Literably is an online platform for teachers and parents to evaluate how their students and kids are reading aloud. A child will read a script out loud and it will be recorded. The recorded reading is what you will transcribe. You will make a note of the phonetic errors or word omissions or additions.
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In this review, I will explain how to get started and what you can expect.
Literably Requirements
They say that no experience is necessary. But they do recommend a good quality set of earphones so you can hear more clearly. Of course, you’ll need a computer and internet access as well. And you should be fluent in English.
Literably Application Process
If you want to sign up to transcribe for Literably, go here to get started. You start by giving your name and email address and setting up a username and password. VERY IMPORTANT: Make sure you use your PayPal email address so that you can get paid! If you don’t have a PayPal account yet, use the email address that you plan to use when you create your PayPal account.
Once you do that, you’ll receive a ton more information. But I’m summarizing throughout this post!
After you sign up, you need to complete 6 training recordings. All 6 shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes. I can’t say for sure, but I feel like it would take longer for the training videos since you don’t know all of the shortcuts yet.
They give you a short 5-minute video you can watch to show you how to score a recording. I highly recommend you watch this video! The text that the child is reading is already typed out for you, so this takes away a big chunk of the work! You just need to add in extra non-words that they say and change the words they say incorrectly.
Personally, I don’t dig this; what I hear is a child sounding out a word. But you’re supposed to indicate those non-words that are said. That’s just me feeling like they shouldn’t be dinged for sounding out a word. But, we have to remember that this is helping a parent or a teacher understand what words and sounds the child needs help with.
When you are showing consistent accuracy, they will take a closer look at your transcriptions. If they think you’re ready for real recordings, they will offer you a position as a contractor. Once you’ve agreed to their contract, you’ll start receiving real recordings.
Literably Training
When you transcribe a training recording, your transcription will be analyzed and compared to the previously recorded transcription. They will show you the differences between yours and the previous transcription. They don’t expect it to be perfect, but they are looking for less than 2% word differences and less than 10% phoneme differences. (Don’t worry, they give you a cheat sheet for the phoneme sounds!)
According to my research, you will always get a mix of training recordings, even after you’ve accepted a contract. You won’t know if you’re taking a test, or doing a real recording. If your training recordings indicate that your accuracy has declined, they will reduce or eliminate the number of real recordings you receive and you will continue with only training until your accuracy has improved.
It is possible for you to review and correct your own work. If you accidentally submit something too quickly, you can go back into it to correct it or complete it. You cannot, however, resubmit a training recording.
Once you’ve signed up and you’re ready to do your training recordings, you’ll go to the transcription link to start your first training. I clicked on the link and came to my first recording – only 25 audio seconds. It took me about 12 minutes to get through it. The commands are simple, so by the time I was done, I was moving much more quickly.
I had 1 error. My word error rate was 10.7% and my phoneme error rate was 7.2%. So my word error rate, even though it was only 1 word since it was such a short piece, the percentage is too high. Regardless, it was my first test and actually quite simple, and I don’t even have headphones yet.
After you see your score and their corrected version of the transcription, click the “submit score” button. You’re immediately popped into the next test!
How Much Does Literably Pay?
Literably pays “over $10 per hour” according to their website. They pay you weekly via PayPal and cover any PayPal fees!
Payment is based on the number of audio minutes you’ve accurately transcribed since the previous payday. The price per minute will fluctuate depending on the volume to be transcribed. The current range is between $0.30 and $0.80 per minute.
Literably Schedule
You can work anytime you want with Literably. So your schedule is in your control. This is great – you can do a little transcribing before your kids wake up, or after they go to bed. You could easily fit this into the pockets of your day if you’re trying to make some extra money.
Literably Feedback
I didn’t find any feedback on Glassdoor. I found other reviews similar to mine, and we all found the same info.
Is Transcribing for Literably a Scam?
Based on my research, I believe that transcribing for Literably is Legit. If you want to help kids and you think you’re up to the task, go here to get signed up and get started. If you’ve transcribed for Literably, can you please leave us a comment to let us know what you think?
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Hi Carie!
I submitted an application back in February and my overall word difference proportion was 0.009 and my overall phoneme difference proportion was 0.0029. I still haven’t received any emails from literably and it still says pending review on my profile. Isn’t this well below the percentages they are looking for or am I reading it incorrectly?
Thanks!
Eden
Hi Eden, Yes, it’s well under their requirements. Few things, they might not be hiring at all times and it looks like they are only hiring in certain areas. I would email grading @ literably.com if you still haven’t heard back.
Thanks for taking the time to read and comment.