Smarter, Better E-Learning: The Power of Text-to-Speech Technology

Since the mid-1990s, e-learning has provided a convenient and inexpensive way of gaining new skills and qualifications for employees. As the technology available to us continues to grow and evolve, however, learning and development (L&D) professionals sometimes struggle to keep up.

In what seems like just a few short years, the technology has morphed from basic online teaching programs to all-singing, all-dancing interactive platforms. Now, as AI and VR continue to transform the way we live and learn, e-learning is shifting and changing faster than ever before to take advantage of these new and innovative tools. In addition to providing more intelligent training materials, this advanced tech is also levelling the playing field for students with special needs such as sight or hearing impairments - making e-learning accessible to all.



One such emerging technology that is changing the face of corporate training at a very fast pace is text-to-speech (TTS). As the name suggests, these tools convert text into speech and vice versa using customizable text to speech voices. This can present a number of benefits including:

• Cost savings
• Scalability
• Accessibility
• Improved engagement

Most of us will agree that these are some pretty compelling benefits and so, in this article, we'll be looking at the future of corporate training and how TTS will prove to be a major driver in this evolution.

The Evolution Of E-Learning And The Quest For Compelling Content

In the ‘olden days' training was a time-consuming and expensive process which took place in a physical classroom or location. The advent of e-learning for corporate training has introduced a more flexible, economic and convenient solution, however, one sticking point remains the same - creating content that properly engages students.

Conventional e-learning modules based on tons of text and static images result in learner fatigue and poor knowledge retention and are, quite frankly, just boring. This is where TTS makes a real, tangible difference by providing a dynamic and interactive alternative.

What is Text-to-Speech (TTS) Technology?

As we touched on briefly earlier in this article, TTS programs are able to read text out loud to learners as well as converting the learner's speech into text. Advanced systems use complex algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) to produce natural-sounding voices and can even incorporate different accents, intonations, and speaking styles. This enables L&D creators to develop audio narrations and instructions for their e-learning modules without the expense of voice actors or recording studios.

Benefits Of Incorporating TTS Into E-Learning Modules

There are some really great reasons for introducing text-to-speech programs into your e-learning modules and some of these are:

• Greater engagement - it's a simple fact that we are more receptive to a human-sounding voice than to other one-dimensional materials
• More immersive - TTS voices help to bring materials to life, making them more interesting and, importantly, more memorable. Studies show that knowledge retention is improved when the student hears the information as opposed to reading it.
• More inclusive - Text-to-speech helps to include those with impairments which can make learning more difficult. Audio descriptions can really help here.
• More globally accessible - Offering materials in a range of languages gives your learning modules a much wider reach, thereby making them more profitable

Studies show that the above points are particularly true for complex topics such as technical subjects where big chunks of text can be daunting to say the least.

Working With TTS

As well as the many benefits to students that we've highlighted above, TTS also ticks a lot of boxes for creators of learning modules and we'll look at some of these here:

• Scalability - This valuable technology allows businesses to scale without excessive expense or hassle - even when creating modules in multiple languages and / or a large number of attendees. TTS enables the development and scaling of modules with alternate languages and accents to be completed easily and quickly.
• Cost-effectiveness - Saving money is usually near the top of every organization's list of priorities and TTS can play a major role here. Traditionally, voice-overs involve employing voice-over artists, renting recording space and post-production work - all of which comes with an eye-watering price tag. Text-to-speech technology is a much more budget-friendly solution as well as being more versatile in terms of updates and revisions.
• Flexibility - With traditional e-learning content, making changes or updates can be a major headache - not so with TTS. With this technology, simply changing the text automatically updates the narration; allowing you to keep your content up to date quickly and without any fuss.
• Personalization - When using these clever programs, learners are able to select custom options such as accent, voice and speech speed and even aspects of the narration for a fully personalized experience, which can further boost engagement and therefore results.

The Future Of TTS In Corporate Training

There's no doubt that the future of TTS within corporate training is bright and that this technology is here to stay. With AI and machine learning technologies developing continuously, text-to-speech voices are becoming more and more natural-sounding and human-like, making them more relatable to learners.
TTS trends to look out for include:

• More humanized voices: Computer-generated TTS is continuously evolving, creating voices that are almost indistinguishable from those of actual human beings. This will, in turn, further enrich learning and make TTS the superior choice for voice-over recording.
• Interactive and integrated experiences: This technology can be combined with existing systems and programs including chatbots and virtual assistants to create unique interactive learning experiences. Students can access AI-driven characters to pose questions, and receive personalized feedback.
• Integration with AR/VR: There's little doubt that AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) will play a big part in our future and, combined with text-to-speech, these have the potential to revolutionize corporate training entirely. For example, learners may interact with virtual worlds and receive instant audio responses from AI-based characters for more well-rounded engagement.

Conclusion

There are few technologies with the power to transform corporate training to the extent that text-to-speech programs can and will. Enhanced accessibility, increased engagement, improved knowledge retention and scalability and cost savings all come together to form an e-learning superpower.

TTS is already a game-changer for many L&D providers and this will be further underlined by rapid advances in AI and machine learning which lend a more lifelike and expressive aspect to modules. Because of this, it is our firm belief that corporate training and TTS will march into the future hand in hand, building next-world learning for a better-equipped, better-skilled and more motivated workforce.