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NCAC: Research & Solutions: Curriculum: Enhancements Literature Review: Text to Speech

Text to Speech

Prepared by Roxanne Ruzic and Kathy O'Connell

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Text to speech is any process or product in which a student is exposed to printed text while hearing it read aloud. For this study, text-to-speech refers to the reading of text from a computer screen using synthesized (computer-generated) speech or digital (human-recorded) speech.

Evidence of effectiveness

Only a limited number of research studies have been published on the use of text to speech in classrooms (we identified five, two of which reviewed multiple studies). Those studies we did locate that found text to speech to be effective (four of the five) examined its use exclusively in computer labs or special education classrooms by individual students with reading disabilities. The one study that looked at a typical population of students using text to speech in writing tasks found mixed results. Almost all studies reviewed examined the use of text to speech for reading (as opposed to other content areas such as social studies and science).

While involving students from limited populations, the studies we reviewed examined the use of text to speech by students across all grade levels.

A couple of the studies included in this review have significant methodological drawbacks, such as extremely small sample sizes (three or four students total in a given sample). While three of the studies were multiple study reviews, the small number of studies and the limited populations, content areas, and locations of use evaluated make any conclusions about the usefulness of text to speech from a research perspective extremely preliminary. We have no evidence of the effectiveness of text to speech with any populations in a general education classroom.

While this research evidence does not indicate how text to speech might be used in a heterogeneous general education classroom, it is possible that text to speech shows promise in helping students with reading disabilities comprehend written materials.

Text to Speech Data Tables

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Text to Speech References

Borgh, K., & Dickson, W. P. (1992). The effects on children's writing of adding speech synthesis to a word processor. Journal of Research in Computing in Education, 24(4), 533-544.

Dawson, L., Venn, M. L., & Gunter, P. L. (2000). The effects of teacher versus computer reading models. Behavioral Disorders, 25(2), 105-113.

Farmer, M. E., Klein, R., & Bryson, S. E. (1992). Computer-assisted reading: Effects of whole-word feedback on fluency and comprehension in readers with severe disabilities. Remedial & Special Education, 13(2), 50-60.

Hebert, B. M., & Murdock, J. Y. (1994). Comparing three computer-aided instruction output modes to teach vocabulary words to students with learning disabilities. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 9(3), 136-141.

McCullough, C. S. (1995). Using computer technology to monitor student progress and remediate reading problems. School Psychology Review, 24(3), 426-439.