u oo SPEECH SYNTHESIZER ToTeach Basic Vocabulary By Rita K. Holcomb

Coupled with a microcomputer, a speech synthesizer enables teachers simultaneously to work with students who read at different levels. Frustration quotients go down as reading dividends go up.

l ~ l OST ELEMEN- TARY TEACHERS agree that students must be able to rec- ognize approximate-

ly 250 specific words before they can become fluent readers. Once they've learned this "sight" vocab- ulary, they find it easier, and cer- tainly more fun, to extend their reading vocabulary. If they fail to learn the sight words, they enter an agonizing cycle of failure beyond the walls of the reading class.

Today, with a microcomputer and speech synthesizer, classroom teachers can help alleviate the frus- trations of students who fail to learn the sight vocabulary.

For the majority of the students, these words pose no problem. Some seem to learn these words al- most without effort. But it's the other student, the one who can't seem to conquer the system of rec- ognizing these words--" to ," "the," "in," "and"--with which I am concerned.

Many theories exist as to why some students seem unable to be- come fluent readers. But no matter whose learning theory you study, you'll find auditory and visual memory listed as possible weak- nesses for the nonreading student. In the past, elementary teachers have used ditto sheets, flash cards, games, and other pedagogical aids as a means of attempting to teach the basic sight vocabulary. Though initially satisfactory, this approach becomes more difficult as students with various learning abilities are directed into discrete groups.

Invariably, teachers find them- selves trying to give personal atten- tion to groups that often vary by more than one year's reading abili- ty. In effect, they have kindergar- ten, first grade, and second grade readers all in the same class. Indi- vidualizing instruction becomes ex- tremely difficult.

But with a microcomputer and a speech synthesizer, teachers can work more easily with more than one level at one time. Think about

18 TechTrends

Rita K. Holcomb is an elementary resource teacher for learning dis- abled students in the Denton (Tex- as) Independent School District.

it: The computer without a speech synthesizer was a visual learner's delight. A student had to know how to read to work the computer, un- less a teacher was there telling the student what to do. But now the special student, such as an auditory learner, can use the computer, and it can lead to reading success.

Using a minigrant from the Den- ton (Texas) school system's curric- ulum department, I was able to cre- ate a learning module that relieves the teacher from the repetitive and time-consuming task of teaching the basic sight vocabulary. The teacher is not removed from the learning process; a computer/synthesizer is added to it. By observing the weak- nesses and needs of special children for the past seven years, I 've been able to develop a program that strengthens both the auditory and visual abilities of the student.

Using a TI-99 4A computer, the TI speech synthesizer, the TI cas- sette recorder, and a color televi- sion set, I developed a program to teach the basic sight words of our language. The program is written in modules of no more than six words, with no word having more than five letters.

This is how the program works: Let 's take the word " in" as an ex- ample. The word " in" flashes on the screen in four different colors while the speech synthesizer says the word. After the word flashes four times, three words, one of which is " in" appear on the screen. The two incorrect words are ran- domly generated from a basic list used by the computer. The order of the words also is assigned random- ly. The computer program places a box around the first word on the left. The synthesizer then asks, "Is this the word ' in '?"

If the student agrees with this choice, the student presses the "en- ter" key; if he disagrees with the computer, he presses the space bar. If the space bar is hit, the block will move to the second word, and the speech synthesizer again will say, "Is this the word ' in '?" The student again must decide to press either the space bar or the "enter" key. If the student presses the space bar, the computer will move the block over to the third word, and the speech synthesizer repeats the process.

Speech synthesizers can give struggling students all the time they need.

The child can repeat the process of pressing the space bar nine times. After the third complete cy- cle, no matter what key the student presses, the computer automatically will recycle to the beginning of the program for that word. The com- puter will recycle until the student chooses the correct word.

Once the student makes the cor- rect choice, the screen clears, and the speech synthesizer asks the stu- dent, "Please type the word ' in ' ." The computer will accept only the correct spelling. If the student makes an error on the first spelling, the screen clears, and the synthe- sizer asks the student to type " in" again. If the student cannot spell the word correctly on his second try, the program automatically re- cycles to the beginning of the pro- gram for that word, and the student sees and hears the word again. This repetition is often vital to the po- tential success for the special stu- dent.

The child also must integrate what he has learned. He must be able to spell the word as well as read and pronounce correctly the word he repeatedly has heard.

After the student correctly identi- fies six words, a recognition symbol appears on the screen, and the speech synthesizer says, "Go get your teacher." The computer will not respond to any keyboard input except the necessary code that the teacher must use. Once the teacher enters in the correct code, a score sheet appears on the screen, and the teacher knows not only how many errors the student made be- fore choosing the correct word but also how many errors the student made before typing the correct word.

At this point, the teacher uses flash cards to determine if the stu- dent can transfer the learning from one medium to another. The teach. er then determines what the stu- dent's next task should be, depend- ing upon what is best for the stu- dent. The teacher might decide to have the student redo the present module, go on to another module, or do something else entirely.

The use of the computer for the special student has many positive aspects:

�9 It provides immediate feedback to the student.

�9 It can provide endless repeti- tion without teacher frustration.

�9 It allows time for the student to integrate what he has seen and heard.

�9 It allows record keeping for the teacher without student shame.

�9 It allows the teacher easily to program words that the student needs to learn, thereby individualiz- ing a student's reading program.

As the quality, price, and avail- ability of the speech synthesizer im- proves, teachers will find even more uses for the computer in the classroom. (Scott Industries, in Denton, Texas, and Borg-Warner, in Chicago, are just two of many companies developing synthesizers for use with microcomputers.). The computer/synthesizer can be an in- dispensable aid for all students, but it is especially so for struggling stu- dents who need their auditory and visual abilities improved.

Teachers don't have time to flash cards and say " in" 75 times--but a computer with speech synthesizer really doesn't care how many times it teaches a specific word. It will wait until the child learns. �9

MAY-JUNE 1985 19