Enhancing foreign language tutors - In search of the golden speaker
In the past, educators relied on classroom observation to determine the relevance of various pedagogical techniques. Automated language learning now allows us to examine pedagogical questions in a much more rigorous manner. We can use a computer-assisted language learning (CALL) system as a base, tracing all user responses and controlling the information given out. We have thus used the Fluency system [Proceedings of Speech Technology in Language and Learning, 1998, p. 77] to answer the question of what voice a language learner should imitate when working on pronunciation. In this article, we will examine whether there should be a choice of model speakers and what characteristics of a model's voice may be important to match when there is a choice. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
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