Cyflwynwyd yr ymateb hwn i'r Pwyllgor Plant, Pobl Ifanc ac Addysg ar Bil y Gymraeg ac Addysg (Cymru)

This response was submitted to the Children, Young People and Education Committee on the Welsh Language and Education (Wales) Bill

WLE 25
Ymateb gan: Golingo
Response from: Golingo

We very much welcome the Bill and think it is important in supporting the objectives, vision and strategy for the Welsh language ‘Cymraeg 2050 : A million Welsh speakers’.

Speaking

We believe if you want to achieve a million speakers, you have to really focus on speaking.

If you look at Catalan, why is it so embedded? You can’t just learn it in school and hope for the best, it has to be in the community. You need something which will engage everyone, the whole population. You need to use technology, something innovative and accessible, something that is easy to use and anyone can pick up.

By using the expertise of teachers and creators, Welsh language learning, can be consolidated and reinforced by  using Golingo – the speaking app. There is a huge demand for bitesize, easy to access learning for busy people in the modern world. Using an app will allow you to target the whole population and not just pupils in schools.

The app can also support language learning beyond the classroom. Imagine you have taught an amazing lesson on buying clothes introducing new vocabulary and key phrases. The teacher would create a pack, delivered straight to their learners so they can practice all the quality first teaching. Learning beyond the classroom using cutting edge technology which can be shared with not only students, but their families too.

The app can deliver language in context, using key phrases, in a relaxed learning environment for any learner giving them the opportunity to build confidence to use their language skills in the real world.

Having an opportunity to be immersed in the language at their fingertips will boost the language used in the community.

Being Bilingual

It is clear if very young children are exposed to and have a bilingual education from birth, they will become confident Welsh and English speakers. The use of education is essentail for the babies born now. We are wanting to support the learners who haven’t had this experience of embedded bilingual schooling and homes. Making Welsh accessible to ALL learners though technology enables learners to start from a level appropriate to them. Golingo delivers functional speaking skills for everyday use in context.

Golingo provides a platform for learners while the recruitment and retention of the Welsh language workforce is solved.

When Duolingo decided to sunset their Welsh course in 2023, the Welsh team mobilised onto our platform. Since then, they’ve been uploading new content, created separate courses for North and South Welsh and advertised their work to their communities to get feedback and make updates. To date, we have over 1,000 Welsh learners using Golingo to build speaking confidence and this is growing every day.

We want to be part of the solution to ensure all Welsh residents become bilingual.

Accessibility

We are the only app which has created its own platform so content creators can create and deliver personalised content straight to their communities. Creating structured and AI powered conversations, learners have the opportunity to speak and build confidence in a safe, immersive environment. There is no limited to the number of creators Golingo can support.

For example:

A Specialist Welsh teacher in Powys, is crating content for Primary age children which has had great success and fantastic pupil feedback. Working with experts means the content is relevant and appropriate to the community it is being used by. She is able to support non Welsh speaking staff to deliver great material to their pupils.

A Manchester-based language teacher and creator -  Golingo is being used in schools for GCSE speaking practice. Teachers can’t speak to each child in every lesson. The app delivers the correct content so each child can succeed. The content can be enhanced by the AI function to imitate the photocard and conversation part of the exam. Golingo is innovative for schools as content is bespoke to the teacher and school. There are no other apps which deliver a curriculum through speaking. Alongside teaching, Golingo is the differentiator for teachers and tutors to extend their learning beyond the classroom with innovative tech. Creating GCSE packs has improved pupils confidence speaking and supported pupils to learn key phrases as the app allows you to deliver chunks of learning in key phrases which is controlled by the creator.

Our Creator Portal

It feeds the app with lesson content. It’s freely available to language enthusiasts (“creators”) to add their own content. Creators can even configure AI conversations, setting scenario, goal and proficiency parameters. The portal is easy to use, accessible from multiple devices and requires minimal training. Content can be edited iteratively in real-time – important for adapting to continuous user feedback.

Speaking solution

To create a bilingual Welsh community, there needs to be an accessible approach where the whole population can be part of the solution.

Testimonials from users:

1. Laura, UK Learning French for work golingo teaches you in a contextual conversation so it is easier to learn. I work with a lot of French customers and I have been able to understand a lot more of what they say. When the person translating for me had missed something out I was able to ask them about it much to their amusement.

2. Sergio, Venezuela Spanish teacher boosting spoken English to speak with students golingo has allowed me to overcome my fears when speaking...my pronunciation has got better because the app evaluates your pronunciation - whether letters, numbers, words or phrases. You correct your mistakes immediately.

3. Jacqui, Australia Learning French for travel The conversations are relevant and repetitive enough to learn but not annoyingly so...it's addictive. It is helping me because in the past I have avoided any kind of verbal response in French...a bit of a phobia. With golingo I have to respond verbally and it's giving me more confidence as I move through the lessons each day.

4. Krish, UK Using golingo to brush up on Italian learnt at university I was recommended this app by a friend and am obsessed. It's so easy and fun, you can just spend 5 minutes a day and keep up your daily streak! Wander around Pollywood and feel like you're on holiday, which you will be soon once you've mastered the conversations! Most fun way to learn a new language!!

5. Aunty Sheila, Spain Learning Spanish to live in Spain The missing element in other language apps. Filled an essential gap for me - that of conversation in the real world. Love the format. Easy to use and love the virtual city and essential components for conversation development. 6. Alex, UK English teacher boosting spoken Spanish to speak with students It's fun and interactive! Some apps can be repetitive, but what golingo does is that it adds the experience of navigating around a cityscape. It's a lovely way to connect to the key words and ph