ABSTRACT
Technological innovation has revolutionized capability in assessing speech, making it possible to record, quantify and score oral performances outside of live testing conditions. Technology has also increased test-user choice, with fully automated tests, which were initially trained on human ratings but devoid of a human component in test delivery and scoring, now available on the market. The goal of this chapter is to underscore the innovations, trade-offs and debates in the machine scoring of speech, highlighting the central role of pronunciation. The consequences of machine-driven assessment and possibility of complementing machine scoring with human ratings will also be considered.
