Transcribing Your Audio With Microsoft Word

Some time last year, I was tasked with hunting for a good transcription tool that the journalism class could use to transcribe their recorded interviews. The best option I could find at the time was the built-in transcription feature in iOS, but when the cell phone ban went into place...that option was no longer valid. So this year, I started my quest again in hopes of finding something that could work on the students' computers while also being approved for use in our district.

I'll admit that I am generally not a fan of Microsoft products, but I am always willing to accept when they create something great (a few years ago, I highlighted their awesome translation tool...which they promptly discontinued as a website and turned into a mobile app only 🙄). Well this time, they built in a transcription tool into regular old Microsoft Word! It works two ways - you can upload a pre-recorded file OR you can record the file directly in Word. It is fast, pretty accurate, and includes separate lines for each speaker (it recognizes how many voices!) and timestamps!

I used the web version of Microsoft Word, but it will also work in the updated desktop version. To use it, create a new document. Make sure you are in "Home". Then simply find the little microphone icon and click the dropdown arrow next to it. Choose "Transcribe":

From there, you can choose the language and then choose to either upload audio or start recording:

When it finishes transcribing, you will see it broken down in the transcription sidebar. You can listen to the audio and it will highlight each line of text as you listen. You can opt to change any of the text if there was a mistake and you can also name the speakers if you want.

When you are happy with the transcription, if you want to, you can also add it to the blank document to easily print/export/copy/whatever else you might want to do. You can choose to add just the text or you can add the speaker and/or the timestamps.

One little caveat...you can only transcribe 300 minutes per month - but that's 5 hours, so that should be enough for most people. I know what you're thinking...how is this different from a "dictation" tool that turns your voice into text? For one, this tool keeps your audio recording intact so you can both listen and read. It also separates the content by speaker - so it is best used in cases where multiple people are speaking.

This is great for our journalism class, but why would anyone else need to use a transcription tool? I personally just completed a project where I had 3 separate teacher-created podcasts that I wanted to combine into one longer one "hosted" by me. I uploaded and transcribed each podcast, downloaded the transcripts, uploaded all 3 to AI, and asked AI to help me write an introduction, transitions, and outro. It could also be used in meetings or group brainstorming sessions to help with note-taking. It could be used for World Language students to practice speaking to check their pronunciation.

Think creatively about how you might be able to use voice recording and transcription to enhance your teaching or student learning, make your content more accessible, or just make your life easier!