Solution

Lingvist Indigenous Languages Initiative

The Lingvist Indigenous Language Initiative (LILI) was created to increase Lingvist's active users by being the first language learning app to make language courses available for certain Indigenous languages. The eventual goal will be to continue to add as many Indigenous language courses as possible; however, the initial focus will be on one language in particular, Te Reo Māori, the language of the Māori people of Aotearoa (now known as New Zealand). By concentrating LILI's efforts on creating a language learning course for Te Reo Māori we avoid spreading our resources too thin and focus on a market where we believe we will get the most traction.

Why Te Reo Māori? And Why is New Zealand (Aotearoa) an Attractive Market to Pursue for Lingvist?

  • No language learning app currently offers a course teaching Te Reo Māori

  • Large Indigenous population (850,500) that all speak or once spoke the same language, Te Reo Māori.

  • Few dialectical differences across the region and the language variations that do occur are insignificant enough that they do not interfere with communication.

  • Renewed interest in learning Te Reo Māori from both Māori and non Māori people of New Zealand (Aotearoa), a country with a population of 5,127,200 as of December 31, 2021.

  • New Zealand government has pledged to ensure one million people in New Zealand (Aotearoa) are able to speak basic Te Reo Māori by 2040.

  • A growing number of students are learning Te Reo Māori in the New Zealand (Aotearoa) schooling sector with 23,161 students enrolled in Māori-medium (students who are taught Te Reo Māori at least 51% of the time), 208,885 students enrolled in Māori language in English medium (Students learning Te Reo Maori as a language subject, or taught the curriculum in the Maori language for up to 50% of the time) and 336,452 students were also recorded as learning Taha Māori (Simple words, greetings or songs in Maori) as of July 1, 2021.

  • Te Reo Māori free online courses offered online by universities have seen a surge in demand. Toro Mai, free online Te Reo Māori course offered by Massey University of New Zealand, now has 22,000 students registered with 7,000 of those registering within a 10 day period near the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

  • New Zealand (Aotearoa) government has allotted 42M to the Māori media sector in their most recent budget. This allows for increased access to Māori language content for New Zealand (Aotearoa) citizens.

Why Te Reo Māori? And Why is New Zealand (Aotearoa) an Attractive Market to Pursue? (In further detail)

The Māori people of New Zealand (Aotearoa), according to stats.gov.nz, have a population of 850,500 as of June 30, 2020. The largest Indigenous group in North America is the Navajo Nation, with a population of nearly 400,000. Not only is the Māori population more than double that of the largest Indigenous group in North America, but te reo Māori has very little dialectical differences throughout the different regions of New Zealand (Aotearoa). Furthermore, in recent years Māori and non Māori people of New Zealand (Aotearoa) are expressing a renewed interest in learning te reo Māori. It has become common for New Zealanders of all backgrounds to sprinkle te reo Māori words and phrases into their speech. Further to this renewed interest, the New Zealand government has pledged to ensure one million people in New Zealand (Aotearoa) are able to speak basic te reo Māori by 2040. This renewed interest in te reo Māori is also being reflected in the education system. In the New Zealand (Aotearoa) public school system, as of July 1, 2021, there are 23,161 Māori-medium students (students who are taught te reo Māori at least 51% of the time) and 208,885 Māori language in English-medium students (Students learning Te Reo Maori as a language subject, or taught the curriculum in the Maori language for up to 50% of the time), representing an increase from the prior year of 0.1% and 11.1% respectively. 336,452 students were also recorded as learning Taha Māori (Simple words, greetings or songs in Maori). Meanwhile, universities offering te reo Māori courses have also experienced an uptick in registration. 22,000 students are currently registered in Toro Mai Māori language course offered by Massey University of New Zealand. Near the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic there was a 10 day period where Toro Mai registrations jumped by 7,000.


How Can Lingvist Help?

Lingvist's platform leverages the power of spaced repetition to help language learners memorize new vocabulary. If the user chooses the correct answer for a particular word a few times, that word will be pushed back to give way for words that the AI determines you still need to work on. The AI continuously adjusts to the level that the user is at. The words that Lingvist prioritizes for the learner are the words that are most frequently used in the language. Learning the most frequently used words first helps users obtain a basic level of proficiency sooner. The sooner you are able to get a grasp of the most commonly used words, the sooner you will be able to engage in every day conversations. In the case of New Zealand (Aotearoa) and their availability of the news, tv shows etc. in Te Reo Māori, people using Lingvist can learn the most common words and have their learning reinforced by consuming Te Reo Māori news, for example. Furthermore, Lingvist utilizes cloze-type quizzes so that learners can easily learn when to use words in the proper context. Learning the most common words in their correct context rather then just memorizing an assortment of words, helps learners get to a basic level of understanding sooner. I believe that Lingvist is the best language learning app to help the Māori people and New Zealand's (Aotearoa) efforts of revitalizing Te Reo Māori because the AI driven spaced repetition technology that prioritizes learning the most common words first, meshes perfectly in with the availability of Māori language media content in New Zealand (Aotearoa), so that the average person, as well as students already learning Te Reo Māori, can reinforce what they have learned through Lingvist with ease.