https://techcrunch.com/2017/10/21/chatterbug-language-learning/?ncid=rss
번역 이어 버드는 언어를 알기위한 일부 실용적인 이유를 제거 할 수 있습니다. 그러나 농담을 이해하거나,시를 읽거나, 외국어로 사랑에 빠지기를 원한다면 실제로 그것을 배워야합니다. 불행히도, Rosetta Stone과 같은 제품은 사람들이 진정한 원어민과 이야기하는 것을 돕지 않으면 서 프로세스가 쉬워야한다고 주장한 후에 화상을 입습니다. 알다시피, 당신이 실제로 원하는 기술. 어휘를 외우는 것만으로는 유창하지 않습니다.
수백만 명의 사람들에게 더 나은 코드 작성을 가르친 후, 이전 GitHub 공동 설립자 및 임원 팀이 이번 주 Chatterbug 에서 온라인 및 얼굴을 마주보고 최고의 외국어 학습을 결합했습니다. 독일어로 시작하는 Chatterbug는 Skype에 대한 자생적 인 비디오 채팅을 사용합니다.이 대화 형 방식을 사용하면 대화하고, 입력하고, 읽고 화면을 공유 할 수 있습니다.
그러나 공동 창업자 중 한 사람은 Chatterbug에 그림자를 드리울 수 있습니다. 톰 프레스턴 - 베르너 (Tom Preston-Werner) 는 그와 그의 아내 테레사 프레스톤 - 베르너 (Theresa Preston-Werner)가 여성 직원을 괴롭 히거나 협박 한 혐의에 대한 수사에 이어 GitHub의 CEO 이자 공동 설립자 로서의 역할을 사임했습니다 .
GitHub의 직원 줄리 호바트 (Julie Horvath)는 테레사 (Theresa)가 회사에 대해 부정적으로 글을 쓰지 않는다고 위협했다고 말하면서, 직원들의 개인 채팅을 읽고 창업시에 간첩을 가졌으며 구두로 괴롭혔다 고 말했다.
독립적 인 조사에 따르면 톰 (Tom) 측에서는 불법 행위 나 성추행 혐의가 발견되지 않았다고 주장하면서 전 CEO가 "실수와 판단의 오류"와 "직장에서의 배우자의 존재에 대한 무감각" 그리고 그의 배우자가 사무실에서 일하면 안된다는 합의를 이행하지 못했습니다. "
Ex-GitHub CEO 겸 Chatterbug 공동 창립자 Tom Preston-Werner
우리는 그가 이번에 Chatterbug를 어떻게 다르게 짓고 있는지 Tom에게 물었다. " GitHub의 유기적 인 관리 구조는 약간의 암묵적인 검을 가지고있었습니다. 그것은 많은 창의력을 발휘했으나 갈등을 다루는데 취약했습니다 "라고 Preston-Werner는 말합니다. " Chatterbug 초창기부터 다른 설립자들과 대화를 나누면서 이러한 경험을 사용하여보다 강력한 커뮤니케이션 채널을 창출했습니다."
이전 GitHub의 책임자이자 Chatterbug의 공동 설립자 인 Liz Clinkenbeard는 TechCrunch에 다음과 같이 회상합니다. 당시 GitHub의 주요 문제점 중 하나는 회사의 평평한 구조로 인해 문제에 대해 누가 이야기해야 하는지를 알 수 없었기 때문이었습니다. 그녀는 Chatterbug를 통해 팀이 " 안전하고지지가되는 작업 환경을 조성하고자하는 것에 대해 매우 개방적이고 숙고 된 상태 "라고 말했습니다 .
팀에 Tom이 포함되면 Chatterbug에서 재능, 특히 여성을 고용하는 것이 어려워 질 수 있습니다. 적어도 회사가 성장함에 따라 사무실 태도와 괴롭힘 문제를 심각하게 생각하는 것 같습니다.
“I’ve always tried my best to empower my teammates and create a work environment that every employee will love. I haven’t been perfect at that endeavor in the past” admits Preston-Werner. “But I’ve learned much from those experiences and intend to use that knowledge to ensure that Chatterbug is a safe, welcoming, and productive place to work for women and other folks traditionally underrepresented in the tech industry.”
Cutting Skype Out Of Language Learning
Scott Chacon discovered what was broken about the current crop of language learning tools when he tried to pick up French via Duolingo and Japanese through Skype chats before spending time in the two countries. “I realized there was a gap between the digital apps that are super flexible but aren’t very effective at teaching conversation with real people, and the tutoring systems or in-person schools that were inflexible and super difficult to do” Chacon tells TechCrunch.
So he started building his own tools that would blossom into Chatterbug. The former GitHub co-founder and CIO recruited GitHub’s Clinkenbeard, director of engineering Russell Belfer, and Preston-Werner over late 2015 and early 2016. They raised a $1.8 million seed round from SV Angel and Berlin’s Fly Ventures to have early-stage allies on both sides of the pond.
Setting goals in Chatterbug
Now after some private trials starting in March, Chatterbug just launched the public beta of its German learning program, with Spanish and French coming next. And right out of the gate, it’s trying to set reasonable expectations for how fast people can pick up a new tongue. “The most difficult part of being in the business is that Rosetta Stone and other companies try to sell the idea that language learning can be easy” Chacon says. “Learning a language is not easy. It’s like a marathon.”
That’s why one of the first things you do in Chatterbug is adjust a slider for when you want to be fluent by, and it tells you how frequently you’ll have to study and be tutored. The app then gives you a foundation of vocabulary using “spaced repetition”, a study method employed by medical students where questions you get wrong get shown more often while you’re displayed fewer questions like those you got right.
Chatterbug understands when you almost get an answer right
Then Chatterbug schedules you for one-on-one tutoring over its video chat system designed specifically for language learning. Rather than having to commit to a weekly session time, only learn when your particular tutor is available, or fall behind if you miss a group class, you just punch in when you want to practice. Chatterbug pairs you with whatever appropriate tutor is available, gets them up to speed on your progress, and provides a personalized curriculum of exercises to do together based on what you’ve been screwing up.
The heavy engineering background of the Chatterbug team allowed it to create a WebRTC-based video chat that lets you view files together with your tutor and see each other’s cursors as well as talk and type. That’s a huge improvement over trying to pass PDFs back and forth or figure out what exercise the teacher is discussing.
Chatterbug’s video chat lets you talk, type, view files, and see each other’s cursors
The pricing model flexes to accommodate your pace. You can get all the self-study features plus one live lesson a month for €15 or eight for €80 with extra sessions costing €12 each if you want to take a vacation next year. Or for €195 you get unlimited sessions and can learn a language in just a few months. Chatterbug is also going B2B, appealing to businesses trying to educate employees by offering discounts and easy expensing.
Turning Anyone Into A Teacher
Chatterbug co-founder Liz Clinkenbeard
The startup’s data-driven approach could make it quick to expand to more languages and identify what’s toughest to learn. Chatterbug gives you the option to have it store recordings of your video sessions, and even give it permission to use them for research. Clinkenbeard studied linguistics at Harvard, and is using her expertise to help the company determine what are the most common vocab and grammar mistakes to help you avoid them.
Long-term, turning native speakers into tutors could offer new employment options to those lacking other quantifiable skills. “After leaving GitHub, I wanted my next project to be something that would positively impact a lot of people. As a filter, I’d ask myself ‘could this idea lead to the creation of a million jobs?'” says Preston-Werner.
Chatterbug faces a wide range of competitors like Rosetta Stone, Duolingo, Busoo, Babbel, and HelloTalk — some with deep pockets and a penchant for downplaying the difficulty of reaching fluency. Being real with people doesn’t always make for great marketing, and people who failed with other products exhibit a “healthy amount of skepticism” says Clinkenbeard. Then there’s the looming threat of advancing translation technology, like the new Google auto-translating Pixel Buds headphones.
Still, “I don’t think it will destroy the need for language learning” says Chacon. “At some point, in-person translators will be obsolete. Not sure if that’s in 5 years or 45 years.” But even if we solve information translation, culture translation will still be in demand. “You don’t want to wear an ear bud while you’re getting married” he laughs. At a time when the world is increasingly polarized and xenophobic, understanding your fellow humans without a technological intermediary could generate some much-needed empathy.
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