1. I can relate to this podcast a lot. I have a very common first name and yet a lot of people struggled not with pronunciation, but with spelling. A lot of the time, those who don't know me well would spell my name S-A-R-A without the H. Although it made no difference in the pronunciation it made me feel as though they didn't know me or care to know me. Even my friend's wife who has known me for 3 or 4 years now still spells it incorrectly. Furthermore with a maiden name like Popadowski I am used to no end of incorrect pronunciation. It's said exactly as it sounds Pop-a-d'ow-skee but I have heard it pronounced every way imaginable. Although it was irritating, it had the benefit of telling me immediately the person I was speaking to didn't know me (and was probably a telemarketer).
2. I can be a collaborator by making sure my students know that I am making an effort to get their name right. This means asking them to pronounce it themselves for me first, asking them if I am saying it correctly and apologizing if I don't get it right and never making them feel at fault for having an unusual name. This is something I feel I do quite naturally when I begin the school year or get new students. I can also make an effort to listen to how my colleagues pronounce a name and confirm with them if I am saying a student's name correctly. And naturally this should include learning to pronounce my colleagues names correctly as well.
2. I can be a collaborator by making sure my students know that I am making an effort to get their name right. This means asking them to pronounce it themselves for me first, asking them if I am saying it correctly and apologizing if I don't get it right and never making them feel at fault for having an unusual name. This is something I feel I do quite naturally when I begin the school year or get new students. I can also make an effort to listen to how my colleagues pronounce a name and confirm with them if I am saying a student's name correctly. And naturally this should include learning to pronounce my colleagues names correctly as well.