• 대한음성학회:학술대회논문집
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• 대한음성학회 2003년도 10월 학술대회지
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• pp.37-40
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• 2003

This paper presents the preliminary result of the automatic pronunciation scoring for non-native English speakers, and shows the developmental process for an English speech recognizer for the educational and evaluational purposes. The proposed speech recognizer, featuring two refined acoustic model sets, implements the noise-robust data compensation, phonetic alignment, highly reliable rejection, key-word and phrase detection, easy-to-use language modeling toolkit, etc., The developed speech recognizer achieves 0.725 as the average correlation between the human raters and the machine scores, based on the speech database YOUTH for training and K-SEC for test.

• 영어어문교육
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• 제13권2호
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• pp.91-108
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• 2007

This study investigates learners' perception on their engagement in rating activities in the EFL essay-writing context. The current study aims to address the answers to the following research questions: 1) What attitude do students show about their participation in the rating tasks? and 2) which of three aspects (e.g. the degree of rating experience, the exposure to English composition instruction and learning, and proficiency level) significantly influences learners' rating activities? 104 EFL learners participated in the rater training session. After participants finished rater training session, they rated three sample essays and peer essays using the given scoring guide. Based on the analysis of survey responses that students made, students showed positive attitude toward their engagement in rating tasks. For research question 2, only L2 writing proficiency seriously affected students' perception on the rating tasks. Advanced level of subjects did not feel stressed by a grade of peers as low level of subjects did. They were also critical about the benefits of self- and peer-assessment, suggesting that a peer's feedback on their own essay was not so useful and that a self-rating does not fully help learners identify their writing proficiency.

• 영어어문교육
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.103-129
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• 2006

This paper presents a case study of the effectiveness of debate class in promoting speaking skills of advanced learners. The researcher adopted English debate techniques in an English speaking class during four-week teacher training program and investigated how teachers responded to the new technique. Forty-five middle and high school teachers participated in the study and classroom observation, pre-survey, post-survey, and focus group interviews were used as the major research methods. The teacher pre-survey results presented that teachers prefer a conversation class where they can directly acquire proper sentence patterns and speaking strategies rather than spend time in performing communicative events. The results of the focus group interview and post-survey confirmed that a debate class can meet this specific teachers' needs. Most teachers responded positively to the debate classes since: 1) debate techniques are relatively new ideas to Korean teachers; 2) debate techniques require speed and accuracy in speech; thus teachers could learn to present their ideas logically and efficiently in a limited time through repeated argument exercises. The study result implies that debate technique can be an effective vehicle in an EFL context to promote advanced learners' logical thinking skills and logical English sentence structures.

• 한국생활과학회지
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• 제18권5호
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• pp.985-994
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• 2009

This research is exploratory in considering the unique socio-cultural context of South Korea, where the present government is responding to the demand for English language training. The study asked the question: What do mothers experience when sending their young children to a private English institute, so called English kindergarten, instead of a regular preschool? A qualitative approach was used to analyze the in-depth interviews with 19 mothers who sent their young child to an English kindergarten. Mothers stated that their young child needs to be a competent English speaker. The mothers expected that an English kindergarten would prepare their child better for the elementary school English curriculum than a regular preschool. The study revealed that English kindergartens symbolized the precedence and the privileges of the elite because of their high tuition fees, native-speaker teachers, and small class sizes. The mothers showed a sense of pride and vicarious satisfaction from sending their child to an English kindergarten. However, the mothers recognized that English kindergartens put more emphasis on cognitive learning instead of the social development of children. It was almost impossible for mothers to communicate with the native-speaker teachers about their child. The mothers seemed to overlook their child's struggle to adapt to an English Kindergarten. The findings of the study raise issues concerning the boom of teaching young children English in Korea.

• 융합정보논문지
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• 제11권3호
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• pp.159-166
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• 2021

영어 교육에서 의사소통적 접근 방식을 채택함에 따라 한국 학생과 교사의 의사소통 능력을 향상시키기 위해 1995 년 교육부는 영어 원어민 화자를 모집하여 영어 교사로 활용하는 한국 영어 프로그램(EPIK)을 도입하였다. 이 프로그램을 통하여 영어를 모국어로 사용하는 7개 나라에서 모집된 영어 원어민 교사들은 한국의 공립학교에서 한국인 영어교사와 함께 영어를 가르치고 있다. 하지만 이 프로그램의 효율성에 대해 많은 의문이 제기되어 왔다. 따라서 이 논문을 통해 EPIK 프로그램에 대한 조사를 통해 EPIK의 효과와 목표로 하는 프로그램의 현재 상태, 문제점 및 방향을 탐색하고자 한다. 끝으로 본 논문은 EPIK프로그램의 활용성을 높이기 위해 오리엔테이션 및 교육훈련 프로그램에서 VR 사용가능성을 포함한 몇 가지 가능한 대책과 제안을 제시하고자 한다.

• 한국정보전자통신기술학회논문지
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• 제16권4호
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• pp.193-202
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• 2023

최근 대규모 데이터 세트로 학습된 거대 언어 모델들의 뛰어난 성능이 공개되면서 큰 화제가 되고 있다. 하지만 거대 언어 모델을 학습하고 활용하기 위해서는 초대용량의 컴퓨팅 및 메모리 자원이 필요하므로, 대부분의 연구는 빅테크 기업들을 중심으로 폐쇄적인 환경에서 진행되고 있었다. 하지만, Meta의 거대 언어 모델 LLaMA가 공개되면서 거대 언어 모델 연구들은 기존의 폐쇄적인 환경에서 벗어나 오픈 소스화되었고, 관련 생태계가 급격히 확장되어 가고 있다. 이러한 배경하에 사전 학습된 거대 언어 모델을 추가 학습시켜 특정 작업에 특화되거나 가벼우면서도 성능이 뛰어난 모델들이 활발히 공유되고 있다. 한편, 사전 학습된 거대 언어 모델의 학습데이터는 영어가 큰 비중을 차지하기 때문에 한국어의 성능이 비교적 떨어지며, 이러한 한계를 극복하기 위해 한국어 데이터로 추가 학습을 시키는 한국어 특화 언어 모델 연구들이 이루어지고 있다. 본 논문에서는 오픈 소스 기반의 거대 언어 모델의 생태계 동향을 파악하고 영어 및 한국어 특화 거대 언어 모델에 관한 연구를 소개하며, 거대 언어 모델의 활용 방안과 한계점을 파악한다.

• 대한음성학회:학술대회논문집
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• 대한음성학회 2000년도 7월 학술대회지
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• pp.235-240
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• 2000

In the age of global communication, more human exchange is extended at the grass-roots level. In the old days, language policy and language planning was based on one nation-state with one language. But high waves of globalizaiton have allowed extended human flow of exchange beyond one's national border on a daily basis. Under such circumstances, homogeneity in Japan may not allow Japanese to speak and communicate only in Japanese and only with Japanese people. In Japan, an advisory report was made to the Ministry of Education in June 1996 about what education should be like in the 21st century. In this report, an introduction of English at public elementary schools was for the first time made. A basic policy of English instruction at the elementary school level was revealed. With this concept, English instruction is not required at the elementary school level but each school has their own choice of introducing English as their curriculum starting April 2002. As Baker, Colin (1996) indicates the age of three as being the threshold diving a child becoming bilingual naturally or by formal instruction. Threre is a movement towards making second language acquisition more naturalistic in an educational setting, developing communicative competence in a more or less formal way. From the lesson of the Canadian immersion success, Genesee (1987) stresses the importance of early language instruction. It is clear that from a psycho-linguistic perspective, most children acquire basic communication skills in their first language apparently effortlessly and without systematic and formal instruction during the first six or seven years of life. This innate capacity diminishes with age, thereby making language learning increasingly difficult. The author, being a returnee, experienced considerable difficulty acquiring L2, and especially achieving native-like competence. There will be many hurdles to conquer until Japanese students are able to reach at least a communicative level in English. It has been mentioned that English is not taught to clear the college entrance examination, but to communicate. However, Japanese college entrance examination still makes students focus more on the grammar-translation method. This is expected to shift to a more communication stressed approach. Japan does not have to aim at becoming an official bilingual country, but at least communicative English should be taught at every level in school Mito College is a small two-year co-ed college in Japan. Students at Mito College are basically notgood at English. It has only one department for business and economics, and English is required for all freshmen. It is necessary for me to make my classes enjoyable and attractive so that students can at least get motivated to learn English. My major target is communicative English so that students may be prepared to use English in various business settings. As an experiment to introduce more communicative English, the author has made the following syllabus design. This program aims at training students speak and enjoy English. 90-minute class (only 190-minute session per week is most common in Japanese colleges) is divided into two: The first half is to train students orally using Graded Direct Method. The latter half uses different materials each time so that students can learn and enjoy English culture and language simultaneously. There are no quizes or examinations in my one-academic year program. However, all students are required to make an original English poem by the end of the spring semester. 2-6 students work together in a group on one poem. Students coming to Mito College, Japan have one of the lowest English levels in all of Japan. However, an attached example of one poem made by a group shows that students can improve their creativity as long as they are kept encouraged. At the end of the fall semester, all students are then required individually to make a 3-minute original English speech. An example of that speech contest will be presented at the Convention in Seoul.

• 영어어문교육
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• 제16권3호
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• pp.317-337
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• 2010

The present study has a dual purpose to investigate the current state of school English library and needs required for its effective use, and to propose a reading program at the school library. The literature on school library was reviewed. A questionnaire survey was done to find out the current situation of English library at the secondary school. The analysis of 26 secondary English teachers' responses reveals that there was the absence of librarians or reading specialists at the school English library. It was also found that the uses of the English library were limited due to the absence of the specialists, no guidelines, and no link between the curriculum and the library use. A case study on a 2-week special reading program at the school English library was conducted and 15 middle school students took part in the project. The participants took pre- and post-tests to identify their reading level using a software and did a variety of reading activities using the books selected according to their level. The comparison of the tests shows that most of the students' reading level improved after the reading program. The analysis of their views on the program and its effects reveals that they gained confidence in reading and their vocabulary understanding was improved. Some suggestions are made for the effective management of the school English library.

• International Journal of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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• 제14권2호
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• pp.55-62
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• 2022

A smart tourism chatbot is needed as a user interface to efficiently provide smart tourism services such as recommended travel products, tourist information, my travel itinerary, and tour guide service to tourists. We have been developed a smart tourism app and a smart tourism information system that provide smart tourism services to tourists. We also developed a smart tourism chatbot service consisting of khaiii morpheme analyzer, rule-based intention classification, and tourism information knowledge base using Neo4j graph database. In this paper, we develop the Korean and English smart tourism Name Entity (NE) datasets required for the development of the NER model using the pre-trained language models (PLMs) for the smart tourism chatbot system. We create the tourism information NER datasets by collecting source data through smart tourism app, visitJeju web of Jeju Tourism Organization (JTO), and web search, and preprocessing it using Korean and English tourism information Name Entity dictionaries. We perform training on the KoBERT-CRF NER model using the developed Korean and English tourism information NER datasets. The weight-averaged precision, recall, and f1 scores are 0.94, 0.92 and 0.94 on Korean and English tourism information NER datasets.

• ETRI Journal
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• 제39권4호
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• pp.455-466
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• 2017

This study focuses on a method for sequential data augmentation in order to alleviate data sparseness problems. Specifically, we present corpus expansion techniques for enhancing the coverage of a language model. Recent recurrent neural network studies show that a seq2seq model can be applied for addressing language generation issues; it has the ability to generate new sentences from given input sentences. We present a method of corpus expansion using a sentence-chain based seq2seq model. For training the seq2seq model, sentence chains are used as triples. The first two sentences in a triple are used for the encoder of the seq2seq model, while the last sentence becomes a target sequence for the decoder. Using only internal resources, evaluation results show an improvement of approximately 7.6% relative perplexity over a baseline language model of Korean text. Additionally, from a comparison with a previous study, the sentence chain approach reduces the size of the training data by 38.4% while generating 1.4-times the number of n-grams with superior performance for English text.