Protalk by Klik2Learn
The Protalk app is an innovative iOS application that we developed as part of a collaborative Innovate UK project for a small Scottish start up called Klik2Learn.
The Protalk app uses advanced speech analysis algorithms and unique visuals to help non native English speakers improve their English pronunciation.
The app contains several thousand words and phrases with which the user can practice and perfect their pronunciation.
What is Protalk?
The Protalk app is an innovative iOS application that we developed as part of a collaborative Innovate UK project for a small Scottish start up called Klik2Learn. The Protalk app is just the first manifestation of the underlying technologies and methods developed over the last year.
The collaborating partners in the project were Klik2Learn and Strathclyde University in the form of the boffins in Strathclyde University’s CESIP department with us as a technical consultant and delivery partner.
Why is Protalk special?
If you search Apple’s iOS app store using the keywords “learn english” you will find a multitude of apps claiming to teach you English. Some of these apps appear to be quite effective for the absolute beginner and some even use advanced speech recognition to analyse recordings made by the user and thus provide feedback tailored to the users latest attempt.
Fortunately, Klik2Learn are experts in English language training and know from their many years experience in the field what really matters. Thus when brainstorming their own language app they started with the fundamental premise that to be clearly and easily understood by native language speakers second language students would have to learn to speak intelligibly which means that they would need to be trained on both pronunciation and diction. Thus the Protalk concept was born.
A brief overview of the Protalk app
While intellectual property confidentiality prevents us from sharing the details of the sophisticated analysis algorithms employed by the Protalk app we can provide an overview of what the app offers users and in the process highlight some of its more advanced features that set it apart from the crowd.
Here we can see the main navigation menu of the app which like all effective UI’s is deceptively simple.
Hiding behind the “Sounds” menu item is clever diagnostic system that uses a matrix of words and phrases to identify the phonemes that the user is weakest on.
Underpinning this diagnostic exercise is a sophisticated speech recognition engine that has been augmented to produce the results required. The user's performance in this diagnostic section of the app is then used to derive a training plan from a section of over 10,000 words and phrases customised to the learners need’s.
Many of the more advanced apps would stop at this point claiming job well done but Klik2Learn considers this the kindergarten stage of language training and that the real learning is just about to begin.
Contrary to popular belief well pronounced English does not consist of individual phonetic sounds grouped into distinct syllablic sounds which are subsequently grouped into words. Instead phonetic sounds are seamlessly blended together to form syllabic sounds which are subsequently seamlessly blended to form words. This blending of syllablic sounds means that there is a subtle yet very noticeable difference in the way the same syllable is pronounced in different words.
Using a combination of linguistic expertise and advanced analytics Klik2Learn have devised a vocabulary of two, three and four syllable words designed to allow learners to develop their pronunciation and diction to a very high level.
Sophisticated speech analysis algorithms are used to allow users to compare and contrast their pronunciation against that of a native British English speaker.
Of course there is more to speaking good English than just pronouncing individual words well and so Klik2Learn has used their linguistic expertise to develop proprietary algorithms that analyse the speech patterns for all the major phrase types commonly used in British English.
Of course there is more to speaking good English than just pronouncing individual words well and so Klik2Learn has used their linguistic expertise to develop proprietary algorithms that analyse the speech patterns for all the major phrase types commonly used in British English.
Again an intuitive visualisation that hides the complexities of the analysis algorithms is provided to allow learners to contrast their phrase pattern against that of a native English speaker.
The Protalk app is currently undergoing public beta testing and should be released in the Apple iOS app store in the near future.