Shadowing Practice: Australian Political System & Voting Explained | Learn Australian English - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Liz, I got a letter in the mail last week saying I had to go and vote.
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I did not know this was mandatory.
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I panicked.
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I didn't even know who to vote for.
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I walked in, got the paper, and genuinely had no idea what I was doing.
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Jack, you just described the experience of thousands of new Australians at their very first election.
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And the thing is, in Australia, not voting can get you fined.
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A fine for not voting.
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That's right.
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A fine for not voting.
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Australia is one of very few countries in the world where voting is compulsory, legally required.
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And if you are applying for Australian citizenship, or if you simply want to understand the country you are living in, this episode is essential.
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We are going to break down the entire Australian political system in plain English.
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No jargon.
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No confusion.
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And we will explain the voting system that confuses almost every new voter, including Australian-born ones.
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We will get to that in segment three.
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So stay tuned.
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Hi everyone, I'm Liz and welcome to Learn Australian English, the podcast where we teach you real Australian English through real Australian topics.
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I'm Jack.
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Today, Australian Politics and Voting.
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Now, we know what you might be thinking.
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Politics?
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Really?
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But here is the thing.
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Understanding Australia's political system is not just about being a good citizen.
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If you are applying for Australian citizenship, you will be tested on this.
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And even if you are not, this knowledge will help you follow the news, understand your rights, and participate confidently in Australian life.
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We will also teach you the vocabulary that comes with all of this.
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So by the end of this episode, you will be able to talk about Australian politics comfortably,
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confidently and in completely natural Australian English.
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Let's start with the foundation.
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What type of country is Australia politically?
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Australia is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy.
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Let's break those two terms down.
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A constitutional monarchy means Australia has a monarch, currently King Charles III, as the head of state.
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The head of state is the symbolic leader of the country.
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However, the king does not govern Australia day to day.
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That role belongs to elected Australian leaders.
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The king is represented in Australia by the Governor-General at the national level and by governors in each state.
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The Governor General has important constitutional powers, but by convention does not interfere in day-to-day politics.
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And a parliamentary democracy means Australians elect members of Parliament, or MPs, to represent them and make laws.
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The leader of the country is the Prime Minister, the head of the elected Now, Australia has three levels of government.
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Federal, state and territory and local.
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The federal government handles national issues.
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Defence, immigration, foreign affairs and national economic policy.
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State and territory governments handle things like hospitals, schools and roads within their borders.
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and local councils manage your immediate area, rubbish collection, parks, local planning.
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So when Australians say the government, it is important to know which level they mean.
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The federal government sits in Canberra, Australia's capital city, in the Parliament House.
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Now we get to the part that most people find genuinely fascinating.
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How Australia actually makes its laws.
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And there is one fact coming up that surprises almost everyone.
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Stay with us.
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It is worth knowing.
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The Federal Parliament has two chambers, two houses.
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This is called a bicameral parliament.
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Bi means two, so two chambers.
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The two houses are the House of Representatives and the Senate.
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The House of Representatives is sometimes called the lower house.
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It has 150 members, each representing a specific area, called an electorate or seat.
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The political party that wins the most seats in the House of Representatives forms the government, and their leader becomes the Prime Minister.
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The Senate is called the Upper House.
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It has 76 Senators, 12 from each State and 2 from each Mainland Territory.
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The Senate acts as a House of Review.
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It checks and reviews laws passed by the House of Representatives.
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This system of checks means no single group can push a law through without proper scrutiny.
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And here is the fact I promised.
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The leader of the country, the Prime Minister, is not directly elected by the Australian public.
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Australians vote for their local Member of Parliament.
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And the party that wins majority forms the government.
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The leader of that party becomes Prime Minister.
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So technically you vote for a party, not a Prime Minister.
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This is a crucial distinction, and it explains why Australia can have multiple Prime Ministers in a short period.
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If a party votes internally to change its leader, a new Prime Minister can take office without a general election.
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Australia had six Prime Ministers in ten years at one point.
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That is quite a ride.
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It really was.
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The opposition is the major party that did not win government.
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They form the Shadow Cabinet and hold the government accountable.
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Their leader is called the Leader of the Opposition.
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OK?
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We promised you the voting system that confuses almost everyone.
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Here it is.
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First, the big one.
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Voting in Australia is compulsory.
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That means it is legally required.
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Every Australian citizen aged 18 and over must be enrolled to vote, registered on the electoral role and must attend a polling place on election day.
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If you do not vote without a valid reason, you can be fined.
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Compulsory voting makes Australia quite unusual.
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Only about 20 countries in the world have it.
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The fine for not voting is relatively small, but the principle is significant.
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Australia believes civic participation is a shared responsibility.
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Voting is not just a right here.
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It is a a civic duty.
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Elections are held on Saturdays, always a Saturday, at polling places such as local schools, community halls and town halls.
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You take your name off the electoral roll, receive your ballot papers, go into a private polling booth, mark your vote and place it in the ballot box.
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The process is very well organised and usually quite quick.
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And here is a uniquely Australian election day tradition, the democracy sausage.
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Community groups set up sausage sizzles outside polling places on election day.
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You vote, then you buy a snag in bread.
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It has become a beloved national tradition.
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And there is even a website that tracks which polling places have the best sausage sizzle.
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Only in Australia.
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Only in Australia.
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Now, the voting system itself.
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Australia uses preferential voting, also called ranked choice voting.
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Instead of just choosing one candidate, you number all the candidates in order of your preference.
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Number one is your first choice.
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Number two is your second choice, and so on.
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Your vote goes to your first choice first.
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But if your first choice candidate does not win enough votes, Your vote then transfers to your second choice.
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This continues until one candidate has a majority.
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This means your vote is never truly wasted.
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Even if your favourite candidate does not win, your preference still counts.
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The Australian Electoral Commission – or the AEC – runs all federal elections
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and publishes guides in multiple languages to help voters understand the system.
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Australia's major parties are the Australian Labor Party , known as Labor, and the Liberal Party,
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which often governs in coalition with the National Party.
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There are also minor parties, including the Australian Greens and various independent candidates.
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One important note, the Liberal Party of Australia is actually the Conservative Party, not Liberal in the American sense.
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In Australia, Liberal refers to economic liberalism, free market principles, not social progressivism.
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The Labour Party is the centre-left party, historically linked to the union movement.
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Australia's democratic values include the rule of law, meaning everyone is equal under the law,
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freedom of speech, the right to express your opinions openly,
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freedom of religion, the right to practise any religion or none at all, and the separation of powers.
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The Legislature makes laws, the Executive implements them, and the Judiciary interprets them independently.
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Before we wrap up, for anyone preparing for the Australian Citizenship Test,
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the key facts, Australia is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy.
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head of state is King Charles III, represented by the Governor-General.
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The Prime Minister leads the elected government.
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There are three levels of government.
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The Federal Parliament has two chambers.
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Voting is compulsory from age 18.
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Australia uses preferential voting.
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And Australia's core values are the rule of law, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and equality under the law.
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The test is 20 multiple choice questions.
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You need 15 correct, 75% to pass.
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Five questions of these 20 questions are about Australian values, which you must get all correct to pass.
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And for everyone else, knowing this material makes you a more informed, more confident participant in Australian life.
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That is worth something regardless of your citizenship status.
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Are you preparing for the Australian citizenship test?
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Or did something in this episode surprise you?
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Tell us in the comments.
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And if this episode helped you, please like and subscribe.
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Good luck with the citizenship test.
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See you next time.
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Woordenschat en spreektips bij deze les
Deze spreekles op niveau B2 is gebaseerd op de video “Australian Political System & Voting Explained”. Deze woorden komen het vaakst terug: Australian, Australia, voting, vote, Prime. Deze video bevat 147 zinnen en 1519 woorden om na te spreken. Het gesproken deel duurt 11:35. De spreker praat in een gelijkmatig tempo van ongeveer 131 woorden per minuut, prettig om te shadowen. 86% van de woorden hoort bij de 3.000 meest gebruikte Engelse woorden; de rest kun je beter vooraf bekijken.
Belangrijke woorden in deze video
De 15 moeilijkste woorden uit de video, met uitspraak en betekenis:
| Woord | Uitspraak | Betekenis |
|---|---|---|
| citizenship zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/ | burgerschap |
| elect werkwoord | /ɪˈlɛkt/ | kiezen, uitkiezen |
| compulsory bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /kəmˈpʌlsəɹi/ | verplicht |
| monarchy zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈmɑnɚki/ | monarchie |
| sausage zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈsɔsɪd͡ʒ/ | worst |
| parliamentary bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /ˌpɑɹləˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/ | parlementair |
| sizzle werkwoord | /ˈsɪzəl/ | sissen |
| govern werkwoord | /ˈɡʌv.ən/ | regeren, besturen |
| confuse werkwoord | /kənˈfjuːz/ | verwarren, in de war brengen |
| civic bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /ˈsɪvɪk/ | stedelijk |
| ballot zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈbælət/ | stembiljet |
| voter zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈvoʊtɚ/ | stemmer, stemster |
| preference zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈpɹɛf(ə)ɹ(ə)ns/ | voorkeur, preferentie |
| bicameral bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /bʌɪˈkaməɹəl/ | bikameraal, tweekamerhig |
| enroll werkwoord | /ɪnˈɹəʊl/ | inschrijven |
Phrasal verbs die je zult horen
| Woord | Uitspraak | Betekenis |
|---|---|---|
| break down werkwoord | stukgaan, kapot gaan | |
| set up werkwoord | /ˌsɛt ˈʌp/ | bereiden, voorbereiden |
Zinnen om te herhalen
Korte, volledige zinnen uit de video die je in alledaagse gesprekken kunt gebruiken:
- I didn't even know who to vote for.
- Let's start with the foundation.
- Let's break those two terms down.
Grammatica in deze video
De structuren die de spreker het meest gebruikt, met de exacte woorden uit de video:
| Structuur | In de video |
|---|---|
| Voorwaardelijke zinnen if + zin, will/would + werkwoord — een voorwaarde en het gevolg | if you are not, this knowledge will help |
| Lijdende vorm be + voltooid deelwoord — het gaat om wat er gebeurt, niet om wie het doet | will be tested · is represented · is called |
Uitspraak om op te letten
De spreker gebruikt 3 samentrekkingen en verkorte vormen, zoals I'm, didn't. Spreek ze kort uit, zoals je ze hoort.
- De klanken “sh” en “zh”: citizenship /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/, preferential /ˈpɹɛf.ɜː(ɹ)ˌɛn.ʃəl/, rubbish /ˈɹʌbɪʃ/, publish /ˈpʌblɪʃ/, distinction /dɪˈstɪŋkʃən/
- Lange woorden — let op de klemtoon: citizenship /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/, compulsory /kəmˈpʌlsəɹi/, electoral /ɪˈlɛk.tɚ.əl/, parliamentary /ˌpɑɹləˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/, confidently /ˈkɑnfɪdəntli/
Klanken die Nederlandstaligen lastig vinden:
- Stemhebbende eindmedeklinker — /b/, /d/, /g/, /z/, /v/ niet verscherpen: sausage /ˈsɔsɪd͡ʒ/, confuse /kənˈfjuːz/, subscribe /səbˈskɹaɪb/, beloved /bɪˈlʌvd/
- /æ/ — opener dan de Nederlandse “e”: ballot /ˈbælət/, fascinate /ˈfæsɪneɪt/, vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/, mandatory /ˈmæn.dəˌtɔɹ.i/, podcast /ˈpɑdˌkæst/
- /g/ — een harde plofklank, geen Nederlandse “g”: govern /ˈɡʌv.ən/, jargon /ˈdʒɑː.ɡən/, progressivism /prəˈɡrɛsᵻvɪz(ə)m/
Zo oefen je met deze video
- Luister de hele video één keer zonder te spreken en noteer de woorden die je niet kent.
- Spreek zin voor zin na op normale snelheid en herhaal elke zin tot je ritme gelijk is aan dat van de spreker.
- Neem jezelf op en vergelijk met het origineel; let daarbij op woorden als citizenship, elect, compulsory.
Wat is de Shadowing-techniek?
Shadowing is een wetenschappelijk onderbouwde taalleermethode die oorspronkelijk is ontwikkeld voor professionele tolkentraining en gepopulariseerd door polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. De methode is eenvoudig maar krachtig: je luistert naar native Engelse audio en herhaalt het onmiddellijk hardop — als een schaduw die de spreker volgt met slechts 1–2 seconden vertraging. In tegenstelling tot passief luisteren of grammaticadrills, dwingt shadowing je hersenen en mondspieren om echte spraakpatronen tegelijkertijd te verwerken en te reproduceren. Onderzoek toont aan dat het de uitspraaknauwkeurigheid, intonatie, ritme, verbonden spraak, luisterbegrip en spreekvaardigheid aanzienlijk verbetert — waardoor het een van de meest effectieve methoden is voor IELTS Speaking-voorbereiding en echte Engelse communicatie.