Directors

We work closely with our partners:

ELiT is disrupting the status quo for English Language Training (ELT) by offering a ësmartí online solution that leverages artificial intelligence to provide fast, contextualized feedback to English-language learners. This unique functionality, combined with the brand reputation and marketing resources that Cambridge University brings to the joint venture, provides a significant opportunity for Write & Improve and our related products to become the ELT solution of choice for English-language learners.

Key research that underpins ELiT has been led by Prof Ted Briscoe and his team at Cambridgeís Institute for Automated Language Teaching and Assessment (ALTA) which focuses on research in computer systems and platforms, corpus linguistics, computational linguistics, speech processing and machine learning. The multi-disciplinary team brings together experts in computing, engineering, linguistics and language assessment to investigate new ways of using technology to enhance language learning and to develop cutting-edge approaches to assessment which will benefit learners and teachers worldwide. It forms part of Cambridge Universityís interdisciplinary Language Sciences Initiative.

iLexIR is also a key partner to ELiT. Through their experts in natural language processing (NLP), computational linguistics, and its applications, iLexIR harnesses the cutting-edge research that comes from ALTA and delivers the viable solutions that ELiT then develops into products.

ELiT is also working in close partnership with practitioners at Cambridge English who already have extensive experience in using technology to support language learning, including the multi-million word Cambridge Learner Corpus which is a uniquely extensive database of learners’ English which is used to enhance Cambridge English exams and learning materials. Huge advances in areas like speech recognition and machine learning mean that computers can now complement the work of human assessors, giving surprisingly accurate evaluations of language and helping to diagnose areas for improvement.

ìWe do not believe that automated assessment will replace human teachers and examiners anytime soon, but it can add great value to their work. For example, it can provide additional layers of quality control, speed up processes and allow teachers to offer more objective in-course tests which give detailed diagnostic feedback to help students to improve their English more effectively.î Nick Saville