No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the author.
Talk to Read and Write: Using Speech-Recognition Apps in a First-Grade Writing Center
Abstract
It is my hope that by identifying some chal- lenges encountered in one rst-grade classroom, describing how I dealt with these challenges, and proposing some pedagogical tips designed to mit- igate these challenges, more teachers will incor- porate speech recognition apps into their literacy programs. As these apps become more accurate and increasingly robust, the challenges and affor- dances will shift. This article is intended to begin a conversation and possibly coalesce a community of educators who seek to harness the affordances of speech recognition apps to support readers and writ- ers of all ages, across the curriculum, and around the globe.
... These are quotations from a current research project where first graders use Siri, Dragon, Alexa, Hey Google, and other speech recognition (SR) apps to compose (see Baker, 2017Baker, , 2019Baker & Bradley, 2019;Baker & Goodwin, 2019). Typically, we think of these apps as online assistants. ...
In the spring of 2020, schools across the country and world closed. COVID-19 reached pandemic proportions. Were schools prepared? Was there a research base available to help schools prepare students for reading and writing digital texts? The ability to read, analyze, compose, and communicate with digital texts requires digital literacies. However, the rapid-fire development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) makes the identification of digital literacies and the development of curriculum and instruction a moving target. In her Literacy Research Association Presidential Address, Dr. Betsy Baker asserts that digital literacies are no longer an entity separate from reading and writing instruction, they are no longer a technology issue, students live in a digital world, and digital literacies are not optional. Digital literacies have become the literacies of our culture. Baker synthesizes over 25 years of research to propose that digital literacies are persistently public, semiotic, product-oriented, and transitory. Researchers, educational leaders, and teachers can leverage these characteristics as footholds to identify ever-changing digital literacies, design curricula, and provide instruction so that all students can be autonomous as they seek to thrive in a digital world. Dr. Baker’s Presidential Address is available online (see https://youtu.be/Avzup21ZnA4 ).
Predictive text and auto-correct are often seen as distractions, yet engaging writers with these writing assistance technologies can provide students with “micro moments” of instruction.
Lack of representation of children from nondominant cultural and linguistic backgrounds continues to be problematic in children’s literature, and especially within early literacy texts for beginning readers. One remedy is for children to tell their own stories through the language experience approach, which can then be printed into culturally relevant texts and used for beginning reading material in classrooms. To truly capture a student’s story, especially if the student is an emergent bilingual, a teacher must listen very closely and take care when adjusting the child’s story. Two Bakhtinian concepts support the careful examination of a teacher’s scribing of story in this study: chronotope, used here as the time-space sphere above the text, and revoicing, or the retelling of a child’s story that is paraphrased or altered. Findings show that gesture within the chronotope of the story is an especially generative tool for student storytelling and that teachers must reflect closely on intentional or unintentional reasons for revoicing a child’s story. Language experience approach holds possibilities for the creation of children’s culturally relevant texts. As such, it is important that teachers reflect on their language experience approach techniques so that the book remains true to the child’s story.
In the spring of 2020, schools across the country and world closed. Covid-19 reached pandemic proportions. Were schools prepared? Was there a research base available to help schools prepare students for reading and writing digital texts? The ability to read, analyze, compose and communicate with digital texts requires digital literacies. However, the rapid-fire development of information and communications technologies (ICTs) make the identification of digital literacies and the development of curriculum and instruction a moving target. In her LRA Presidential Address, Dr. Betsy Baker asserts that digital literacies are no longer an entity separate from reading and writing instruction, they are no longer a technology issue, students live in a digital world, and digital literacies are not optional. Digital literacies have become the literacies of our culture. Baker synthesizes over 25 years of research to propose that digital literacies are persistently public, semiotic, product-oriented and transitory. Researchers, educational leaders and teachers can leverage these characteristics as footholds to identify ever-changing digital literacies, design curricula, and provide instruction so that all students can be autonomous as they seek to thrive in a digital world. Dr. Baker's Presidential Address is also available online (see https://youtu.be/Avzup21ZnA4).
See https://youtu.be/Avzup21ZnA4
In the spring of 2020, schools across the country and world closed. Covid-19 reached pandemic proportions. Were schools prepared? Was there a research base available to help schools prepare students for reading and writing digital texts? The ability to read, analyze, compose and communicate with digital texts requires Digital Literacies (DL). In her LRA Presidential Address, Dr. Betsy Baker asserts that digital literacies are no longer an entity separate from reading and writing instruction, they are no longer a technology issue, students live in a digital world, and digital literacies are not optional. Digital literacies have become the literacies of our culture. Baker synthesizes over 25 years of research to propose that digital literacies persistently exude the following characteristics: public, semiotic, product-oriented and transitory. In the spring of 2020, schools across the country and world closed. Covid-19 reached pandemic proportions. Were schools prepared? Was there a research base available to help schools prepare students for reading and writing digital texts? The ability to read, analyze, compose and communicate with digital texts requires Digital Literacies (DL). In her LRA Presidential Address, Dr. Betsy Baker asserts that digital literacies are no longer an entity separate from reading and writing instruction, they are no longer a technology issue, students live in a digital world, and digital literacies are not optional. Digital literacies have become the literacies of our culture. Baker synthesizes over 25 years of research to propose that digital literacies persistently exude the following characteristics: public, semiotic, product-oriented and transitory. She describes how these characteristics can provide footholds for researchers, educational leaders and teachers, to support the autonomy of all students as they seek to thrive in a digital world.
This paper reviewed literature from 1999 to 2014 inclusively on how Speech-to-Text Recognition (STR) technology has been applied to enhance learning. The first aim of this review is to understand how STR technology has been used to support learning over the past fifteen years, and the second is to analyze all research evidence to understand how Speech-to-Text Recognition technology can enhance learning. The findings are discussed from different perspectives as follows: (a) potentials of STR technology, (b) its use by specific groups of users in different domains, (c) quantitative and/or qualitative research methodology used, and (d) STR technology implications. Some STR literature review showed that in earlier stage of development, the STR technology was applied to assist learning only for specific users, i.e., students with cognitive and physical disabilities, or foreign students. Educators and researchers started to apply STR technology in a traditional learning environment to assist broader group of users, while STR technology has been rapidly advancing over the years. The review revealed a number of distinct advantages of using STR for learning. That is, STR-generated texts enable students to understand learning content of a lecture better, to confirm missed or misheard parts of a speech, to take notes or complete homework, and to prepare for exams. Furthermore, some implications over the STR technology in pedagogical and technological aspects were discussed in the review, such as the design of technology-based learning activities, accuracy rate of the STR process and learning behaviors to use STR-texts that may limit the STR educational value. Thus, the review furthermore discussed some potential solutions for the future research.
The present study investigated the effects of speech recognition technology (SR) and advance planning on children's writing processes. Fluent and less fluent writers, ages 11 to 14, composed 4 narratives, via handwriting and SR, both with and without advance planning. Less fluent children's handwritten narratives were significantly inferior to those of fluent children in terms of length, quality, and surface errors. For less fluent writers, SR (a) significantly increased the length and (b) decreased the surface errors of narratives. Although narrative length related positively to holistic quality, SR did not significantly improve quality. Advance planning helped children to compose more fully developed stories. For children with writing difficulties, advance planning and SR may each independently support text generation.
An eight-year-old boy, Adrian, draws subject matter and formats for his writing from a new, digital medium: the video game.
Through this article, we describe an instructional strategy termed “Beautiful Books.” This strategy involves the creation of images and texts to be used in the development of oral and literacy skills. We explore the historical roots of the strategy in Language Experience Approach (LEA) and Whole language and consider how dictation and early writing can be used together to support development. We discuss the inherent tensions in emergent writing, dictation, and sharing the pen, and describe some of our recent research using Beautiful Books in preservice teacher education.
Cambridge Core - Sociolinguistics - Ways with Words - by Shirley Brice Heath
Informed by sociocultural and systems theory tenets, this study used ethnographic research methods to examine the feasibility of using speech recognition (SR) technology to support struggling readers in an early elementary classroom setting. Observations of eight first graders were conducted as they participated in a structured SR-supported writing center four days a week for five months. Participant observation, field notes, transcripts of audio and video recordings, and student artifacts (classroom worksheets, SR screenshots, and writing center compositions) were used to document students’ use of SR as they wrote assigned compositions. Data analysis was recursive and ongoing. Constant comparison of in actu theoretical notes was used to form provisional patterns and develop and refine hypotheses. Triangulation of data sets, triangulation of informants, and negative case analyses were used to (dis)confirm hypotheses. Findings indicate that using SR was supportive of these struggling readers. Previous concepts of SR as an isolated entity and of the Language Experience Approach as cumbersome and reifying teacher hegemony are examined. Graphosemantic awareness, new literacies, and the possibilities for supporting struggling readers of all ages across expansive geographies are discussed. Finally, child safety, tensions between student independence and lost opportunities for teacher metacognitive modeling, questions about encoding as a viable or antiquated skill, and the need for additional research conducted in classroom settings to grasp sociocultural insights are discussed.
To analyze the role that the graphic display of orally originated language activity plays in shaping discourse, I asked four students to compose a series of essays using speech recognition dictation software. The interactions were videotaped and transcribed, and subsequently examined in terms of how the participants handled some of the problems (i.e., speech disfluencies) in transferring language from the oral medium to the written medium, which led to the identification and categorization of the type and frequency of speech disfluencies that occurred over the course of the study. With regard to the role that the software played in shaping the discourse of the participants, I found that, over time, the graphic presentation of orally originated language prompted some of the participants to consciously avoid features of spontaneous speech such as filled pauses, meta-comments, repetition/reading sentence parts aloud, errors in formulating the precise oral punctuation command, false starts, and laughing. The transcripts show over the passage of time, two of the participants learned to manage many of the features of human speech production that are not under full conscious control. I attribute this shift in speaking style to the situational feature of the graphic presentation of speech, which seemed to serve as the impetus to produce spoken language to be looked at, not listened to. The reduction of speech disfluencies in the participants' speech suggests a heightened awareness of the semiotic interrelatedness of the spoken and written modes in general, and learning to speak to write in particular.
Second language learners face countless obstacles in the classroom, including communication and comprehension limitations and difficulty building relationships with peers. Many teachers struggle to build an inclusive classroom environment and ensure all students, especially those with linguistic and other learning disadvantages, are learning. This article presents a detailed account of how one 2nd-grade teacher in the United States used a digital language experience approach project to help English language learners (ELLs) to be involved a class field trip and the subsequent class activities. The article shows how this innovative method, typically used only with older students, has the potential to ensure the optimal involvement of ELLs in the lesson and effective integration into the overall classroom community.
Students with physical disabilities often have difficulty with writing fluency, despite the use of various strategies, adaptations, and assistive technology (AT). One possible intervention is the use of speech recognition software, although there is little research on its impact on students with physical disabilities. This study used an alternating treatments design to compare the use of speech recognition software to word processing on first draft writing with students with physical disabilities. Areas examined were fluency, accuracy, type of word errors, recall of intended meaning, and length. The results of this study indicated that fluency and length were greater for all participants with speech recognition compared to word processing, but accuracy was lower using speech recognition.
This article describes two educational settings in Nigeria where teachers adapted a language experience approach for reading and writing instruction. The first setting is a professional development workshop for public school teachers of students in grades 1–6. The second setting includes two groups of students with special needs: a grade 6 class and a grade 7 class. In each location, an important goal is to provide interesting and appropriate reading materials for students learning to read in a foreign language. Our discussion also explores previous research and recommendations related to language experience. We conclude by discussing three powerful benefits from a Language Experience Approach for reading instruction that bridge cultural and linguistic differences.
تصف هذه المقالة سياقين تعليميين في نيجيريا حيث تبنّى المعلمون مدخل تجربة لغوية من أجل تعليم القراءة والكتابة. والسياق الأول كناية عن ورشة تنمية حرفية لمعلمي المدارس الحكومية في الصفوف 1–66. أما السياق الثاني فهو يشمل مجموعتين من الطلاب الذين معهم حاجات خاصة: الصف السادس والصف السابع. وفي كل موقع يوجد هدف مهم لتوفير مواد مناسبة ومثيرة للانتباه للطلاب الذين يتعلمون القراءة كلغة أجنبية. ويستكشف نقاشنا الأبحاث العلمية السابقة والاقتراحات المتعلقة بالتجارب اللغوية. وفي الختام نناقش ثلاث فوائد قوية من مدخل التجارب اللغوية لتعليم القراءة التي تبني جسراً عبر الاختلافات الثقافية واللغوية.
本文介绍在尼日利亚两个教育环境中的教师，如何修改一个应用于阅读与写作教学的语言经验教学方法。第一个教育环境是为公立学校第一至第六年级的教师所提供的专业培训工作坊。第二个教育环境是包括两组有特殊需要的学生：一班第六年级及一班第七年级的学生。为学习阅读外语的学生提供有趣及适当的阅读教材是每一个教育环境的重要教育目标。本文亦探究过往的研究及与语言经验相关的教学建议。在结论部份，本文讨论一个「语言经验」教学法应用于跨接文化及语言差异的阅读教学上所带来之三大益处。
Cet article présente deux situations pédagogiques au Nigéria d'enseignants ayant adopté une démarche basée sur l'expérience du langage pour enseigner à lire et à écrire. La première situation est un atelier de développement professionnel pour des enseignants d'écoles publiques de la 1 ère à la 6 ème année. La seconde situation comporte deux groupes d'élèves ayant des difficultés particulières: une classe de 6 ème année et une classe de 7 ème année. Dans chaque cas, un des buts importants est d'apporter à des élèves apprenant à lire dans une langue étrangère un matériau de lecture intéressant et approprié. Nous débattons également des recherches antérieures et des recommandations concernant l'expérience du langage. Nous concluons par une discussion relative à trois bénéfices importants d'une démarche reposant sur l'Expérience du Langage pour un enseignement de la lecture faisant le pont avec les différences culturelles et linguistiques.
Авторы описывают два эпизода в образовательном пространстве Нигерии, когда при обучении чтению и письму на иностранном языке применялся подход, основанный на ранее накопленном языковом опыте. Первый эпизод – обучающий семинар для учителей общеобразовательных школ, работающих с учениками первых‐шестых классов. Второй эпизод: обучение двух групп учащихся – шести‐ и семиклассников со специальными потребностями. В каждом случае было важно обеспечить обучаемых подходящими и интересными материалами для чтения на иностранном языке. В статье также описаны предпринятые ранее исследования в области использования языкового опыта учеников, предлагаются рекомендации для учителей‐практиков. В заключение формулируются три основополагающих довода в пользу применения этого подхода, который помогает успешно преодолеть национально‐культурные и лингвистические различия.
Este artículo describe dos escenarios educacionales en Nigeria en los que los maestros adaptaron la experiencia lingüística como acercamiento para enseñar a leer y escribir. El primer escenario es un taller de desarrollo profesional para maestros de escuelas públicas entre el primer y el sexto grado. El segundo escenario incluye dos grupos de estudiantes con necesidades especiales: un sexto grado y un séptimo grado. En cada lugar, una meta importante es la de darles lecturas apropiadas e interesantes a los estudiantes que están aprendiendo a leer en un idioma extranjero. Nuestra discusión también incluye investigaciones previas y recomendaciones relacionadas a la experiencia lingüística. Por último discutimos tres beneficios importantes del Acercamiento de la Experiencia Lingüística para la instrucción de lectura que superan las diferencias lingüísticas y culturales.
This study attempts to identify strategies peculiar to speakers of non-standard varieties of American English when composing with speech recognition-based dictation software. Two speakers of African American Vernacular English and one non-native speaker of English were asked to orally compose a series of college-level writing tasks using ViaVoice 98.The findings indicate that when the software misrecognized their speech, the language minority students resorted to similar strategies as those of standard American speakers discussed in the literature such as speaker adaptation to recognition systems leading to hyperarticulation and other types of phonetic and lexical adjustments. Moreover, the participants based their strategies on their knowledge of human-to-human interaction (e.g., the sequential organization of talk), which more often than not proved to be useless when interacting with the software. Yet, the students did seem to build up an awareness during the speech sessions of their linguistic variety and its divergence from the standard American accent that the software was originally modeled after.The findings of this study offer a better understanding of some of the strategies that speakers from diverse ethno-linguistic backgrounds may employ when speaking to write with speech recognition-based dictation software. They also offer some insight into users’ assumptions about the capabilities of the system, i.e., what they believed the speech-based software could process in terms of utterance length, tone of voice, canonical pronunciation, and lexical items.
In recent literature on persons with learning disabilities (LD), speech recognition has been addressed primarily as an assistive technology to compensate for writing difficulties. However, prior research by the authors has shown that speech recognition may have a remedial effect on reading and spelling. The present study was conducted to compare the effects of two types of speech recognition systems, discrete speech and continuous speech, in terms of their relative remedial effects. Thirty-nine students with LD (aged 9-18) had participated in a previous study. Nineteen had used discrete speech systems for 50 minutes a week for sixteen weeks to write on self-selected topics, while twenty students in a control group had received general computer instruction. In the following semester, an additional experimental condition was added. Thirteen participants used continuous speech recognition systems 50 minutes a week for sixteen weeks to write on self-selected topics. Results were then compared across all three groups. Both discrete and continuous speech groups showed significant improvement in word recognition (p<.002, p<.018) and reading comprehension (p<.043, p<.041) over the control group and the discrete condition also showed significant improvement in spelling (p<.015). Pre- and post-tests on five reading-related cognitive processing measures (phonological, orthographic and semantic processing, metcognitive reading strategies, and working memory) indicated that only phonological processing improved significantly, and only for the discrete speech group when compared to controls (p<.04). Results were related to specific differences between continuous and discrete speech systems in terms of the task requirements for generating and correcting text using the two systems.
One of the challenges in writing research in general is to explain the structural variation in writing processes within and between subjects. More or less recursivity has been attributed to writing experience, proficiency, task characteristics and the writing mode or medium. This study focuses on professional writers (n = 10) who use a modern writing instrument – speech recognition – as their primary tool for text production and revision. More specifically we are interested in the way this new technology affects the cognitive processes that underlie text production. In our study we have focused on error correction. We provide a description of the errors that professional speech recognition users need to deal with, how they deal with them and why they opt for various error correction strategies. Different converging research methods were used: (1) product, (2) process, and (3) protocol analysis. The results are described on two levels: the overall level and the subgroup level (three writer groups).
Gleaning insights from historians, mathematicians, and chemists about how they read within their disciplines
- Baker
See, say, write: A writing routine for the preschool classroom
- Copp
Making written language learning meaningful
- Hall
Bridging authentic experiences and literacy skills through the Language Experience Approach
- Huang
Variations on a theme: Using thematically framed Language Experience activities for English as a second language (ESL) instruction
- Mohr
Technology to support writing by students with learning and academic disabilities: Recent research trends and findings
- Peterson-Karlan
Using content subject matter with Language Experience Approach in middle school
- Sharp
Teaching second language learners in the regular classroom
- Perez