Fandoo: Proposal for a Language Learning App
- 1. Hantian Li 2021/4/2 Fandoo: Proposal for a Language Learning App
- 2. Outline • Introduction • Prior Art • Overview of Solution • Specific Aspects • Video Creation • Learner Feedback and Video Standardization • Instructional Framework: Components of Learning • Instructional Framework: Modes of Learning • Developmental Stages of Community and Community Stewardship/Coordination • Other Issues: Monetization/Division of Revenue and Directions of Growth • Summary
- 3. Introduction • Age of globalization, need for language learning • New ways of delivering language lessons through apps • Emergence of social media & mass learning apps like Tiktok & MOOCs • Possibility for a new way of language learning based on consumption of user created contents & collaboration in language learning communities
- 4. Prior Art(1) • Assimil • Delivers a collection of conversations/dialogues, with translations and language notes provided • One lesson a day, with grammar review each week • Two waves - passive wave focus on understanding; active wave focus on reproduction • Pimsleur • 30 minute audio lessons go over a conversation in depth, sentence by sentence • Requires learner to anticipate response in response to a prompt • Scheduled interval recall • Pronunciation training • For Reading • Series of books designed to teach reading proficiency in a language in 100-120 hours • Explanation of grammar points in sections plus sentence comprehension drills • Lessons divided into chapters with reading passage at end of each chapter to reinforce understanding • LingQ • Library of text in a language contributed by users, with matching audio • Ability to look up words against a user contributed dictionary and save words for later review
- 5. Prior Art(2) • Bliu Bliu • Presents user with a stream of reading content, with vocabulary support based on machine translation • Adapts to user level by allowing user to mark vocabulary as known/unknown and recommending content based on proportion of unknown words • FluentU/Yabla • Collection of videos in target language available for consumption • Playback controls; vocabulary support/lookup • Quizzes & learning activities to accompany consumption of videos • 每⽇听⼒ • Chinese app providing a library of videos for learners for foreign language to study • Playback controls, translation, word/phrase lookup, learning modes • Study of saved vocabulary through spaced repetition system • Ability to take course on platform, consisting of a variety of activities
- 6. Prior Art(3) • 秒熊/Blabla • Learning occurs as learner consumes stream of short video Tiktok style • Ability to view caption/translation in video, look up vocabulary & save them for later study • Video series made by content producers(Blabla); grouping & recommendation of videos based on topics/interests/level • Ewa • Collection of courses user can take, consisting of a series of cards with different activities • Cards present information with sentence/short video segment examples or test user understanding through exercises • Also offers reading mode and language games • Duolingo • Language course divided into learning tree of topics • Each topic consists of a series of exercises of different types, targeting script, sentence comprehension, vocabulary/word choice, conjugation and speech • Ability to tap word/phrase for translation • Supplemented by language notes & stories, readings with interactive exercises
- 7. Overview of Solution • Learning consists of 4 components: cursory browsing, in-depth study, vocabulary, grammar • User makes captioned video in native language; lesson series and courses • Video goes in library of native videos, with standard assist(machine translation, word lookup), suitable for cursory browsing as is • High quality(high views/ratings) videos gets standardized & ability to be incorporated in language courses, in-depth study • Study of vocabulary auto-managed; word sense tagged in language material & practice/exercise/automatic reviews of vocabulary marked for learning through activities incorporating short clip examples of vocabulary in speech/writing • Grammar study happens through explanation/sentence comprehension exercise format, organized into lessons • Language courses at different levels target learning need of users and is made up of combination of 4 components • Volunteer team supervises curation of videos & development of courses • Monetization through offering of Q/A services and placement of ads in app; revenue through ads goes in part to content creators
- 8. Aspect: Video Creation • Similar to Tiktok, users(language learners) can upload video to be consumed by learners of user’s native language • Video categorized by language, setting, level & topic; tracked for popularity & rating across different demographic groups • System recommends videos to users based in users’s level & interests; user browses through recommended videos Tiktok style to identify videos to watch/study • Content creators can publish individual videos or videos organized into series, which is a group of videos with the same theme/topic that the learner can study in succession • Videos can be studied in two modes: cursory browsing and in-depth study • In cursory browsing, user is provided with standard set of support(playback control, word lookup, caption & translation, phrase translation) & aim to understand meaning of video through immersion • In in-depth study, video is annotated with common questions/answers & references to points in question(vocabulary/ grammar/usage) so learner can look up questions/points in video that he/she doesn’t understand and achieve total understanding of video • Support for other formats of content like audio, text like news and picture books
- 9. Aspect: Standardization/Learner Feedback • One problem with existing video consumption services is that learner questions on content had no way of being answers/resolved; learners may have common questions on some point of content and they go unanswered • Standardization is the mechanism to pool learner questions on videos and provide a supplement to videos that answers common points learners may struggle with and enhances learner understanding of video. It consists of three phases: Collection, Standardization and Revision • In initial collection phase, learner questions on videos is prepared by individual learners, by highlighting sections of video they do not understand and asking questions on them. Answers to questions provide insight into common problems learners may struggle with and provides the raw material for the next phase of standardization. A total of around 50 individual Q&As from learners needs to be collected before moving on to the next phase • In standardization, data from the previous phase is analyzed, and a common set of answers, complete with explanations and references to grammar/usage topics is prepared as a resource for future learners to consult. It aims for a target coverage/resolution rate of learner questions of 90% • In revision, the learner has the option to ask question of points that are not answered by an existing answer. Additional feedback are incorporated into the existing resource as improved versions of the answer resource is prepared to better meet learner need • Mechanism to ensure that only learners at appropriate level can ask questions; content calibrated to a certain level of language proficiency • Monetization: Select users pay for their questions to be answered; the answers are of value to all learners to resolve their questions
- 10. Aspect: Instructional Framework: Components of Learning • Learning consists of 4 components: cursory browsing, in-depth learning, vocabulary and grammar • The first two components are covered in Video Creation slide. Organic mix of cursory browsing and in-depth learning exposes the learner to large quantity of authentic content while enhancing comprehension of vocabulary & grammar patterns of language in real world context. In addition, periodic review of previously watched videos retains understanding as well as reinforces learner knowledge of grammar and vocabulary in those videos. • Also, in in-depth study, the learner can create a custom “footprint” of a piece of content consisting of sections he/she doesn’t know/understand and Q&A regarding those difficulties & save it for review. Those learner created footprints are also useful for other learners in the process of standardization • In vocabulary study, the learner enjoys an automated, unified learning experience on new vocabulary encountered when browsing/studying videos in content library. Vocabulary/set phrases in these videos, tagged by word sense, are colored by learner’s knowledge of them and learner can mark and unknown vocabulary known, a known vocabulary to be studied, or skip study of a vocabulary • In vocabulary practice, vocabulary marked for study is presented to the learner at a regular schedule by a mechanism known as spaced repetition, which mandates presenting an item to be learned at increasing intervals until it’s learned by the student. Mechanisms of study of vocabulary include video flashcards and various exercises designed to test mastery of vocabulary • Grammar study consists of a series of prepared lessons on various grammar topics, organized by level, and consisting of an explanatory lesson, sentence examples, and comprehension exercises, among other exercises that may target learner’s grasp of a specific grammar topic. They may be taken at leisure through learner’s course of language study, or as a component of a prepared course on a language • Grammar topics can also be learned/reviewed as needed through consulting grammar reference while watching video, or through periodic grammar diagnostic tests that reveals weak grammar points that needs to be reinforced
- 11. Aspect: Instructional Framework: Learning Modes • The three modes of learning are organized courses, video browsing/immersion, and lessons/exercises • An organized course aims to increase learner proficiency either in general/specific language skills or in a particular field/usage scenario of language(medical, business, travel, etc). They consists of organized packages of videos, lessons & exercises and exist as a holistic whole in fulfilling their purpose • In studying with an organized course, the learner follows the course of study of the course, supplemented with vocabulary reviews. The learner may add videos/lessons/exercises of his/her interest to his/her list for additional study outside the framework of the course • At the beginning of the learner’s course of study, courses in pronunciation/script is offered as needed to assimilate learner to the sounds and writing system of a new language • The video browsing/immersion mode works similar to Tiktok. Videos of potential interest are pushed to the learner, and the learner can study videos of his/her interest either in cursory browsing mode or in-depth study mode, as well as exploring content producers of his/her interest for videos/video series of interest to him/her. In this study mode, the learner is immersed in a stream of authentic language videos, study is relatively free-flowing, and the learner picks up the expressions and conventions of a language by immersion to authentic content. • Lessons & exercises are also available for study on an individual basis, which is the third mode of study. Individual lessons/exercises may address a particular need a learner may have(asking for directions, ordering a meal, etc) or provide additional practice on a topic of interest(grammar, vocabulary, usage) as needed by the learner • A special category of lessons/exercises deal with acquisition of vocabulary, which may be autogenerated by the system as part of the vocabulary learning regime or deal with vocabulary of a particular level or topic/theme
- 12. Aspect: Development Stages of Language Communities & Community Stewardship and Coordination • 3 Stage Model • Initially, just a collection of videos • Emergence of library of standardized videos & basic courses • Refinement/specializations in course offerings & mature library of videos • Roles of Community Stewardship • Introduce new members to navigate around the community & be a part of it • Curate list of videos for creation of courses & candidates for standardization • Help identify videos of interest for different demographic groups & optimize browsing experience for each learner • Encourage/assist content creators to interact with learners to improve quality of videos/lessons/exercises/courses created • Collect user feedback on quality of videos/courses & suggest ways to improve offering as community grows • Maintain grammar & vocabulary reference of each target language & translate/adapt them to different source languages
- 13. Aspect: Other issues • Monetization & Division of Revenue • Revenue comes primarily from two potential sources: price charged for Q&A service of videos & serving of advertisements in learning experience • Distribution of revenue to content/course creators as well as volunteers who participate in orientation of new users/management/stewardship of community • Preservation of minor/endangered languages • Initial assessment based on proportion of video understood at different levels • Cross-culture browsing mode/immersion in foreign culture through short videos without language instruction • Study plan sets daily tasks for learner & structures course of study for varying time periods • Directions of growth • Incorporate social network features like profile discovery, chats & moments to encourage peer to peer interaction of learners & language exchange • Explore collaborative/interactive modes/activities of learning that encouages learners to learn together instead of in isolation • Encourage volunteer based moderation & management of learning communities • Explore how app can be used as a supplementary learning resource in traditional classrooms • Speech recognition technology
- 14. Summary • Discussed key distinguishing features of existing products on language learning & presented a framework for a new language learning solution building on their strengths • Discussed the prospect of user contributed resource for language learning & how those resources could be refined/organized to provide the backbone/essential content for a language learning solution • Presented a framework for language acquisition with 4 individual components and 3 learning modes and how those components/modes of learning together forms the basis of user learning experience in app • Discussed various issues relating to development, management, monetization & potential growth avenues of language learning app