Using Web-based Speech Recognition Technologies to Improve English Pronunciation

1
Using Web-based Speech Recognition Technologies
to Improve English Pronunciation

• Howard Chen ???
• hjchen_at_ntnu.edu.tw
• English Department ?????
• National Taiwan Normal University

2
Better Listening and Speaking Skills GEPT and
new TOEFL

• Writing Section There will be one 30-minute and
  one 20-minute essay.
• Speaking Section Six open-ended speaking
  questions require test takers to speak into a
  microphone.
• Integrated Language Some sections of the new
  test will combine four basic communication
  skills. For example, a test taker might listen to
  a lecture and read a passage, then write or speak
  about it.
• Score 1-120 (human graders for essay and
  speaking section).Time 3.5 hours

3
Different Solutions

• Some universities hire more native English
  speakers and provide student with more
  opportunities to interact with these teachers.
• Some colleges have reduced the class size and
  expect that there will be more teacher-student
  interactions in the target language.
• Some universities also begin to explore the power
  of new computer technologies-pronunciation tutor
  and ASR.

4
The Development of ASR in CALL

• A few years ago, very few CALL (computer assisted
  language learning) programs claimed that they
  incorporated new speech recognition technologies.