What if Foreign Language Teachers had Effective
Blended Learning Tools?
Have you ever wondered why so few US students can actually converse in a second language even after years of studying it during high school and/or college? Maybe they remember a few words here and there and that it may have had a gender system that they never quite grokked?
At ClassTracks Inc., an edtech startup I founded with Lida and Jamel, two foreign language teachers, we have studied this problem and are designing tools to help foreign language teachers transform the way they teach in favor of emphasizing communication.
What exactly does that mean? Well, imagine spending the bulk of valuable class time struggling with and figuring out ordering your favorite dishes in Tijuana, or asking directions to the local favorites in Madrid. Students would get the chance to develop and use their language skills in the classroom, where they have a teacher to help guide them and fellow peers to practice with.
But what about the foundational vocabulary practice and learning grammar? Though they’re not sufficient for fluency, they are absolutely necessary. That’s where ClassTracks comes in. Much like technology has wisely been used in math and the sciences where students can learn fundamentals online and then use class time to engage in labs and discovery, we are designing the tools on which students can get the fundamentals of grammar and vocabulary and spend class time practicing using the language. We envision a world in which every person will at least speak a second language, and in turn learn about another culture and its people. We believe this will make the world even more connected and empathetic.
ClassTracks is currently in the middle of a contest to raise funds to build out our product.
If you believe in our vision, please support our mission by voting for us at this address HERE! You can vote once per day, for the five remaining days of the contest. Winning this round will get us closer to winning $10,000 for our cause.
Visit our website to learn more about our company and what we do!
Thierry M. Uwilingiyimana is a local edupreneur: founder and the product guy at ClassTracks Inc., he is also gearing up to be lead guide at Acton Academy. Born in Rwanda, Thierry and his family fled the genocide in their home country and wandered around Africa for a number of years before relocating to the United States in Buffalo, NY. There, he started and completed high school at Canisius and then moved across the country to Stanford University for his undergraduate degree in Engineering; thereafter, he spent a few years in software development before returning to school in 2013 for an MBA in Entrepreneurship at the Acton School of Business in Austin, TX. In the last seven months, he has co-founded ClassTracks Inc. with two foreign language teachers and is working with founders of Acton Academy to introduce a next-gen learning model to the DC metro area in the fall. Thierry is a passionate advocate for meaningful integration of technology in student-centred and learner-driven environments.