Lone Stranger

You mean like do what we say (don't go abroad) and not as we did (go abroad) "trust us?" Yeah. Right.

Really? On what grounds should the instructor be a foreigner? Neither the professional organizations of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, Inc. (TESOL) nor the International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (IATEFL) will bear out your advice. If you can go beyond your racist say-so and point out professional basis I would be more than happy to consider it.

LOL! I'd pretend just for the pleasure of hearing someone dish that out well! The skill and eloquence needed for that is a downright rarity even in the motherland!

No, you didn't at all , I know what you mean, and I agree with you entirely .

It may not be intentional. One of the coping mechanisms of cultural transition is adopting the speech of the native culture. Sudden exposure to the home culture/language can be tricky since it requires an adjustment of mindset. When a person like that is caught offguard, the switch may not be so easy so they need a couple of secs to consciously reset. (But I doubt anyone ever forgets the native language. If they say they have I'll bet they're faking it. )

Drop by the IDP Education Australia on the 2nd Floor of the Pioneer House at the corner of Paseo de Roxas and Greenbelt One (right across the street from Starbucks and KFC and just above 40 Winks furniture store). Go up to the counter and ask for them. Specify the Academic since that's what you'll be taking. They're pricey though but a lot better than the eye-ruining knockoffs you'll find at the PRC street.

The British accent thingie you're referring to is called the RP (Received Pronunciation) and about the only place it exists and is insisted on in the Philippines is the stage (try Repertory Philippines). The IELTS does not test for accent. It does test for pronunciation. The acquisition of an accent is much more than the pronunciation of a few select words. Accent will include pacing/cadence, intonation, choice of syllabic stress, etc. It also requires substantial familiarity with the accent pattern of a given area (shades of Pygmalion/My Fair Lady), which is why much of English spoken by Filipinos comes out sounding somewhat American but not quite. To make a long story short, don't bother with accent. Work instead on using English as often as you can with the objective of acquiring fluency, improving unconscious control of grammar, gaining a good repertoire of words and having a good command of the same. You'll know you're making progress when you start having your nightmares in English.

Yeah sure, why not? I will withold the name of the hospital, of course, given the politics of this biz. But lately I been doing duty in the DR and been racking up a noble amount of assists, catches, and records. And this I will tell you: it's rough. At no point in my life have I ever gained such an appreciation for the difficulties experienced by women in childbirth. Had me asking myself why the blazes anyone would want to have kids at all. This experience compounded by the general effects of antihypertensives murdered my libido. I am hopeful, however, that I will get used to the DR experience and regain the lost S-drive.

Date of exam? Location? Manner of fraud? Confirmation/Investigator?

I have heard no such rumor anywhere and would like to verify your source. Suzanne, if you don't mind.

please take it with a generous dose of salt, rep. you can imagine the tremendous pressure and anxiety filipinos suffer when they face the prospect of taking an efl proficiency test. it's a hoop we have to jump through and the general impression we imagine around that time is the english spoken in continental u.s. must be flawless. after it's done and we finally land, and hear 'de language as she is spoken' ... it's a relief!

You're there and settled in. But since hindsight's 20-20, what things would you have done or paid more attention to in the Philippines to prepare you better for the U.S. experience?

You sound exhilirated. Could you tell me what opportunities you'd identified and how you'd been pushed to your true potential?

pat, have you ever spent time in the philippines? one of things you may have difficulty adjusting to will be the urban environmental conditions. pollution levels are high, smog thick, very high population density and so on and so forth. this is especially true of the schools in old manila (pwu is one). it's a big jump you're thinking about and it might not be a bad idea to come visit after you've formed an initial first foray plan. oh, and finally, locals often tack on an extra year to get the exams (local board, english proficiency - ielts or toefl ibt, and the nclex - although i think you can skip the first, the second, and focus on the third). 26? you're very young. you have lots of time to study.

"impacted?" say what? oh, and it's spelled philippine (one l, 3 ps).