Blethering Skite

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Staff at the University of Edinburgh have been taking part in training sessions to tackle “accent bias” within lectures.

Toning down accents, bias within classrooms and being mocked for the way they speak – these are all things Scottish students say they’ve experienced while studying at Edinburgh University.

The institution made headlines last year following previous guidance given to students, advising them not to be “snobs”.

Third-year English literature student Holly Longman-Bradfield says she’s often mocked for her accent in class.

“I’m from Ayrshire originally, so for that reason I say ‘po-yum’ and not ‘poem’. That has been kind of the main thing on my actual course, being giggled at in seminars for the way that I pronounce different things,” she said.