Speech as a digital tool – an exiting project in Sweden
Do you know that feeling when you call a company or an authority and an answering machine asks you questions you need to answer to get anywhere, and when you stutter, it tells you, time and time again, it doesn’t understand what you’re saying? Did you want to get a handsfree phone, a GPS, a Google Home, or chat with Alexa, while having a stutter?
Speech-controlled services and devices are more and more becoming a part of our daily lives, and many people benefit from using them. What happens, though, when speech is the only tool of controlling such services? How do they work for people who stutter or have other speech impairments? Funka and the Swedish Stuttering Association are working together in a new and exciting three-year project on digital accessibility for people who stutter. We will celebrate the International Stuttering Awareness Day by organising a webinar where we will present the project and a panel of experts will discuss the problems speech-controlled services cause for people who stutter and how this often forgotten aspect of accessibility can be improved.
Date: Friday, October 22, 2021
Time: 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM Stockholm time / CEST / UTC+2
Price: Free of charge
Online (Zoom)
In English
Registration: https://www.funka.com/en/we-offer/funkas-webinars-on-accessibility/
Wow. Thank you for sharing this perspective. I’ve never thought about a person who stutters in relation to speech controlled devices. I’m excited about the new project and not only what it will add to a person who stutters life, but I’m just happy that something is being done.
Thanks, Taylor. You made my point exactly. 🙂 Most people, companies and authorities don’t realize the problem these services and devices cause for PWS, but also for people who clutter, who are hoarse, immigrants, etc.
In Sweden you meet a speech controlled service even when calling the medical service and the police, which both could be stressful situations. And how much I’d like to, Google Home is not for me, and I want to throw out my GPS, as it doesn’t understand me, while I need it for safe driving.
Do have a listen to the presentation of the project.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yGcm9RpWjw
And if you’re interested to follow the project, do stay in touch with ewa.bjork@funka.com(Ewa Björk).
Happy ISAD
Anita
This is so cool! I am not a PWS but I am just happy that something is being done for those who are. I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult a PWS has when trying to communicate with a speech controlled device and not being able to communicate what they need to efficiently. I imagine it’s frustrating, discouraging, and can make you just want to give up. Hopefully, this project will bring some answers! I would love to keep up with this project to see what can be done!
Thanks. yes, it is stressful to never know on forhand if you get to speak to a person or a machine, knowing how high the hurdle to make a phone call to begin with! And so many other devices are voice controlled nowadays. Do have a listen to the presentation of the project.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yGcm9RpWjw
And if you’re interested to follow the project, do stay in touch with ewa.bjork@funka.com(Ewa Björk).
keep talking
Anita