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Live Captioners and the Chord Keyboard

8th grade nonfiction passage about real-time captioning: 271 words, seven questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

8th grade nonfiction real-time captioning 271 words

Live Captioners and the Chord Keyboard

At a live news broadcast, a city council meeting, or a classroom lecture, words appear on a screen almost as fast as they are spoken. The person making that happen is often a real-time captioner, and the tool is not an ordinary keyboard. Captioners use a stenotype machine, which has far fewer keys than a regular keyboard and a very different layout.

Instead of pressing one key for one letter, the captioner presses several keys at once, the way a pianist plays a chord. One chord can stand for a whole syllable or even a whole word. Because the keys are grouped to match the sounds of English, a captioner writes what the speaker says by sound, not by spelling. A person who types on a regular keyboard can rarely keep up with fast speech, but a trained captioner can follow even the quickest talkers.

Software then turns the chords into ordinary words. It relies on a personal dictionary that each captioner builds over years of work, matching chords to words. Before a big event, a captioner studies the program, learns how unusual names are pronounced, and adds those names to the dictionary so they appear correctly on the screen.

The work matters for many people. Viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing depend on captions to follow what is said, and captions also help people watching in noisy places or learning a new language. Captioners must stay focused for long stretches, listening and writing at once, and they often work in teams that take turns so that no one tires. Their accuracy lets everyone share the same moment.

Questions

  1. What machine do real-time captioners use? in the text

  2. How is writing with a chord different from typing on a regular keyboard? in the text

  3. What does the software do with the chords? in the text

  4. Why does a captioner add unusual names to the dictionary before an event? in the text

  5. Who depends on captions to follow what is said? in the text

  6. Why can a captioner keep up with fast speech when most typists cannot? think about it

  7. Why do captioners often work in teams that take turns? think about it

Words to know

captioner
a person who writes out spoken words so they can be read on a screen
stenotype
a small machine that writes words by pressing several keys at once
chord
several keys pressed at the same time
syllable
one beat of a spoken word, like the two parts of ta-ble
accuracy
being correct and free of mistakes
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One passage, three levels

The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.

● Easier · 212 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5

At a live news show or a class lecture, words show up on a screen almost as fast as they are spoken. A real-time captioner often does this work. The tool is not an ordinary keyboard. It is a stenotype machine. It has far fewer keys than a regular keyboard.

The captioner does not press one key for each letter. Instead, the captioner presses several keys at once, like a pianist playing a chord. One chord can mean a whole syllable or a whole word. The keys match the sounds of English, so the captioner writes by sound, not by spelling. Most people who type on a regular keyboard cannot keep up with fast talkers. A trained captioner can.

Then software turns the chords into plain words. It uses a personal dictionary. The captioner builds this dictionary over many years. Before a big event, the captioner learns how odd names sound and adds them to the dictionary. Then the names show up right on the screen.

This work helps many people. Viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing need captions to follow what is said. Captions also help people in noisy places. Captioners must listen and write for a long time, so they often work in teams and take turns.

▲ This passage · 271 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.3

At a live news broadcast, a city council meeting, or a classroom lecture, words appear on a screen almost as fast as they are spoken. The person making that happen is often a real-time captioner, and the tool is not an ordinary keyboard. Captioners use a stenotype machine, which has far fewer keys than a regular keyboard and a very different layout.

Instead of pressing one key for one letter, the captioner presses several keys at once, the way a pianist plays a chord. One chord can stand for a whole syllable or even a whole word. Because the keys are grouped to match the sounds of English, a captioner writes what the speaker says by sound, not by spelling. A person who types on a regular keyboard can rarely keep up with fast speech, but a trained captioner can follow even the quickest talkers.

Software then turns the chords into ordinary words. It relies on a personal dictionary that each captioner builds over years of work, matching chords to words. Before a big event, a captioner studies the program, learns how unusual names are pronounced, and adds those names to the dictionary so they appear correctly on the screen.

The work matters for many people. Viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing depend on captions to follow what is said, and captions also help people watching in noisy places or learning a new language. Captioners must stay focused for long stretches, listening and writing at once, and they often work in teams that take turns so that no one tires. Their accuracy lets everyone share the same moment.

■ Harder · 299 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 11.3

At a live news broadcast, a city council meeting, or a classroom lecture, words appear on a screen almost as quickly as they are spoken. The professional responsible is frequently a real-time captioner, and the tool involved is nothing like an ordinary keyboard. Captioners rely on a stenotype machine, which has far fewer keys than a regular keyboard and an entirely different layout designed for speed.

Rather than pressing one key for each letter, the captioner presses several keys simultaneously, much as a pianist plays a chord. A single chord can represent a whole syllable or even a complete word. Because the keys are grouped to correspond with the sounds of English, a captioner writes what a speaker says by sound instead of by spelling. A person who types on a standard keyboard can rarely keep pace with rapid speech, whereas a well-trained captioner can follow even the fastest talkers without falling behind.

Specialized software then converts the chords into ordinary words. It depends on a personal dictionary that each captioner builds patiently over years of work, matching chords with the words they stand for. Before a major event, a captioner studies the program in advance, learns how unusual names are pronounced, and adds those names to the dictionary so that they appear correctly on the screen.

The work matters to a great many people. Viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing depend on captions to follow what is being said, and captions also assist people who are watching in noisy places or learning a new language. Because captioners must stay sharply focused for long stretches, listening and writing at the same moment, they often work in teams that take turns so that no one becomes exhausted. Their accuracy allows everyone to share the same moment.

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put captioner, stenotype, chord, syllable and accuracy on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text will be about.
  • Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 3 minutes to read aloud.
  • Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
  • Question 6 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
  • Ask students to write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
  • Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "Live Captioners and the Chord Keyboard"?

It was written for 8th grade. It has 271 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 9.3. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.

What do the questions ask?

There are seven. 5 ask for something the text says directly and 2 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.

How long does it take to read?

About 3 minutes read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.

Can I print it?

Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.

Is this passage from a published book?

No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.

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