Directions for the future of technology in pronunciation research and teaching
Mary Grantham O’Brien | University of Calgary
Catia Cucchiarini | Radboud University
Debra M. Hardison | Michigan State University
Hansjörg Mixdorff | Beuth University Berlin
Ron I. Thomson | Brock University
Helmer Strik | Radboud University
John M. Levis | Iowa State University
Murray J. Munro | Simon Fraser University
Jennifer A. Foote | University of Alberta
Greta Muller Levis | Iowa State University
This paper reports on the role of technology in state-of-the-art pronunciation research and instruction, and makes concrete
suggestions for future developments. The point of departure for this contribution is that the goal of second language (L2)
pronunciation research and teaching should be enhanced comprehensibility and intelligibility as opposed to native-likeness. Three
main areas are covered here. We begin with a presentation of advanced uses of pronunciation technology in research with a special
focus on the expertise required to carry out even small-scale investigations. Next, we discuss the nature of data in pronunciation
research, pointing to ways in which future work can build on advances in corpus research and crowdsourcing. Finally, we consider
how these insights pave the way for researchers and developers working to create research-informed, computer-assisted
pronunciation teaching resources. We conclude with predictions for future developments.
Keywords: pronunciation, technology, data, computer-assisted pronunciation teaching, research, future directions, automatic speech recognition, intelligibility, comprehensibility
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Current uses of technology in pronunciation research
- 2.1Freeware
- 2.2Automatic speech recognition (ASR)
- 2.3Text to speech
- 2.4The cloud
- 3.Data collection
- 3.1Spoken learner corpora
- 3.2Collecting data through crowdsourcing
- 4.Computer-assisted pronunciation teaching (CAPT)
- 4.1Carrying out research on CAPT
- 4.2Examples of effective CAPT and research
- 4.2.1Visual tools
- 4.2.2ASR tools
- 5.Encouraging collaboration
- 6.Future directions
- Acknowledgements
- Note
-
References
Available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 4.0 license.
For any use beyond this license, please contact the publisher at rights@benjamins.nl.
Published online: 01 February 2019
https://doi.org/10.1075/jslp.17001.obr
https://doi.org/10.1075/jslp.17001.obr
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