Research for the Construction of an Ambient Noise Database and Efficient Access Methods for Aural Comprehension Education for the Advanced English Student

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Very clean audio is usually used for English listening practice. This may be important for beginners. However, advanced students are often able to comprehend speech in a clean audio environment, but often have trouble comprehending unclear speech (e.g., speech in a crowded street). We have developed several systems, described below, which will allow advanced students to practice listening in a variety of natural surroundings containing ambient noise.[English Pronunciation and Listening Education System]We have previously developed the Hypermedia Pronunciation Power Program (HPP) for English listening and pronunciation practice. HPP is a componentware-based system, and therefore is adaptable to rapid changes in multimedia technology : new features are easily added and the program is easily updated. We have developed a novel noise-generating module and integrated into the HPP program as a new feature.[A-MATE]A-MATE is a quiz-generating system for the TOEFL and TOEIC test. A-MATE allows t … More eachers to create five representative types of WEB-based quizzes without needing any programming knowledge. We have developed a multimedia database, which can now be used in conjunction with the ambient-noise database.[Bilingual Multimedia Dictionary]The goals of the Bilingual Multimedia Dictionary (BMD) are to accelerate and enhance language learning for beginning students of Japanese or English, and to provide a bilingual interface which can be easily accessed in a multiplicity of educational environments.[Ambient Noise Database]There are various types of English education software on the market, but few target advanced students. We first recorded various types of environmental sounds, then developed an ambient-noise database, and incorporated this database into HPP.Students can now study with a both 'clean' sound-signal, and noise-added sounds. We are planning to assess the efficiency of HPP's Aural Comprehension Education System for Advanced English users, with the incorporation the noise-generating module and the ambient-noise database. Less