Javascript API for Mandarin Speech Recognition

[imcgraw]

For the web-savvy out there who have the basic skills needed to create a game from Java-script, there's a new tool out there which allows you to integrate Mandarin speech recognition into any web page (for free!).

http://wami.csail.mit.edu

I think if enough developers were interested, this could have some really interesting implications for beginner and intermediate learners of Mandarin.

The English version was recently debuted on Ajaxian.com:

http://ajaxian.com/archives/wami-lets-you-add-speech-recognition-to-any-web-page

Try BOTH the English and the Chinese version by going to the sandbox:

http://wami.csail.mit.edu/sandbox.php

Note that this is NOT speech recognition for the purposes of assessing pronunciation (tonal or otherwise). Instead, you can imagine creating a suite of Javascript games which require the student to use Chinese speech commands to accomplish a task. Imagine a beginner learning numbers by playing a game of tic-tac-toe like this English version:

http://wami.csail.mit.edu/examples/jsapi/tictactoe.html

Actually, an adept Javascript programmer could copy and paste the source from that page, and have a Mandarin version running in under an hour. A full-fledged flash card site could do much more... like this term/definition matching game (in this case, in English):

http://quizlet.com/vscatter/874769/

I think there's a whole new world of interactive learning activities waiting to be developed with something like this. Sure beats rote memorization.

[trevelyan]

Very useful. Thanks for the link, I'll try it out.