Winning online language academy promotes the learning of African Languages
Turning the teaching and learning of a language into a business has won studentpreneur, Ms Chido Dzinotyiwei, R20 000.
As important is the desire of the Master of Commerce student at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB) to use her enterprise to help preserve African culture and heritage through language accessibility.
Chido Dzinotyiwei (left) was one of the 16 women among the 28 finalists in the EDHE Entrepreneurship Intervarsity 2021 that climaxed at the Premier Hotel on the East Rand last Friday. Eighteen of the 26 South African public universities were represented at the final round. She won in Category 2: Existing Business – Tech.
Zimbabwe-born Dzinotyiwei is the founder of Vambo Academy, an educational technology platform that uses digital resources to offer language learning, translation and knowledge services. Vambo’s business model is built around students paying for the self-learning tool or enrolling to book a session with an experienced language tutor. The founder insists that the goal is to make learning an indigenous African language fun as well as interactive.
Keep learning
She is passionate about the preservation of heritage and says “none of us should ever stop learning about our culture and heritage because knowing where we come from is important. This why we chose to call ourselves Vambo, which means “origin” in ChiShona.”
It is no coincidence that when the GSB student came up with the idea of a language academy, the statistics were convincing. “Africa is the fastest growing and second largest continent in the world. Sadly, African knowledge resources are difficult to source. At Vambo Academy we aim to bridge that gap and make learning fun,” she said. Further to preserving culture, Vambo Academy aspires to make the learning of African languages and cultures accessible online.
Says the founder: “We don’t just teach indigenous languages. The platform also provides a dictionary service and hosts blog posts and podcasts on relevant cultural topics. We want to ensure that students can choose how they want to learn a new language. They can use a self-learning tool and learn in their own time, at their own pace. Or they can opt for a virtual session with an experienced tutor for a one-on-one, personalised learning experience.
Access
This Master of Commerce student wants Vambo Academy to help “democratise access to indigenous language learning and champion the preservation of indigenous languages and cultures for future generations.” In addition, she says she wants to create a space where “the diversity and richness of indigenous cultures is recognised and celebrated: language is key to achieving inclusion in our societies.”
She says using technology, she is in the process of developing a tool that would let users translate a language of their choice to enhance their learning experience. “We’re also working on using technology to improve traditional learning methods, and with this we are discovering new and innovative ways to teach indigenous languages.”
Dzinotyiwei says she is proud to have participated in the EDHE Entrepreneurship Intervarsity 2021 because “entrepreneurship is the best vehicle for advancement across all sectors of the South African economy.”
Charmain Naidoo is a contract writer for Universities South Africa