Development of a Text to Speech Based Application

The development of a text to speech based application to enhance learning in computer assisted environment a case study of Yaba College of Technology

Introduction

The introduction of computer (ICT) into learning has become a Global phenomenon; its effect on education cannot be over emphasized. As technology evolves so as our way of life evolved including the way learning is dispersed. In traditional learning environment, the ratio of teachers to students is not directly proportional and not evenly distributed; students taught on a one-on-one basis tend to perform better than when taught as a group. It is however expensive and not feasible considering local economic state of the country to have one teacher to one student scenario, hence the need for computer assisted learning.

“It is equally important to note that, a computer is nothing more than a tool, an aid to be used or not, as the teacher thinks fit “[19].The computer provides a means of enhancing the effectiveness of human natural talents and capabilities; it is useless without the human input and control but when “used properly they can be very effective indeed, enabling the individual to carry out” [20] task optimally. The role of computers in learning is however to compliment the traditional mode of teaching i.e. the chalk and blackboard by providing virtual means of impacting knowledge into students effectively.

 Computer assisted learning is not a new field, as it is already been exploited and its application varies from language learning to complimenting classroom efforts. It is believed that computer shouldn’t be seen as an “outside instrument rather than as a part of the ecology of learning because it’s an integral aspect of learning” [1]. The use of Computer assisted learning has moved from the input – control – feedback sequence to management of communication, text, audio, and video” [18]. All of us have at one point or the other used a Computer Aided Learning system (CAL) system unconsciously, a DVD player when used to play video tutorials or listen to audio as simple as it sounds, serves the purpose of CAL. Our current focus in this research is to develop an application which is Text-To-Speech (TTS) based to enhance learning in computer assisted environment. The developed platform will make it possible for students to have their lectures notes in an audible form; which will enhance their understanding of the course and learning at large. It is often said that students understand faster words heard than words read. “Listening is the most common communicative activity in daily life: we can expect to listen twice as much as we speak, four times more than we read, and five times more than we write” [21]. The remaining part of this paper is organized as follow; Section 2 earn out a literature of various existing platforms. Section 3 discusses the material and methods. Section 4 is an overview of the system design state and its implementation during testing. Section 5 concludes the paper.

Literature review

Text-to-speech technology in CAL already exists but not commonly used. The traditional CAL system outputs information on screen and user interact using keyboard and mouse to pass in inputs. Text to speech is just one of the many different technologies that can be implemented in CAL, some of which are web tutorials, multimedia, chat just to mention a few. It is believed that “it’s not the technology that makes CAL effective or ineffective as the case may be but the particular ways in which the technology is used. It’s important to know the set of technology to merge when to use them and the right learner to use the technology with to achieve the effectiveness desired.” [17]. Text-to-speech technology is also referred to as speech synthesis and there are quite a few applications already in use, some of which are: the reading pen, the screen reader and some mobile phone applications just to mention a few. The reading pen can make printed text audible by moving it line by line across the printed text, while the screen reader is a program designed to read the text on the computer screen; some mobile phone applications have the ability to convert pictures of text and converts it using optical character recognition (OCR) technology and speech synthesis converts the text to speech.

It is necessary to know that in order to achieve optimal efficiency in learning using computerized environment, there is need for the right mix of technology for the right set of student; as it is not the technology that is effective or ineffective but the manner in which it is used. Text to speech is already in use in some computer assisted learning (CAL) programs; however the usage is very limited. The limitation of the utilization of TTS in CAL is the fact that it’s costly in terms of both time and resources. “Jones & Galliers (1996) believes that benchmarking is the best way to solve the limitation associated with the use of TTS in CAL. They believe once it can be proven that TTS can provide the necessary result consistently, and then resources can be invested in it” [3].

Text to speech “are often deployed for the use by people with reading problems, such as visually disabled or dyslexic people.”[2] Since educational bodies do not provide special curriculum for disabilities students; they are required to have access to the same curriculum as their peers without disabilities, the incorporation of TTS into learning will serve as a bridge to the gap created by their disability. It is however of great importance to make text available beyond the pages of books and on chalk in other to supplement the learning process for both people with and without disability because words heard are better understood than words read.

The application of TTS is available on the web for CALL purposes (like talking dictionaries, dictations, talking texts), in portable devices and in newer operating systems in computers.

[pic 1]

“Figure 1 and 2” [2] are some of the ways Text to speech technology has been utilized. Students with reading disability can use any of these devices to read and acquire knowledge in the process.

3.0        Methods and Material

4.0        System design and implementation

The system design precedes in two ways namely the web application and the windows application. The Web application (courseware portal) is where the students logs in to gain access to their registered courses and associated lecture notes; while the windows application is initiated when the student selects the course outline to be read. The entire system can be represented in a flow diagram in figure 4.1