Feedback

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Text-to-speech programs can be set to read text at the level most helpful to the student. CAST eReader (CAST Inc.)

Feedback, a key feature of apprenticeship and one that is difficult for teachers to provide individually, can be generated with a powerful technology feature, text-to-speech, or the capacity of the computer to read back any written text in a synthesized computer voice. TTS is deceptively simple yet helps students monitor and evaluate their work independently. Several programs (such as IntelliTalk, Write:OutLoud, and CAST eReader) incorporate TTS, which can be set to read each letter, each word, or each sentence as it is typed, or only on request after writing.

With TTS, writers can hear their own work read aloud, as others might hear it. This feedback is extremely useful in helping writers with learning disabilities check for errors in formulation, such as incomplete sentences or misspelled words, omitted or duplicated words, or words inadvertently selected from a list presented by a spell checker (MacArthur, 1998). TTS can also help students monitor the match between their goals and their completed compositions, or between the assignment and the outcome. Thus TTS supports the monitoring of both writing strategies and routine actions.