THE EFFECT OF ELSA SPEAK APPLICATION ON STUDENTS’ PRONUNCIATION AT THE ELEVENTH-GRADE OF SMA NEGERI 2 PALANGKA RAYA

To address the challenges many English language learners face with accurate pronunciation, integrating advanced learning tools has become essential. This study aims to find out the effect of ELSA Speak Application as English language speech assistant on students’ pronunciation specifically on 24 consonants of English. ELSA Speak employs sophisticated artificial intelligence to offer comprehensive feedback on pronunciation, assisting users in enhancing their accent and accuracy in pronunciation. By focusing on the pronunciation of English consonants, this study seeks to highlight the application's effectiveness in aiding learners to achieve greater clarity and accuracy in spoken English, particularly for Indonesian students.
This study is conducted on SMA Negeri 2 Palangka Raya, the sample is eleventh-grade with 4 students from XI-2. A one-group pre-test and post-test design was applied in this pre-experimental research. In the pre-test, students pronounced the same 24 words as in the post-test to see if there was an effect of ELSA Speak with the personal feedback feature. In the course of the treatment, the researcher directed the students to utilize the ELSA Speak application to listen to the correct pronunciation of English consonants. The data acquired were then analysed using SPSS Version 25.
The outcome of the data analysed showed that the pre-test and post-test score was not distributed normally using the Shapiro-Wilk test, resulted the researcher to use the non-parametric test: Wilcoxon Sign Rank test for hypothesis testing. The calculation of the test displayed the value of Sig. (2 tailed) Sig. < 0.05 then, Ho rejected, and Ha accepted. This confirmed a significant effect of the ELSA Speak application on the students' pronunciation abilities in the eleventh-grade at SMA Negeri 2 Palangka Raya. The descriptive data analysis thus supports that the results of this study demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in pronunciation, validating the effectiveness of ELSA Speak as a tool for enhancing English pronunciation skills among students.