Testimonials

"It is quite embarrassing to call my colleague Keith, “Kiss.” It is also frustrating to not understand the difference when he tries to correct me.

But, after my initial accent evaluation with Marjorie, she quickly pointed this out, as well as other sounds (and stress patterns) that make me sounds "foreign."

I am a risk management consultant, and oral communication is an essential skill to deliver our findings and recommendations. After three months of weekly coaching sessions, I can't say that I have corrected all my pronunciation issues, but I have essentially figured out what my problems are. I am more conscious when I say words with my difficult sounds in them. I am now more confident to talk in front of the clients, and was recently promoted.

I would recommend Marjorie to anyone who wants to remove the communication obstacle facing many foreign born English speakers.

Marjorie’s (accent training approach) may be the right stone needed to break the glass ceiling."
- D.T., Senior Advisory Director for a Big 4 Accounting Firm, from China

While taking classes from Marjorie Whittaker (The Whittaker Group) I have significantly increased my knowledge of the phonetics of American English. I have learned correct pronunciation of many sounds especially vowels, correct stress patterns of many typical word combinations, correct stress in words and word linking in sentences. I have noticed that I am understood better than before and my speech is easier for native speakers to follow. These classes helped me to gain a lot of practical skills along with a confidence in conversational English.
- SS, Software Engineer from Russia

Marjorie has a sensitive, unique and proven approach to help you modify your accent. Even though I have learned and been successful practicing British English as a second language for more than a decade, when it came to experiencing the American workplace, I kept being misunderstood. I became disappointed that my English speaking skills were not doing justice to my written command of the idiom. Luckily, I came across Marjorie's refined and timely course offering and I am now impressed to witness that within a month of intense practice, she has tactfully increased my English speaking fluency and provided me with the linguistic tools to balance this out! RULES by the Sound stories are an interactive and effective method that will help you integrate American English words and sentences stress patterns. I am also grateful that Marjorie catered to my specific business communication needs. I have regained my initial confidence and thus highly recommend you work with Marjorie for she is respectful, dedicated and a great motivator.
- M. L., French speaker

“Thank you so much for the wonderful and outstanding accent modification and presentation workshop and the detailed video summary. This training program was so unique, helpful and comprehensive. I learned a lot in this event and really enjoyed it. But, it will take a while for us to digest what we have learned and to practice! Hopefully, my pronunciation will improve soon. At least I am doing my best to pay more attention to the pronunciation of single words. Many thanks.”
S.Y., MD, Instructor, Partners Healthcare

"We regularly used Lynda Katz Wilner and Marjorie Feinstein-Whittaker's materials with our clients in the medical field -- they are brilliantly designed, and easy to use."
-Anne Golden, Director, The Intercultural Communication Group, Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio

As a manager, I needed to speak at my best during team meetings and client conference calls. I had difficulties with achieving this due to my heavy Russian accent and lack of intonation in my speech. Being unable to communicate effectively also made me very shy. Training sessions with Marjorie were very helpful and I'm delighted to say that my speech has improved dramatically and I gained very much needed confidence to speak up during meetings. Marjorie customized sessions for my individual needs and I really appreciate her patient and understanding guidance. The training provided me with skills I needed, but more important, helped me understand how American sounds are formed and words should be linked. I really enjoyed working with Marjorie and so grateful to have her to help me grow professionally.
-M.M., financial litigation consulting

“My first language is Polish and I have been trying to get help in my spoken English and pronunciation from students who are native speakers. When I mentioned my challenge to a speech pathologists at the hospital where I work, she recommended The Whittaker Group.

I started practicing with Marjorie whom I found to be very professional and knowledgeable about pronunciation. We got straight into the aspect of my speech that needed improvement. I have learned how to pronounce three types of American English “t” sounds. I have become more aware of my habit of omitting or not emphasizing word endings like –ed (past tense) and –s (plurals). I am also learning how to use the correct inflection pattern at the ends of sentences.

The sessions themselves were very lively with a broad range of different types of exercises. I recorded the activities that we did together in class. I was then able to dedicate time every morning to repeating the pronunciation of single words, groups of words, sentences and paragraphs.

Marjorie was always very enthusiastic and the noon sessions were a great break from work. Although the main focus of our class was pronunciation, I believe that the training is also helping my concentration and ability to listen and repeat things in a manner consistent with North American English.

I have taken eight hours of sessions thus far, and I hope to take more. I have found that these sessions together with the exercises I do at home made a noticeable improvement.

The last time I read aloud to a blind friend, I was told that “my reading has improved!”
-J.K., Ph.D., physicist, computer scientist from Poland

I asked Marjorie Whittaker for help with my accent after a potential employer said it was one of the reasons he declined to hire me. We had 10 meetings and I must say that I acquired much better habits of speech in this short period than I would have believed possible. The exercises she had me do were fun and very helpful in gaining conscious control of the fine distinctions between the many sounds of spoken English.

Thanks to Ms. Whittaker, I now have a much better feel for how the mouth moves in shaping different sounds, and how much little things like a change in pitch in the flow of a sentence can alter the impression I make on a person I meet. I still practice my enunciation with the tapes and books Ms. Whittaker provided, and I have already noticed differences in the way people are treating me when I speak to them. Her advice has been especially valuable when making a first impression. I am very grateful to Ms. Whittaker for helping me learn how to pay attention to what has literally been under my very nose all this time!
-A.M., from Russia M.S. in statistics and epidemiology from Dartmouth College

"As a foreign actor working in the US, my accent has helped me to stand out among other actors, but, as you may have guessed, it has been an obstacle most of the time. I've been speaking English for many years now, have learnt about grammar and syntax rules, but didn't know anything about pronunciation rules. I struggled for years to reduce my accent and find an accent reduction program that would work for me - this one does: it's simple, well structured, the rules are easy to follow and it’s easy to apply in my everyday activities. And so encouraging! Plus, Marjorie taught me a very valuable lesson: I don't necessarily need to reduce my accent and in a sense, lose a part of who I am, instead, I can add a standard American accent to my repertoire and turn it on when needed. So without further ado, to all of you foreigners out there, it is possible, with the RULES program, to achieve your goals."
-Katarina Morhacova, M.F.A., Actor from the Czech Republic

"I took private lessons with Marjorie and they were very helpful in improving my accent and pronunciation. The course workbook written by Marjorie and her colleague, Lynda Katz Wilner, is excellent in terms of contents and explaining the rules with examples. The practice exercises in the workbook are very effective. The course provided me with all I needed to know to improve my accent and it was customized for my individual needs. I am impressed with the instructor's depth of expertise in speech pathology. It was a worthwhile investment for me!!"
-V.S., Director, Merchant Asset Management from India

"(The Whittaker Group's Accent Modification Program) is a very comprehensive course which helped me to identify the major areas I needed to improve to communicate in English clearly and effectively. The complete course content and carefully prepared materials, including textbooks and CDs among others, contain detailed instructions with many examples and useful training tools that I can continue using even after the personalized sessions are over. Marjorie's professionalism, expertise and attention to detail make the entire learning experience a worthwhile investment that will certainly have a significant impact on my professional and personal life."
-A.K., International Sales, The MathWorks

"Even before coming to the U.S., I had good control over the English language - my primary medium of educational instruction in India. However, since arriving in the United States, I often had to repeat myself to be understood by Americans as well as those of other nationalities. To make sure that my accent didn’t hinder my career progression in this country, I worked with Marjorie who tailored a program that focused on aspects of my accent that were not in tune with North American English.

After researching several professionals for an accent modification course, I found Marjorie’s program as well as her professionalism and flexibility to be the best for me. (This is despite the fact that I had to drive 60 miles to attend her sessions after work!) Her pre-course evaluation and method of focusing on my most “leverageable” areas for improvement helped me get the most out of the course.

Aside from the classes, Marjorie also made it clear that practicing regularly while at work or with friends was crucial, and she provided the tools/tips to do just that.

I’m writing this testimonial after having completed the course a year ago, and I have had to repeat myself to others less than 10 times since then. I make better presentations to small and large audiences and have received compliments as to how my speech (read accent) has improved over the past year. The training has helped build my confidence and cleared a possible hurdle in my career progression.

I hope it does the same for you too. Good luck! "
-H.G., Marketing Manager, MBA (from India)

"As an Israeli living in the U.S. for five years, I felt that speaking English "full-time" improved it a lot, but my accent was disturbing me. It wasn't so bad that people couldn't understand me, but being conscientious of my own mistakes made me lose confidence as I was speaking. In other words, I was paying attention to how I spoke rather than to what I said.

Marjorie was a life saver. She's not only a great professional, who tailored the sessions to my needs, she's also a semi-psychologist, who was empathetic to my concerns and helped me gain self confidence. Six private sessions with Marjorie made a great difference to how I speak -- she corrected mistakes I didn't even know I was making and my speech is more fluent now. More importantly, accent reduction made me feel better about myself and that confidence is reflected in the way I communicate with others and lead my teams."
-K.S. (Web producer and project manager in a leading educational foundation)

"Marjorie has been a fantastic tutor. Her classes not only helped me to reduce my accent, but also provided me with the tools necessary to constantly improve myself. The expertise learned can be used immediately and stay with you forever. Marjorie was also very flexible in her hours, allowing me to reschedule the classes as needed. She also understands the different cultural difficulties that can affect an individual with English by customizing classes to specific needs. Marjorie is a great human being, enjoyable and dedicated to her customers."
P.B., Director, Global Logistics (Shire Human Genetic Therapies)

"Working with Marjorie was a unique experience. She brought to light many mistakes of which I was unaware, and effectively taught me how to correct them. It has definitely had an impact on my effectiveness at work."
-E.B., Senior Director (in a Fortune 500 corporation)

"I had an eight-session accent reduction program with Marjorie. I think the program was very helpful. Marjorie was able to identify the mistakes I tended to make in my pronunciation and concentrated our efforts on correcting them. She was very well prepared for each session. I feel I have improved my pronunciation because of this training and would strongly recommend this program to anyone who wants to improve his/her spoken English."
-Q.W., Director, Analytics, Epsilon Data Management, Wakefield, MA

“Marjorie offers a customized and comprehensive solution for each student. Her approach is holistic as she works to improve the “entire package”of each person. In other words, her course program not only factors in her student’s intonation, accent and speech patterns, but she also considers her student’s occupation, short/longterm goals and objectives, gender differences and cultural assumptions and backgrounds. Indeed, I was so impressed by Marjorie’s ability to grasp my strengths and weaknesses in such a short period of time and equally impressed by her resourcefulness to offer me a focused solution. Her program is designed to bring about results, ensuring that each student accomplishes tangible and palpable improvements. To me personally, public speaking boils down to 80% mental and 20% technique. Marjorie’s coaching and counseling has tremendously boosted my self-esteem, turning me from an “insecure chick”into a formidable communicator!
-Y.K., Financial Services V.P. from Japan
(a.k.a. student with attitude in Cambridge)

"I am from a former British colony; Pakistan. English was one of the subjects taught back home, but on a very basic level. After arriving in the U.S., there were many times when I felt lost because people couldn’t understand what I was saying. Being a successful senior software engineer with many years of experience, I am appropriately positioned to teach computer related subjects at the university level, which is my long-term plan. The only thing holding me back is my heavy accent. In conversation, people can ask questions if they don’t understand. However, in the lecture environment, frequent interruptions for clarification would be distracting and counter-productive. Hence, reducing my accent has been a top priority. My company sponsored Marjorie’s course and I found the solution to my problems. Marjorie’s teaching method was informal, yet informative. I found her personal attention to details and individual feedback/ guidance valuable. I liked the 12-week program so much that I am trying my best to get my company to sponsor the next level. The fact that I want to continue speaks for itself that:
a. I liked the course
b. I am not “there”yet and need to continue to practice all that I have learned.
However, even with my quest to learn more, my colleagues have noticed the difference and tell me that my English pronunciation has improved. I strongly recommend Marjorie’s program to anyone who is interested in modifying his/her accent."
-M.S. Principal Software Engineer from Pakistan

"After five weeks into the accent modification program (before being promoted and having to transfer out of the class), the experience and knowledge taken from it was tremendous. From the grammar to the conversations, I am now more cautious before communicating with peers and others.. The instructor created a sub-conscious spell check in my head before either addressing a single person or a group of people. I really recommend this course to anyone who is willing and looking to expand their English language skills."
-W.G. -Fortune 500 Company Puerto Rico

“As I was sharing with you, I recently finished the accent modification course that (our diversity group) promoted in February. It was outstanding. Improving my communication skills has always been both a priority and a challenge. This course allowed me to address these issues in s friendly and fun environment. One of the advantages of having it organized by (our diversity group) is that Spanish speakers tend to have similar biases when speaking English, and Marjorie Whittaker, our instructor, was able to focus on some of those issues common to us. Marjorie did an outstanding job; I not only worked on modifying some of my speech patterns, but I learned a number of techniques to compensate when other people find me difficult to understand. On top of all this, the material we got in the class allows for self-study and further progress after the class has finished. The final result is that I have gained confidence in my communication skills and have the tools to continue improving them. Besides the traditional drills, Marjorie utilized many customized worksheets that allowed us to link the most basic exercises with more practical issues in oral communication. Who hasn’t agonized over recording his first voice mail message? Marjorie’s handouts addressed this and other day to day questions that arise about communicating effectively.”
-C.H., Fortune 500 company from Columbia, South America

"Marjorie’s course has had a tremendous impact on my ability to communicate in spoken English. Marjorie prioritizes and addresses areas that need improvement from multiple angles – pronunciation, intonation, breathing techniques, etc..The course is fun too, as some of the homework includes reading a loud to your kids. So, rather than taking time away from your family, the course presents an opportunity to enjoy doing independent practice activities together. It is very rewarding to see your speech progressively improve from session to session. Before the classes, I relied primarily on E-mail to conduct most of my communication, resorting to face-to face or phone interactions only when writing was impractical. Recently, I have started ENJOYING verbal communication both in my business and personal life. I highly recommend Marjorie’s course to anyone who speaks English as a second language. It will be rewarding, fun and worthwhile!"
-Director of Engineering and Chief Architect from Russia

"I have lived in the United States for over 13 years and have spoken English since I was 6 years old. Before working with Marjorie, my English was excellent and I was always understood but I did have a Bulgarian accent. Normally, this isn’t a problem: it is nice to be unique. However, I have been in situations where my rapid rate of speech and improper intonation has detracted from my desired impact. In complex business situations one would hope that the audience focuses on the essence of the underlying message and not on understanding the message itself. The 16 weeks spent with Marjorie have been very enjoyable and fruitful. Marjorie is excellent at identifying subtle variations in pronunciation and sentence intonation: typically, the main causes of different accents. In a relaxed environment, she methodically works with her clients and helps them achieve remarkable results. Although I still have a subtle accent, I have seen improvement in both my pronunciation and presentation skills. Now I feel more confident conducting business over the phone and leading complex conversations, where minor intonation variations can have significant effects. I find it much more effective to work with Marjorie than on my own. There are many guides, CDs, and online instructions for speaking “American English” but one is rarely able to hear his/her own accent. Usually, the smallest detail makes the difference. I would definitely recommend Marjorie’s program."
-P.V. (Manager Business Operations from Bulgaria)

“I have been in this country for 12 years and one of my biggest challenges has been to speak slowly. The Whittaker Group helped me tremendously in being able to speak more clearly at a slower rate. Through the class I learned to pronounce important word endings like “t” and “ing,” which is very hard to do as a non-native speaker. In addition to my pronunciation, I also learned how to be more confident in my abilities as a professional, including speaking in public. I recently chaired a symposium and received “kudos” for my job as a moderator.  I now have the skills and confidence to further my career. I highly recommend the class!
-M.A. Product Manager from the Dominican Republic

If we met, you may not believe that I came from China six years ago. I speak “fluent” English, as many new people that I meet say to me. Some people also said so before my class with Marj. But, it is not about what others say. What matters is how I feel about expressing myself in a second language. Before my class, it was funny to call my roommate Connon (Colin) and to have my ring-bearer “bury” the ring! But, it is not funny when it becomes a psychological terror to stumble over long and complicated scientific terms at a public presentation or to have to stop and repeat myself in active discussions. Marj was a great teacher. She was patient with all of my specific requests about what I wanted to study. After class, I not only became clearer on the phone, as a friend said, but I also now know how to spot my problems and fix them myself. I am also becoming more confident giving public speeches. Most recently, during my wedding vows, no one misunderstood my “Mark” as “Mack!” The vows had to be perfect, and with Marj’s help, they were!
-M.T. (Ph.D. Biomedical Engineering from China)

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