Posts written by Rhodri Buttrick

1. You can use Speech Recognition Software with almost any application
2. If you have difficulty manipulating a mouse because of a physical disability, you might find browsing the Internet difficult. Dragon labels each of the hyperlinks with a number so all you have to do is call out the number and it clicks on the link for you.
3. Youtube is now trialling subtitles on certain videos which are generated by speech recognition. They are not totally accurate yet, but I’m sure they soon will be.
4. If you receive Speech Recognition Software as part of the Disabled Students Allowance, you can also ask to receive training in its use.
5. The accuracy of speech recognition improves if used properly.
6. It is possible to create specialist vocabularies to suit your particular work. Some manufacturers already have specialist dictionaries, such as medical and legal.
7. If there is a particular piece of text you find yourself having to write a lot, such as your address when you write a letter, dragging allows you to have a code word for it. For instance, there is the option to program it to type out your entire address everytime you say the phrase ‘my address’.
8. Dragon can be used to help you browse the Internet. When using a regular browser such as Internet Explorer or Firefox, Dragon automatically labels the hyperlinks with numbers. To click on the hyperlinks, you simply call up the numbers. You can also speak the names of the hyperlinks to click on them. This is particularly useful for those with physical impairments which make using a mouse difficult.
9. It is a common belief that Speech Recognition does not work for regional accents. This is not true. What matters is pronouncing words consistently and not leaving out sounds.
10. It is also a myth that children can’t use Speech Recognition. I started using it when I was ten and I didn’t have to do much retraining when my voice broke!

1. Children can’t use it. The reason given for this is that their voices are too high! This is rubbish and I started using speech recognition when I was 9. The technology has developed a lot so it should be even easier now.
2. When using it you have to talk REALLY LOUD! When I was at school this was one of the reasons teachers were reluctant to let me use it in the classroom. However, I am using the software right now and I’m talking barely above a whisper. When using it in lessons, I was certainly never any louder than the guys gossiping at the back of the classroom!
3. Training takes for ever. With the latest versions of software Dragon NaturallySpeaking only takes about 30 minutes to do initial training.
4. You have to speak each word individually like a robot. Wrong! In fact it works much better if you speak as naturally and as fluently as possible.
5. You have to speak really slowly. Wrong again, it’s better if you speak at a normal pace. In fact, if you pronounce each individual word properly, you can speak as fast as you like. Usually, when I am dictating, I speak a lot faster than I would in normal conversation.
6. When you are dictating, the room has to be totally silent. This was a concern I had when using speech recognition in a busy classroom. However the microphones used for speech recognition generally tend to be proximity microphones which only pick up noise close to. Unless somebody’s being particularly loud next to you, the odds are, recognition will not be affected.
7. You are not allowed to use speech recognition in an exam. False. The access arrangements for GCSE and A levels do allow it and it is covered in the Regulations. Universities also allow it. Schools and universities sometimes make a meal out of this one but persevere as it is permitted but not many people know this.

The main problem with speech recognition is that although many charities are advising dyslexics to use the software, it does not specifically cater for a dyslexic market. As far as I can tell, the program is aimed at the office worker market.

When you first install your speech recognition software you need to complete the training process. This involves reading extracts form books into the machine. I was nine at the time and, being severely dyslexic, I could barely read. The training text is displayed on a very small panel and you are unable to increase the size of the font. My reading was so poor that the only way I could struggle through the training process was to have my mother or father whisper a sentence into my ear for me to repeat back into my microphone. As you can imagine this took hours.

There is also the issue that speech recognition is actually quite a bizarre skill and is very different from dictating to a human being. Speech Recognition can only write down what it hears, so if you slur your words or leave some out altogether, then you are going to have accuracy problems. However this doesn’t mean you have to speak like the Queen, as long as your pronunciation and diction is consistent, the software will grow used to the way you speak.

Another problem is that many people give up on speech recognition because they don’t get into good habits. This is perfectly understandable that if no one had explained to me what these habits involved, I would not be able to follow them. A vital good habit is using the “correct that” feature. If you find a word is consistently appearing wrong you can use the “correct” function to type in what the word is meant to be. This way the software continuously learns thus making the recognition even better.

One final note. With speech recognition being advised as a key way to increase accessibility in schools and universities, it is important to remember that it is not a fix all solution. It may have been the right approach for me but you must consider very carefully after trying it whether it is really the right method for you.

Due to my dyslexia and dyspraxia, I find handwriting impossible. This made essay writing at school incredibly frustrating as I wasn’t able to get all my ideas down and subsequently scored terrible marks.

I tried learning to touch type but this was a long and gruelling process and I could only type short paragraphs before the effort became too much. I needed an unusual solution.

My parents did some investigating and found out about speech recognition software. Thank goodness they did as without it I would not have passed my GCSEs let alone be studying philosophy at University. It was the solution I was looking for but it was certainly not easy and I will talk about the difficulties I faced as a nine-year-old dyslexic learning to use speech recognition software.

In this blog I want to clear up a couple of myths about speech recognition. It seems whenever I mention that speech recognition is my main method of work, there is always some clever clogs who says, “It’s rubbish” or, “I tried that and it didn’t work properly”. The reason most people have formulated this opinion is because many who have tried out the software did so back in the 90s. This was when the software was brand-new, shockingly underdeveloped and really should not have been released to the public.

Unfortunately, this concept of the 90s Ghost of Speech Recognition Past is still hanging around, much like 90s boy bands! I hope to dispel a couple of myths and misconceptions surrounding speech recognition and shed light on a few things you might not know about it.

Speech recognition software was a complete lifesaver, enabling me to write essays, take exams and achieve to my full academic potential. Many dyslexic and dyspraxic students, both at school and university can benefit from this software as a way around severe handwriting difficulties. However, many of the students who are given the software never take out of the box and find it too difficult to get to grips with. In the next blog I will try to explain why this happens and how it could be prevented.