7,000-10,000: Magical Numbers for Speech Training

Starting with a mere 316 pioneers in 11 states at the end of 2000, quality speech recognition instructors are now found in every state and most provinces. Our best-guess is that this number will grow to include a minimum of 7,000 -- perhaps as many as 10,000 -- instructors during 2004; A remarkable achievement by any measurement.

By Karl Barksdale
Speaking Solutions © 2004

David Pogue, a tecno-journalist for The New York Times, aptly referred to NaturallySpeaking 7 as "… a lifesaver and very nearly magical." *(Pogue suffers with a painful wrist ailment called tenosynovitis.)

In a recent phone interview, Bill Yeager of ScanSoft gave an example of how this magic is working in the medical field. A Radiology department in one of his territories recently implemented 60 copies of Dragon 7.3 Professional. By training the doctors and staff, the department is saving over $300,000 in annual salaries while boosting overall productivity. The move to NaturallySpeaking eliminated eight medical transcription jobs while slashing average turnaround time for the department's medical reporting system from 71 hours to less than 24.

But it's one thing to have a great productivity-enhancing technologies in the corporate world and quite another to make these DigiTools available to each and every student. In this regard, Business Education is very nearly magical.

It all began on Friday, April 21, 2000 at NBEA's Annual National Convention and Trade Show at the Anaheim Marriott; ironically, within earshot of the Magic Kingdom's rides. A presentation at 10:30 a.m. demonstrated just how far speech recognition had come since the release of Dragon's first continuous speech recognition (CSR) product in April 1997. Business instructors were quick to see the far-reaching implications.

Since Anaheim, business instructors have rapidly built awareness, demonstrated CSR capabilities and instructed each other in the basics of speech recognition. The progress has been remarkable. Starting with a mere 316 pioneers in 11 states at the end of 2000, quality speech recognition instructors are now found in every state and most provinces. (And let's not forget Bermuda, South Africa, and the UK.) Our best-guess is that this number in North America will grow to include a minimum of 7,000 -- perhaps as many as 10,000 -- instructors during 2004; A remarkable achievement by any measurement.

But there is still much to do. And that's where the magic of Business Education comes into play -- again. Back in 2000, the question of how to effectively teach speech recognition to all students was largely unanswered. But the early investment in training is now paying big dividends on the curriculum front.

Today, thousands of business educators know how to teach speech effectively:

• Some are conducting graduate-level and postgraduate level research on various aspects of speech and handwriting recognition in schools.
• Prospective teachers are now receiving speech and handwriting training in their methods classes.
• Innovative course outlines have been prepared.
• Some assessments have been written.
• Methodologies have been improved.
• National, state, and district-level guidelines have been published.

The mystery of how to unravel these new voice-writing and handwriting recognition miracles for students is becoming clearer. (See 10 Curriculum Resources for Speech Recognition Instructors.) State-by-state we are moving toward the goal of bringing state-of-the-art input technologies to every student and every future worker. Business Education comprises the only technical training organization in North America capable of coordinating and implementing this massive relearning effort.

And we're just beginning to see Business Education's instructional magic unfold. Buckle your seat belts. It's going to be an exciting ride