Six Months On: Why Our Whitepaper On ASR Is More Relevant Than Ever!

Six months ago, Auris Tech published its whitepaper ‘Reading Aloud Using Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) To Improve Children’s Reading’. In it, we laid out a vision for how technology—and in particular, voice-based EdTech tools—can support and transform children’s reading development.

Today, as reading levels across the UK continue to stagnate, and as enjoyment and frequency of reading continue to decline, the ideas explored in our whitepaper feel not only relevant, but urgent. This blog recaps our key arguments and findings, and looks at what’s changed—or sadly, what hasn’t—in the time since.

Why Reading Matters

Reading is a foundational skill. For children, it’s the key to unlocking the curriculum and progressing through school. For adults, it underpins success at work and in everyday life. Yet globally, over 770 million people still cannot read a single word, and 2 billion cannot read a full sentence.

In the UK, we are witnessing a literacy crisis. More than one in four children leave primary school without meeting the expected standard in reading. Worse still, children’s reading levels appear to be plateauing rather than improving. The long-term cost of poor literacy to the UK economy is estimated at over £20 billion annually.

We believe that change is needed—and that change starts with encouraging children to read more confidently, more frequently, and most importantly, with more enjoyment.

The Promise of ASR in Reading Development

The whitepaper argues that technology can be a powerful part of the solution. Specifically, we propose that Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR)—if developed responsibly and inclusively—can unlock new ways to support reading aloud, one of the most effective yet underused methods to boost literacy.

In Part I, we examined:

• The stagnation in reading progress in the UK and globally;

• The link between reading confidence, enjoyment, frequency and literacy outcomes;

• The specific cognitive and developmental benefits of reading aloud;

• The rise of EdTech and the potential of ASR technology to provide interactive, gamified, and independent reading experiences.

We also addressed concerns about screen time and AI in education, arguing that when designed with users in mind—teachers, parents and children—voice-based tools can become a key enabler of positive change.

In Part II, we analysed early data from Fonetti: The Read-Aloud App, which powered our 2024 National Read-Aloud Challenge. The platform’s bespoke ASR technology allowed us to measure reading progress across thousands of children engaging in regular read-aloud practice during the summer holidays.

Our findings were encouraging: children who read aloud more frequently using Fonetti showed signs of increased reading confidence, enjoyment, and in many cases, ability. While preliminary, these results support our belief that reading aloud using ASR can play a vital role in boosting literacy skills.

Six Months On: Why This Still Matters

Unfortunately, the picture of children’s literacy in the UK has not improved.

• Key Stage 2 Reading Standards: In 2023/24, 26% of Year 6 pupils—that’s over 170,000 children—did not meet the expected reading standard.

• Reading Enjoyment & Frequency: In 2024, children’s enjoyment of reading hit the lowest levels ever recorded. Only 34.6% of children said they enjoyed reading, down nearly 9 percentage points from the year before.
  Even more worrying, just 20.5% of children reported reading daily, a dramatic decline from previous decades.

These numbers underscore the core argument of our whitepaper: to reverse stagnating literacy outcomes, we must find ways to make reading something children want to do—not just something they’re told to do.

What Next?

At Auris Tech, we remain committed to reimagining the reading experience for children through the power of voice technology. We believe that reading aloud using ASR can play a meaningful role in reversing the troubling trends in literacy—by building confidence, increasing enjoyment, and encouraging consistency.

If you’re interested in learning more, we invite you to read the full whitepaper here: Reading Aloud Using Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) To Improve Children’s Reading — Auris Tech

Together, we can help make reading a joy—and a skill that every child can confidently call their own.