It's not necessarily a bad idea. In fact, resources on
this Sound Learning page indicate that audiobooks can increase literacy, and not just for speakers of ESL/EFL. I can attest to that: while I'm a native English speaker, I recall improving my fluency in foreign languages, and even my appreciation for works written in other forms of English such as Shakespeare's (which might as well have been written in a foreign language), while listening to narrations, audio dramatizations, or songs while reading the accompanying text or lyrics.
On its face, what you are proposing is called
"immersion reading" or
"immersive reading": the audience listens to a narration while following along via an ebook or paper book copy of the text. Of course, the narration and the written text should track each other word for word, as
Kindle-Audible Whispersync for Voice pairings do.
But given the existence of Whispersync and similar products on the marketplace, here's what comes to mind when reading your proposition:
Quote:
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Why is a Skype call necessary or even appealing?
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Specifically, you'll need to articulate what value-added Skyping with you will offer that your target audience could not achieve on their own by listening to a free or professionally narrated paid audiobook, while reading its ebook or paperbook counterpart. Think through the benefits YOU were thinking your offering would provide, as well as research what value-added features key stakeholders such as ESL/TESOL/EFL professionals (as Cinisajoy suggested), librarians, and members of your target audience think are important. Then, figure out how to deliver with high quality. And finally, decide from there your willingness and ability to deliver.
(To those ends, I also suggest you take a few voice acting lessons, as quality of narration is key success factor in what you're proposing. You'd also improve your skills and credibility by pursuing an ESOL certification. For example, in New York State, you could take the weekend courses "
ESL Course 1: Introduction to Teaching ESL" (3 credits, 30 hours, $235) and "
ESL Course 2: ESL Performance Skills Development" (also 3 credits, 30 hours, $235), and pay a $100 licensing fee.
Once you work all that through - and if you still want to proceed - then take the necessary steps to build and serve your target audience. I suggest beginning by partnering with organizations that will let you practice in person and gather feedback (by hosting read-alongs while you read aloud), that serve your target audience, and that can refer clients to you (e.g., your local library and local organizations/institutions that offer ESL/TESOL/TOEFL/EFL programs). I don't know what country you live in, but in the USA, organizations such as
SCORE.org and
SBA.gov can help you work through the necessary planning, marketing, and implementation tasks, free of charge.
Good luck!