a lot about the phonetics of English and how to put them in practice, at the same time I have felt my English has improved a lot since I attended Ear and Speak.
Mas JamieMas Jamie
00:00 29 Jan 22
I had a great experience with Ear & Speak specially with Dr.Debbie. They detect those area which you need to have an improvement, then in each session they practice those areas. Also, they have a great website which has all extra martials you need.
Chris ClimanChris Climan
06:14 28 Jan 22
I've been living in Australia over a decade and was looking for advanced pronunciation courses, this went above and beyond. I learned a lot of critical details that cannot be learned from written material.I really enjoyed learning with Debbie.
Iris WangIris Wang
00:06 28 Nov 21
I tend to believe that there are two pathways for personal development: self-education and professional training. When self-education lacks efficiency, it is the time to seek for professional assistance. I had my sessions with Duncan and I am glad I made this decision. At the beginning, I did research online and read the information on the website. It is very straightforward without any vagueness, which is the same way that Duncan delivers his training. I decided to have a try.Initially I was curious how it would go on. Then Duncan showed his expertise to pick up my issues very straightforwardly, and advised the methods and tips to address them. Our sessions were stressful but also full of fun and fruitful. His kindness and wisdom were also very supportive.I believe that professional help saves our time and energy, and I definitely recommend Duncan. You help yourself to reach out to Duncan for professional help, and Duncan helps you with his profession.
Ann NguyenAnn Nguyen
12:50 11 Oct 21
I started training with Duncan since November 2020 and it has been a great experience. Duncan is very patient, thoughtful, and knowledgeable teacher. I gain a lot of confidence in speaking English and my pronunciation is definitely improve and clearer. I would highly recommend Duncan to anyone interested in improving English speaking skills.
Magdalena LivingstoneMagdalena Livingstone
06:04 01 Oct 21
As soon as I heard Dr Duncan Markham perfectly pronounce the name of Agnieszka Radwańska (on his web-page), I knew he’d be the best person to help me. I was tired of being constantly asked „Where are you from?” by strangers and decided to smooth my accent. It was also important for me to be clearly understood in my new role as an interpreter.Duncan has proven to be invaluable in this process. He has a deep knowledge of linguistics and is very professional and patient as a teacher. His sessions are not only linguistically enlightening but also fun and hard work. Without Duncan I would have not come across the mysterious schwas, capricious diphthongs and many other vagaries of English pronunciation.I'm happy with what I have been learning during the time spent under his expert wing and I'd recommend him anytime. Thank you Duncan!
Ingo KarpenIngo Karpen
01:42 19 Aug 21
In my role as a university lecturer as well as a consultant, working both with high-powered people and eager learners, I have a need to communicate effectively.Duncan was amazing in sensitizing me for minute pronunciation details and helping me understand how to improve my ‘Australian English’. I was specifically interested in blending in more smoothly into the Australian cultural context by way of language and overcoming the harsh foundation of my central-European accent. It became both a wonderful identity-building exercise and learning journey. It took and still takes me longer than expected working on my (non)accent, but credit to Duncan I feel I am making constant progress. So thank you! Highly recommend Duncan!!!
Francesco VicenziFrancesco Vicenzi
10:02 14 May 21
Session were great fun, and challenging. After only a few lesson I corrected some major pronunciation mistakes and improved my clarity significantly. Highly recommended!
Rajadhi WickramatungaRajadhi Wickramatunga
00:50 22 Feb 21
I attended Ear & Speak for nearly a year and worked with Duncan. Even though our plan was to meet in person weekly, due to the pandemic, our sessions were mostly done via Zoom.Even with that limitation, I had a rewarding experience with Duncan. Duncan is thorough, well-planned and very attentive. I can also say that despite my initial apprehension in getting these lessons, I actually ended up having a really good time learning some easy-to-miss nuances of the language.While I'm taking a break after a year, I will definitely go back to Duncan to polish my language skills down the track again.
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Client testimonials (multilingual)

Click a flag to see testimonials from clients of various backgrounds.
australian flag indonesian flag indian flag german flag swiss flag mexican flag vietnamese flag russian flag colombian flag thai flag chinese flag malaysian flag iranian flag japanese flag turkish flag burmese flag italian flag brazilian flag egyptian flag french flag korean flag south african flag

australian flag Hi Duncan, just wanted to send you a quick note regarding how things have gone and to once again thank you for your help and coaching a few months back.

There have been some positive changes in my work/career (in financial services) after your sessions. I’m now talking directly to clients and have found the tips and coaching you provided extremely beneficial. The improvement has been noticeable and my confidence has improved markedly, I just wanted to say thank you again for your work in helping me work through some challenges that lingered for years!

Chris,
first language: Australian English

australian flag Dr Markham’s services were utilised by AMS to improve and enhance pronunciation, communication and grammar skills. The improvements since the sessions have been outstanding and both the employee and management are extremely pleased. Dr Markham’s ability to build trust with his client meant that he was able to successfully address sensitive areas for improvement and deliver appropriate techniques for improvement. Dr Markham was very flexible in incorporating wider aspects of interpersonal and presentation skills as required and due to this, the results have been evident in not only the above areas but also in the employee’s general development and growth.

Leanne Marran,
HR Manager, Australian Motoring Services
[staff training; first language: Australian English]

australian flag Ear and Speak is a must to those interested in improving any area of communication, from public speaking to conversations with co-workers or friends.

I found sessions with Duncan were professional yet relaxed and were focused on my individual needs and desires. Specific feedback was offered which really allow me to develop an understanding of what I was doing right and also areas that required attention.

Since seeing Duncan I’ve noticed improvements in my elocution, pronunciation and my ability to communicate effectively in various environments, both in the office and while out socialising with friends.

Luke Schulz,
Property Professional / Lifestyle Entrepreneur
first language: Australian English

indian flag I’m from Chennai, India. I’m quite familiar with English language from my childhood days through to university. I moved to Australia for my work, couple of years ago. I always surprised to see that my English speaking colleagues struggle a lot, to understand my English. When I met Dr.Duncan, the first question that I wanted to ask him is, “I can speak good in English with good frequency, then, why do people cracking their heads to understand my English”. I did asked this to him during the first assessment. He just smiled and asked me to read the Alphabets from a printed sheet of paper. That was an embarrassing moment but later I’m completely convinced (and hard to accept) that I should start from the Alphabets and un-learn a lot.

The methodology that Dr.Duncan uses, to train on voice modulation, lip movement, time intervals and co-relating the sounds, are all unique, impressive and pretty amazing. They are all easy to follow and proven to provide results, starting from 3rd or 4th sessions. It happened in my case. There was a popular statement that I used to hear from my work colleages “say it again, please”. The frequency of it has come down drastically and they do able to catch up my conversation. It helps me to boost confidence, improve my social and professional life. I appreciate Dr.Duncan’s techniques and would recommend to similar learners.

IT professional from Tamilnadu State, India,
first language: Tamil

malaysian flag I liked the way the training was conducted. It was informal and tailored to my specific needs. Duncan was able to fit a lot of information and training into each session. I really appreciated it as I was on a tight schedule and he understood. The most important thing was that I enjoyed the training sessions. Also the training sessions were very beneficial.

JT, Accountant
first languages: Cantonese/Hokkien

malaysian flag I found Duncan very helpful and kind and considerate towards our employee and myself. I feel that I have noticed a marked improvement but most importantly that our employee has become much more confident in his conversations with customers and peers.

Jenny Ritchie, owner, Windsor Apparel
[staff training; first languages: Hokkien/Malay]

german flag Das Training mit Duncan hat teilweise riesigen Spass gemacht, teilweise glich es einer Folter und war wirklich harte Arbeit, da Duncan kein flascher Ton entgeht. Aber die harte Arbeit hat sich gelohnt: Mein deutscher Akzent ist fast weg.

Some sessions were heaps of fun, some session were torture and really hard work as Duncan can be pretty pedantic but my German accent is almost gone and I sound Aussie. Good on him!

Ben J., Sales Representative,
first language: German

swiss flag I would like to thank you so much for the very valuable language coaching over the last 5 months which have helped me develop a different level of language awareness and has given me great tools to further improve my pronunciation and communication skills.

Chris Langenegger,
first language: German

indonesian flag Dr Duncan really helped me with my english. Now I don’t need to keep on repeating myself because of my accent! He is patient and really care in teaching me each word the aussie way. I will definitely continue again with the lessons if I’m in Melbourne again!

Dwi, IT professional,
first language: Bahasa Indonesia

indonesian flag Berbicara dengan penuh keyakinan dalam bahasa Inggris dan mengeja kata-kata penting dengan benar untuk komunikasi yang efektif dalam kehidupan sehari-hari adalah tujuan utama saya sebelum mencari Dr. Duncan. Dan kedua hal itu pulalah yang saya peroleh dari kelas privat dia. Sejak dari kelas pertama, saya menjadi lebih perhatian kepada penggunaan tatabahasa dan ejaan Inggris saya dalam kehidupan sehari-hari. Maka itu, saya sangat merekomendasikan jasa dia kepada orang-orang yang mau meningkatkan kemampuan berbicara dan mendengar dalam bahasa Inggris, baik di dalam kerjaan maupun di dalam kehidupan sehari-hari. Kemampuan berbicara dan mendengar Dr. Duncan yang baik dan digabung dengan pengetahuan umumnya yang luas membuat kelasnya sangat asik dan mudah diikuti.

To speak confidently in English and pronounce useful words properly for better daily communications were my objectives before giving Dr. Duncan a call. Those two points were exactly what I gained from his private one-on-one classes. From the first class, I have been paying more attentions to my grammar and pronunciations in my daily communications until today. Therefore, I highly recommend his services to people who want to improve their English speaking and listening skills in both workplace and daily life. His English speaking and listening skills coupled with his broad knowledge about outside world made the classes enjoyable and practical.

Rudi , Digital Producer/Digital Project Manager,
first language: Bahasa Indonesia

italian flag Duncan e’ un linguista molto competente, che sa spiegare chiaramente le complessita’ della lingua inglese e le idiosincrasie della sua pronuncia (quando possono essere spiegate!), rendendo l’ esperienza piacevole. Ci siamo fatti quattro risate quando ho scoperto che, ad esempio, ‘salmon’ si pronuncia ‘semn’ e ‘Melbourne’ diventa ‘mebn’ – suonava incredibile alle mie orecchie italiane! Chiunque sia seriamente interessato a migliorare la sua pronuncia puo’ veramente trarre vantaggio dalle lezioni di Duncan.

I found Duncan a very knowledgeable linguist, who can clearly explain the intricacies of the English language and the idiosyncrasies of its pronunciation (when they can be explained, that is!) and make it fun. We had a few good laughs while I was discovering that, for example, ‘salmon’ is pronounced ‘semn’ and ‘Melbourne’ is ‘mebn’ – quite unthinkable to my Italian ears! Anyone truly committed to improving their pronunciation could greatly benefit from Duncan’s lessons.

Nicoletta, Director,
first language: Italian

iranian flag I want to thank you for the great sessions we’ve had during the past months. It was fun and you helped me a lot to pay more attention to my speaking. Your grammatical and pronunciation hints have been so constructive!
Due to my studies, I would like to defer our sessions for a while. I’m looking forward to see you again in few months with a free mind, a greater motivation and of course more time to practice!I will miss our sessions till then. You’re a great tutor 🙂

F, Engineer,
first language: Persian

vietnamese flag Tôi đã có IELTS 8.5 (với nghe đọc mỗi môn 9 điểm, nói viết mỗi môn 8 điểm) khi bắt đầu học với thầy Duncan. Mặc dù đã có nền tảng tiếng Anh khá tốt, nhưng khi trò chuyện trong tình huống bình thường với người bản địa, vẫn có những lúc họ phải hỏi lại tôi một số từ, đặc biệt là khi nói nhanh. Những bài học với thầy Duncan đã giúp tôi học cách phát âm chuẩn từ những phần cơ bản nhất của ngôn ngữ: nguyên âm, phụ âm. Tưởng là cơ bản nhưng không hề dễ, nhất là khi bạn đã có hơn chục năm phát âm theo cách đó. Sửa chữa những thói quen trong ngôn ngữ mất thời gian khá lâu, nhưng một khi bạn chăm chỉ tập, kết quả có được rất khác biệt. Tôi đã ở Úc rất lâu nhưng trong 9 tháng học với thầy Duncan, tiếng Anh của tôi, nhất là tiếng Anh nói, đã cải thiện đáng kể, bạn có thể có những kĩ năng đọc, nghe, viết rất tốt nhưng nếu bạn cứ phạm những lỗi phát âm cơ bản, bạn sẽ không thể nói là mình nói tiếng Anh như người bản địa được.Tôi đã từng tự học rất nhiều nhưng tôi nhận ra rằng, có 1 người thầy chuyên gia giúp đỡ mình thì mọi chuyện sẽ dễ dàng hơn và sẽ mau chóng tiến bộ hơn.

I got IELTS average of 8.5 with 9 each for reading and listening and 8 each for writing and speaking so my English wasn’t bad when I started my lesson with Duncan. However, I had encountered some frustration in communicating with the natives, there had been some particular words that I was often asked to repeat, especially in fast conversation. Duncan’s first 7 or 8 sessions had brought me back to the most basic parts of the English language: back to how to pronounce the vowels and some consonants. No need to say that I was most the time tongue-twisted, was sometimes discouraged and always learning something new. I enjoy his relaxed teaching style, his sense of humour and in particular his ability to spot on any pronunciation problems and (most importantly, what I should do to eliminate those). Progress happens slowly, sometimes I do slip back to my old habit but I can easily correct myself now(I have had lessons with Duncan for more than 9 months), it is a big breakthrough considering the 12+ years I have been living in Australia without any major improvement in speaking the language. I guess, for the more advanced English learners, the next step to become better and fluent with the language is to sound more like one, and the journey will be much easier with the guidance and help of a professional teacher like Duncan.

E.T.,
first language: Vietnamese

russian flag Для многих людей переехавших в другие страны не будет секретом то, что языковой барьер это одно из самых больших препятствий в достижении жизненных целей. В большинстве случаев, это ментальный барьер основанный на отсутствии уверенности в себе.

Начиня курс у Данкана, я поставил перед собой две цели – научиться выражать сложные мысли и быть понятым при этом, и повысить общий уровень языка. Посещать уроки Данкана было не только полезно и познавательно, но в тоже время весело. Его уроки существенно повысили мою уверенность в себе. Данкан всегда нацелен на улучшение самых слабых мест, будь то произношение, грамматика либо словарный запас. Особенно полезными для меня были уроки где мы разбирали разницу в произношении русских и английских звуков и как этим пользоваться. Поняв эту разницу я начал улучшать свой уровень просто слушая себя.

В итоге – Данкан помог мне улучшить уверенность в себе и почувствовать себя частью англоязычного общества.

It’s not a secret that one of the biggest barriers for new immigrants to establishing themselves a new country is language. Quite often this barrier is just a mental one, based on one’s level of confidence.

I worked with Duncan with two goals in mind – make sure I can express complicated thoughts and be understood as well as improve my general level of fluency. Attending Duncan’s classes was not just useful and educating, it was also entertaining and boosted my confidence significantly. Duncan always focused areas requiring improvement in pronunciation as well as grammar and vocabulary. I found especially useful the classes where we were looking at the differences between sounds in English and my native language, what I can re-use and what is different. Once I became aware of those, I was able to start improving by just listening to myself.

In short – Duncan helped me to boost the confidence and feel part of the community.

Ivan, Information Techonology professional,
first language: Russian

turkish flag Çok yakın bir arkadaşımın sayesinde Dr. Duncan’la tanıştım. İki nedenden dolayı, İngilizceyi ana dilim gibi konuşmak ve mülakat becerilerimi geliştirmek için kendisiyle birtakım seanslar almaya karar verdim. İlk seanstan sonra, birçok kelimeyi, özellikle uzun ünlüleri (a, e, i, o, u) yanlış olarak telaffuz ettiğimi ve İngilizcemde Türkçe aksanımın bariz olarak ağır bastığını fark ettim. Dr. Duncan benim bu alışılagelmiş yanlış telaffuzlarımı saptayarak bunları nasıl ana dili İngilizce olan biri gibi telaffuz etmem gerektiğini öğretti. Bu açıdan Dr. Duncan, ana dili İngilizce olamayan bir kişinin konuşmasındaki istenmeyen küçük nüansları fark edebiliyor ve bunları nasıl doğru olarak telaffuz edileceğini öğretiyor. Dr. Duncan aynı zamanda bir mülakat durumunda kendimden emin bir şekilde kendimi nasıl daha iyi ifade etmem gerektiğine dair oldukça önemli tüyolar verdi. Kendisiyle yaşadığım öğrenme deneyimim harikaydı ve şu an sadece ben değil arkadaşlarım ve meslektaşlarım bile telaffuzumu ne kadar geliştirdiğimi ve telaffuz hatalarımı ne kadar minimize ettiğimi fark edebiliyor.

Thanks to my very close friend I met Dr. Duncan. Because of two reasons – sounding more like an English native speaker and improving my interview skills – I decided to have several sessions with him. After my first session, I realised that I had been pronouncing most of the words incorrectly – especially the ones with long vowels (a, e, i, o, u) – and my Turkish accent in my speech had been quite obvious. Dr Duncan spotted my habitual pronunciation errors and taught how I could pronounce them like a native speaker. In that respect, Dr. Duncan notices small and unwelcoming nuances in a non-native English speaker’s speech and teaches how to pronounce them correctly. He also gave me really important tips as to how I should express myself in an interview by sounding confident. My learning experience with him was great and now not only me even my friends and colleagues can notice how much I have improved my pronunciation and minimised my pronunciation errors.

Caner,
first language: Turkish
 

chinese flag Duncan 是一位非常有耐心的口语老师。他帮我找出了许多我自己以前都没发觉的发音错误,并一遍遍地帮助我纠正直到完全掌握了为止。与其他老师不同的是因为Duncan曾研究过包括中文在内多国语言,他能根据我的母语发音习惯找出发音错误的根源,因此更能对症下药。Duncan的教学方法轻松有效,本人强烈推荐!

Duncan is a patient mentor. He helped me to identify many pronunciation errors I was never aware of before and went through them with me over and over again until I learned the right way. What made him different was that because Duncan has studied many different languages in the past he was able to point out the speech habits that really caused my problems, which made correcting them much easier. Duncan’s teaching methods are effective and enjoyable, I highly recommend him to anybody who wants to speak English fluently.

YT,
first language: Mandarin

chinese flag Like many other overseas migrants in Australia, I was not from an English speaking background. Since my high school years, I have experienced difficulties in pronouncing some words and phrases. As a result, in my adulthood I have realized that, not all people can fully understand everything I’m saying. I often get laughed at due to my accent and pronunciation, this made me feel embarrassed about the way I spoke. However, I have noticed many people can only tell you, your pronunciation is wrong, but it can be difficult for them to show you or explain to you the right way of pronouncing it. This might be because they don’t know how to describe it in a way that fits to your language culture or they themselves don’t know how to pronounce it correctly. Ear and Speak is very helpful because, the course identifies all your speaking and pronunciation problems. I found this particularly helpful, because once you know where the problems are, you will be mindful of the words and phrases every time you speak and you will start to improve immediately. Ear and Speak, not only teaches you all the different avenues on how to improve and gives you all the tool and practices to improve, but also a extremely safe, helpful and friendly environment, this makes you feel comfortable of speaking freely and discussing any language difficulties your having. I have found this to be excellent course and would recommend anyone who is having difficulties with English language.

Stephanie,
first language: Cantonese

chinese flag I would like to share my story with people who desperately want to improve their pronunciations and communication skills. Having lived in Australia for over 15 years, and working in a big research organisation almost ten years where daily communication is English, I felt my English pronunciation is still poor. Initiated by my divisional chief, my HR manager helped me find Duncan for a dedicated course to improve my pronunciation. Duncan right away picked up my pronunciation problems and set up a specific plan for me. We started with alphabet letters, basic vocabulary, words with TH sounds, vowel problems, etc. He patiently and repeatedly corrected my pronunciation problem one by one. After 12 lessons, my colleagues can identify my progress in communication, I have built more confidence in daily conversation. In addition to pronunciation, he also corrected my grammar and enhanced my communication skills. Certainly, it is not enough to just attend class – regular practice at home and at work is necessary to consolidate this. I believe the time with Duncan is very worthwhile, life-long rewarding. Thanks, Duncan.

Research Scientist,
first language: Mandarin

chinese flag Dr Duncan是一个资深专业的语言专家,他能够根据每个人的发音特点和困难之处制定适合的方案,小到一个字母的嘴型,或者与周围人沟通时需要注意的地方。 在他的帮助下,我能够更自信的开口,与当地同事沟通。

Dr Duncan helped me build confidence of communication. For those Mandarin speakers like me, Dr Duncan can developed specific and tailored training plan which meets personal needs and fix pronunciation problems.Thanks so much for your advice.

Nan Gould, graduate student
first language: Mandarin

colombian flag Me di cuenta que mi Jefe y colegas tenían muchas dificultades para entender my fuerte acento Colombiano. Sin embargo, yo no podía identificar mis errores; para mí era muy difícil escuchar los sonidos que necesitaba cambiar. En mi opinión, uno de los más importantes logros de tener lecciones con Dr Duncan es el hecho de que ahora tengo la capacidad de diferenciar los sonidos que gente de habla inglesa espera oír. Ahora me es más fácil practicar cambios de pronunciación por mi cuenta.

Dr Duncan personalizo cada una de las sesiones para mí. El identifico y abordo los aspectos esenciales de mi pronunciación que debía cambiar. Me encantaron sus métodos y aun mas los resultados obtenidos.

I realized that my boss and colleagues frequently struggled to understand my strong Colombian accent. However, I wasn’t able to identify my mistakes; it was hard for me to hear the sounds I needed to change. In my opinion, one of the most important outcomes of having lessons with Dr Duncan is the fact that now I am able to differentiate sounds that English speaking people expect to hear. Now it is easier to practice pronunciation changes by myself.

Dr Duncan tailored every single session for me. He identified and addressed the essential aspects of my pronunciation that needed to be changed. I loved his methods and even more the results achieved.

Andrés,
first language: Spanish (Colombia)

mexican flag He trabajado como psiquiatra en Melbourne por los úlimos 4 años. Como pueden imaginar, la comunicación es particularmente importante para mi. Mi trabajo consiste en escuchar y hablar inglés la mayor parte del día. Por este motivo decidí pedir la ayuda de Duncan. Aunque mi acento no es perfecto aún, debo decir que mejoró significativamente. Esto ha incrementado mi confianza al evaluar pacientes y al comunicarme con sus familiares y colegas. Duncan se toma su trabajo muy seriamente, algunas sesiones no paramos de reír mientras que otras fueron muy difíciles.

Lo recomiendo ampliamente a cualquier professional de la salud cuyo primer idioma no sea el ingles.

I have worked as a psychiatrist in Melbourne for the last 4 years. As you can imagine, communication is particularly important for me. My job is to listen and speak English most of the day. This is why I decided to seek Duncan´s help. Even though my accent isn’t perfect yet, I must say it has improved significantly. This has increased my confidence in communicating with patients, their families, and colleges.

Duncan takes his job very seriously, some sessions we didn’t stop laughing while other were really tough. I highly recommend him to any health professional whose first language isn´t English.

JP,
first language: Spanish (Mexico)

brazilian flag Sou brasileiro é moro na Austrália há 2 anos, já vim para a Austrália com um bom conhecimento em inglês e já havia morado nos EUA por 3 meses. Quando minha empresa ofereceu o treinamento na “Ear and Speak” fiquei um pouco reticente em fazê-lo e com medo de perder meu tempo.

Porém após começar o curso percebi uma grande evolução no meu inglês, me senti mais confortável para falar com clientes e socializar com pessoas fora do trabalho, também percebi que as pessoas estavam fazendo menos caras de “não entendi” quando eu falo, sem falar que estou entendendo muito melhor as pessoas, principalmente as com sotaques diferentes.

A metodologia proposta pelo Dr Duncan é de fácil assimilação e é totalmente voltada para as suas necessidades. O que eu mas gostei das aulas do Duncan é que elas são bem descontraídas e ele tem um bom senso de humor.

I’m Brazilian and have lived in Australia for 2 years. When I came to Australia I already had a good knowledge in English and had lived in US for 3 months. When my company offered the training at “Ear and Speak” I was a little bit concerned if it would be waste of time for me.

However after I began the trainings I could feel a good improvement, I become more comfortable to talk with customers and socialize outside work. People were doing less “non understanding” face for me and also my listening has improved too, nowadays it is a little bit easier to understand people with different accents.

The methodology proposed by Duncan is very straightforward and the classes are totally designed for your needs, another point that I really enjoyed at Duncan sessions are that it is very relaxing and he has a good sense of humour.

Paulo Prestes,
first language: Portuguese (Brazil)

burmese flag I can confirm that we have approved the second lot of sessions for [employee] – both he and the company are seeing benefits from his time with you. We have definitely noticed an improvement in [employee]’s communication, in particular his verbal communication. [employee] may not have mentioned it to you, but he has also recently been promoted into his first team leader role – he presented himself very well during the recruitment process, and his communication was excellent.

HR manager of multinational company,
(staff training; first language: Burmese)

japaneseflag 正直なところ、初めはきっと日本人が一般的に苦手とされるLやRなどの矯正に終わるのかと思っていましたが、Duncan先生のレッスンは私の予想を良い意味で裏切ってくれました。私が今までに全く気がつかなかった発音のミスや癖を初回のレッスンで瞬時に見抜いてくれ、一番よく使うものや、矯正が簡単なものから順に取り組んでいきました。Duncan先生に指摘されてからは、周りのネイティブスピーカーの正しい発音に注目するようになり、今までスペルを聞かれていた道や人の名前が減ったような気がします。

私は小さい子供がいるワーキングマザーで使える時間も限られていたので、場所や時間がフレキシブルなこともすごく助かりました。

レッスンで得た気づきを生活の中で復習することが重要なので、そのコミットメントができる時にレッスンを受けると最も有効だと思います。

ST, consultant,
first language: Japanese

thai flag ผมไม่เคยเรียนภาษาอังกฤษที่ไหนแล้วรู้สึกว่าจะทำให้ผมสามารถพัฒนาตัวเองได้อย่างมากมายในเวลาแค่ 8 ชั่วโมง การที่ได้มาเรียนที่ Ear & Speak นั้นทำให้ผมรู้สึกว่าตัวเองได้เข้าใจอะไรมากขึ้น ได้เรียนภาษาอังกฤษในอีกมุมหนึ่งที่ผมไม่เคยเจอ และผมรู้สึกได้ว่าผมสนุกกับมัน ทำให้ผมอยากที่จะพัฒนาภาษาอังกฤษของตัวเอง Dr. Duncan เป็นคนที่สามารถชี้จุดที่คุณควรจะแก้ไขได้เป็นอย่างดี ถ้าคุณทำตามอย่างเคร่งครัด ผลที่ออกมาจะทำให้คุณไม่ผิดหวัง

I usually stay in Thailand but I need to improve my English for working. English is the subject that I dislike in the University. English always cause a problem for me. I cannot pick up the phone for working as support. I lack of confidence for speak. I have a chance to improve English with Ear & Speak from my company but I have only 8 hours for improved my English then I didn’t expected too much. After first class, I find myself Dr. Duncan guide me a difference thing that I never know it before. He can point out what’s my weakness and I focus on it. I feel my English was improve in every hours. My heart was lighten by Ear and Speak, English isn’t hard anymore if you open your mind to do what Dr. Duncan told you. I got a great experience within 8 hours but it’s too short. I will came back if I have a chance.

Ponsarut Mahamongkonsawasde
first language: Thai

egyptian flag قبل ما اروح لدنكان انا جربت كذا وسيلة لتحسين اللكنة، زي السبيتش باثولوجيست، مدرس انجليزي، الكتب السمعية، بس للاسف محصلش تطور خالص. بصراحة التحسن الوحيد كان مع دنكان.
واضح انه عارف العيوب التقليدية للناس اللي بتحاول تتكلم انجليزي بس اللغة العربي غالبة عليها، في حاجات كتير في طريقة النطق الصحيحة عرفتها لاول مرة، و بعد ما كنت فاكر ان مستحيل الواحد نطقه يتحسن بدأت احس بتطور مع الوقت.
انا بنصح اي حد مهتم بطريقة النطق الصحيحة انه يجرب مع دنكان و اعتقد انه هيستفيد جدا معاه.
حازم
مصر
Hazem
first language: Arabic

french flag J’avais beaucoup de difficultés avec ma prononciation en anglais. Après avoir essayé d’apprendre avec des vidéos sur YouTube et des sites internet, je commençais à être désespérée. J’ai trouvé “ear and speak” sur internet. Je n’étais pas sure de la qualité des classes donc j’ai demandé plus d’informations. J’ai donc commencé les cours. Duncan est super ; il m’a mis super à l’aise et m’a vraiment poussé pour atteindre mon but. Il travaille à ton rythme et est même capable de t’expliquer les choses dans ta propre langue s’il y a des choses que tu ne comprends pas. Duncan s’est ajusté autour de mon emplois du temps pour me donner plusieurs options de rendez-vous. J’ai étudié avec Duncan pour 4 mois et avec beaucoup d’effort de ma part dans ma vie personnelle. Je suis maintenant très fière de pouvoir avoir une conversation sans bafouiller ou stresser. Je recommande les cours de Duncan à tous ceux qui ont des difficultés de prononciation.

I needed to improve my pronunciation. After trying hard for many years with you tube videos and websites, nothing changed. People in my day to day life were struggling to understand me and I was often misconstrued. I found ear and speak on line… I wasn’t certain of the efficiency of the one on one classes. I requested more information. And then started the classes. Duncan was great. He made me feel comfortable and really pushed me to work hard towards my goal. Duncan gave me the choice between several time during the week so it could suit my personal life. He is really easy to talk to, reply to your emails straight away and help you go trough every hard stage of the pronunciation. All classes are different and you work on what you struggle the most with. He is even able to explain the things you don’t understand in your own language. I have taken the classes for 4 months and with a bit of hard work on my side, I am now proud to say that I have no difficulties to communicate with others. I will recommend ear and speak to anyone who has issues with their pronunciation.

Marion Couturier,
first language: French

french flag I would like to tell you that your help on my pronunciation has been (and still is) extremely useful to my career. Although it still have a bit of a French accent, I don’t hear anymore comments on my pronunciation and I am much more confident when I do presentations. I review my notes from our lessons on a regular basis and can now see how I started to apply little by little the pronunciations rules you taught me which now seem natural to me.

Thanks again and for sure I will recommend you to anyone who is keen to improve his/her accent.

Béatrice, consultant,
first language: French

korean flag Duncan과의 몇 개월간의 트레이닝을 통해 얻은 결과물은 기대이상이었습니다. 호주식 영어에 대해 조금 더 깊이 이해하게 되었으며 영어를 말하고 듣는데 있어서 자신감이 크게 향상되었습니다. 또한 수업 중 제공되는 자료들은 굉장히 잘 구성되어있어 발음상의 어색한 점을 고치고 연습하는데 큰 도움을 주었습니다. Duncan은 매우 친절하고 유머러스하며, 인내심 있게 가르칩니다. 만약 현재 한국식 억양으로 인해 일상생활 혹은 대인관계에 혼란을 겪고 계신다면 이 프로그램이 분명 도움이 될 것이라 생각합니다.

I completed a number of sessions over a few months with Duncan and the results definitely exceeded my expectations. Now I have a much better understanding of Australian English and have significantly improved my speaking and listening skills. Duncan provides well-structured resources to help you fix your problems in the most efficient way. He is a friendly, humorous and patient teacher. If you are having trouble in your daily interactions or interpersonal relationships because of a strong Korean accent, I recommend you to meet Duncan and see how he can help you too.

Kiwon Lee,
first language: Korean

south african flag I approached Duncan for help to ensure I pronounced words clearer, to resolve frustration with everyday tasks where the telephone line or background noise caused hiccups. He helped me to focus on the consonants and combinations that caused problems rooted in my Afrikaans mother tongue. This has helped me to make myself more easily understood and be more confident in everyday situations, or first time interactions with strangers. I didn’t want to change my accent as it provides uniqueness, but wanted clarity to be the focus. The hard work and endurance has paid dividends when even small things like giving your name for a takeaway order goes smoothly.

Eric,
first language: Afrikaans