Tag: tech

Antura and the Letters and Feed the Monster, the two winners of the EduApp4Syria innovation competition, were announced today and then released worldwide as open-source Arabic literacy learning games. Both games are available for free download through Google Play and the App Store. The EduApp4Syria competition was launched in January 2016 as a challenge to game developers and pedagogical experts...

Last week we saw the release of Google Assistant, an electronic assistant that follows commands on mobile phones. While these tech super-giants are in a heated competition to close in the voice-assist market, Siri has the advantage of being able to speak 21 languages localized for 36 countries. The latest, Shanghainese, is a variety of Wu Chinese spoken in...

To celebrate Language Magazine’s partnership with the TCEA (Texas Computer Education Association) at its annual convention in Austin this month, here is a selection from the wide range of products on offer Cantata Learning Offers Multisensory Stories To offer a multisensory learning experience that engages a wide range of learners, educational publisher Cantata Learning has created books enhanced with music. These...

“Tandem” is a relatively new language-learning app where language learners can chat with each other in order to improve their language skills. Users can have conversations with native speakers of languages including Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Italian, French, English, German, Chinese and Japanese. The app links users who want to learn a target language with users who speak the language to...

The Unicode Consortium, a non-profit organization dedicated to developing the computing industry standard for digital writing systems, is allowing people to adopt an emoji or any Unicode character in order to give speakers of more languages the ability to communicate online. English was the first language used online and by the mid 1990’s made up 80% of web-based content. Now 80% of the...

Roozbeh Jafari, Associate Professor for the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Texas A&M University is leading the development of a tool for American Sign Language (ASL) translation. While previous attempts for automatic ASL translation have largely relied on cameras and visual tracking technology, Jafari's project tracks muscle movement and external motion. “The sensor is based on EMG, or electromyogram technology,” Jafari said....

Researchers from Sassari University and Plymouth University have made a cognitive model of networked artificial neurons that can learn language with no prior knowledge. The Artificial Neural Network with Adaptive Behaviour Exploited for Language Learning, or Annabell, relies on synaptic plasticity and neural gating to learn through human conversation. "The system is capable of learning to communicate through natural...

Technology and the amount of information it provides us is deepening the divide between the haves and the have-nots in terms of education. As we become more dependent on digital tools to live our lives and navigate the world, parents and teachers also find themselves at a crossroads, sometimes banning seemingly mind-numbing tech like TV and video games while embracing the...

Cherokee language supporters collaborated with Google two years ago to launch a Cherokee language interface and Cherokee language version of Google's email service. Whether it’s Cherokee YouTube videos or Skyping with native Cherokee speakers, getting the language into new popular mediums has been a large part of the movement to revitalize the language. Currently, Cherokee immersion programs are aiming to cultivate the...

NaTakallam (we speak Arabic) is a new platform aimed at providing employment for Syrian refugees in Lebanon through teaching remote classes to Arabic language learners. Over 25% of registered Syrian refugees reside in Lebanon, now making up over 20% of the country. However, refugees lack the same rights as Lebanese citizens and face many legal restrictions that bar them from...