Speech Recognition and Language Learning: The Perfect Pair

June 22, 2021

Author

Kyle Carney

Learning a new language has never been more accessible. With language apps, free online content and online language courses, you can now effectively learn a new language from the comfort of your own couch.

The key to making language learning more accessible and effective has been speech recognition. Speech is a critical aspect of language learning. In order to gain confidence in a new language, you need to regularly use the language. For new learners, it can be difficult and intimidating to find opportunities to regularly practice a new language. Speech recognition provides this opportunity and more.

Get immediate feedback

One of the most common complaints from learners using language apps is the lack of feedback. While they can interact with content and progress through lessons, they don’t get feedback to see if they are using the correct verbs or the correct pronunciations. It isn’t until they try to use the language in real-world situations that they find out.

With speech recognition, this issue is resolved! Speech recognition in language learning provides direct feedback to learners. As you practice new words and phrases, speech recognition is able to correct you immediately. This not only builds confidence but teaches you good habits to continue to progress.

Advanced speech recognition, which is used in our Berlitz Flex subscriptions, goes even further and allows you to practice full sentences. This ensures that you are using all the different elements of speech correctly to convey information.

Avoid second language anxiety

For language learners, one of the biggest obstacles to overcome is second language anxiety. While learning, many language learners have a fear of practicing or using the language with native speakers or in real-world scenarios. This fear can keep many language learners from ever building up enough confidence to really use the new language.

Much of this fear comes from not being able to practice speaking enough while learning. With speech recognition, you can practice your language skills regularly without the fear of being wrong or embarrassed. And with the immediate feedback you receive, you can continue to gain confidence that you are using the language correctly, which will help you begin to use the language in real-world scenarios.

Greater flexibility to learn

Serious language learners have often been left with few options for learning. If you really need to learn a new language for work or travel, private lessons have traditionally been your only option. While private lessons are very efficient and produce great results, they require you to schedule lessons with an instructor to get feedback and practice speaking.

With speech recognition and language learning, serious learners are able to have the same level of speaking practice without always needing to schedule lessons with an instructor. This flexibility allows you to learn on your time and at your own pace. The freedom to practice speaking at any time with speech recognition makes learning a new language on your own a more attractive option for serious language learners.

For any language learner that has tried language apps in the past and has been disappointed in not gaining fluency, speech recognition could be just the thing for you. It provides a better experience for learners and more flexibility. Ultimately, speech recognition and language learning are poised to bring language to more people than ever before. It can open the world for a whole new generation of language learners.