The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training

In recent years the application of computer software to the learning process has been found to be an indisputably effective tool supporting the traditional teaching methods. Particular focus has been put on the application of techniques based on speech and language processing to the second language...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Grażyna DEMENKO, Agnieszka WAGNER, Natalia CYLWIK
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Institute of Fundamental Technological Research Polish Academy of Sciences 2013-11-01
Series:Archives of Acoustics
Subjects:
Online Access:https://acoustics.ippt.pan.pl/index.php/aa/article/view/227
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1839628251170865152
author Grażyna DEMENKO
Agnieszka WAGNER
Natalia CYLWIK
author_facet Grażyna DEMENKO
Agnieszka WAGNER
Natalia CYLWIK
author_sort Grażyna DEMENKO
collection DOAJ
description In recent years the application of computer software to the learning process has been found to be an indisputably effective tool supporting the traditional teaching methods. Particular focus has been put on the application of techniques based on speech and language processing to the second language learning. Most of the commercial self-study programs, however, do not allow for introduction of an individualized learning course by the teacher and to concentrate on segmental features only. The paper discusses the use of speech technology in the training of foreign languages' pronunciation and prosody and defines pedagogical requirements for an effective training with CAPT systems. In this context, steps taken in the development of the intelligent tutoring system AzAR3.0 (German 'Automat for accent reduction') in the scope of the Euronounce project (Cylwik et al., 2008) are described with the focus on creation of the linguistic content. In response to the European Union's call for promoting less widely spoken languages, the project focuses on German as a target language for native speakers of Polish, Slovak, Czech, and Russian, and vice versa. The paper presents the design of the speech corpus for the purpose of the tutoring system and the analysis of pronunciation errors. The results of the latter provide information which is important for Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) training on the one hand, and for automatic error detection and feedback generation on the other hand. In the end, Pitch Line software for implementation in the prosody visualization and training module of AzAR3.0 tutoring system is described.
format Article
id doaj-art-e6cd61b5cb724bb2950ca7948129e61c
institution Matheson Library
issn 0137-5075
2300-262X
language English
publishDate 2013-11-01
publisher Institute of Fundamental Technological Research Polish Academy of Sciences
record_format Article
series Archives of Acoustics
spelling doaj-art-e6cd61b5cb724bb2950ca7948129e61c2025-07-15T16:57:05ZengInstitute of Fundamental Technological Research Polish Academy of SciencesArchives of Acoustics0137-50752300-262X2013-11-01353The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation TrainingGrażyna DEMENKO0Agnieszka WAGNER1Natalia CYLWIK2Adam Mickiewicz University, Institute of Linguistics, Department of Phonetics; Poznań Supercomputing and Networking CenterAdam Mickiewicz University, Institute of Linguistics, Department of PhoneticsAdam Mickiewicz University, Institute of Linguistics, Department of PhoneticsIn recent years the application of computer software to the learning process has been found to be an indisputably effective tool supporting the traditional teaching methods. Particular focus has been put on the application of techniques based on speech and language processing to the second language learning. Most of the commercial self-study programs, however, do not allow for introduction of an individualized learning course by the teacher and to concentrate on segmental features only. The paper discusses the use of speech technology in the training of foreign languages' pronunciation and prosody and defines pedagogical requirements for an effective training with CAPT systems. In this context, steps taken in the development of the intelligent tutoring system AzAR3.0 (German 'Automat for accent reduction') in the scope of the Euronounce project (Cylwik et al., 2008) are described with the focus on creation of the linguistic content. In response to the European Union's call for promoting less widely spoken languages, the project focuses on German as a target language for native speakers of Polish, Slovak, Czech, and Russian, and vice versa. The paper presents the design of the speech corpus for the purpose of the tutoring system and the analysis of pronunciation errors. The results of the latter provide information which is important for Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) training on the one hand, and for automatic error detection and feedback generation on the other hand. In the end, Pitch Line software for implementation in the prosody visualization and training module of AzAR3.0 tutoring system is described.https://acoustics.ippt.pan.pl/index.php/aa/article/view/227speech technologypronunciation trainingfeedbackphonetic-acoustic databasesmultimedia tools
spellingShingle Grażyna DEMENKO
Agnieszka WAGNER
Natalia CYLWIK
The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training
Archives of Acoustics
speech technology
pronunciation training
feedback
phonetic-acoustic databases
multimedia tools
title The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training
title_full The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training
title_fullStr The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training
title_full_unstemmed The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training
title_short The Use of Speech Technology in Foreign Language Pronunciation Training
title_sort use of speech technology in foreign language pronunciation training
topic speech technology
pronunciation training
feedback
phonetic-acoustic databases
multimedia tools
url https://acoustics.ippt.pan.pl/index.php/aa/article/view/227
work_keys_str_mv AT grazynademenko theuseofspeechtechnologyinforeignlanguagepronunciationtraining
AT agnieszkawagner theuseofspeechtechnologyinforeignlanguagepronunciationtraining
AT nataliacylwik theuseofspeechtechnologyinforeignlanguagepronunciationtraining
AT grazynademenko useofspeechtechnologyinforeignlanguagepronunciationtraining
AT agnieszkawagner useofspeechtechnologyinforeignlanguagepronunciationtraining
AT nataliacylwik useofspeechtechnologyinforeignlanguagepronunciationtraining