Effectiveness of a robust computer assisted pronunciation training tool

Abstract

A reliable ASR-based pronunciation training tool named STAR (self-training accent reduction) is implemented for native speakers of Korean learning American English. STAR is designed to focus on the most frequent phonemic errors made by Korean adult learners and to provide instantaneous feedback. In order to investigate the effectiveness of STAR, ten Korean participants are recruited for this pilot study. The study consists of three phases: Pre-test, training, and post-test. During the pre-test, the participants read a pre-designed word list containing accent sensitive phonemes into a microphone and participate in one session of training using the STAR system. The participants return for two more sessions of training on the following day. The post-test is administered on the third day, after one additional training session. During the post-test, the participants read the same wordlist as the one administered during the pre-test, and an additional wordlist that they were not trained on. Two trained phoneticians listen and transcribe all recordings to examine whether the participants’ productions are more accurate after the STAR training. The results indicate that most of the participants who practice pronunciation with STAR show improvement in their pronunciation.