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Frank Noda from Language Discovery shares how Palaygo is enabling Language Learners to Connect Globally
Eden ExchangeSeptember 25, 2016
The global education industry continues to evolve and connect communities around the world. Within this growing market, innovative entrepreneurs and companies have emerged seeking to capitalise on the changing ways in which we communicate and learn.
We continue our series on world beating Australian and Asian entrepreneurs by speaking to Frank Noda who is the CEO of Language Discovery Group. The group develops and delivers programs that enable students to learn foreign languages in an engaging and fun manner.
Language Discovery has developed software "Palaygo" which enables language learners to learn a new language in real situations. It allows them to be intrinsically motivated and have fun learning languages and about different cultures through daily communication with similar aged online friends.
Thanks for speaking to us Frank. Firstly, what brought you into the world of language education technology? Can you tell us a bit about your background and career? What triggered the idea for Language Discovery Group?
I grew up in Australia but during my childhood went back to Japan at the age of 10. After a few decades, I came back to Australia, the place I consider my home. Encountering multiple languages and cultures at a young age really inspired me to share the same opportunity to many young people in future generations because such experiences really opens up your views and creates many options for your future. Most importantly, it leads to a better world with friendlier relationships with each other.
What were some of the challenges you faced in getting the business to where it is today?
The first challenge we faced was to overcome the Global Financial Crisis. After the first launch, we ran into a severe economic downturn and suddenly we lost the promised 2nd stage funding because the fund itself closed down and we needed to survive and find a way to re-launch.
However we had many warm hearted professional people who we met around then who understood our vision and supported us greatly to get through this harsh period until we finally managed to re-launch our business in 2012.
What stage of development is the business in? What are its key strengths? How has this evolved since you began running Language Discovery Group?
As said, this is our second launch and this time we raised initial funds (over half a million dollars to date) and redeveloped a new product/service in 2014 which won a senior national award in Japan in 2015.
This year we finally started to commercialise it by already validating our concept and product very well in both Japan and Australia and now preparing to expand our sales and marketing framework and organisation at this stage.
Where do you see the business in a year from now? What are your strategic priorities?
We see the business raising further capital and generating more sales and expanding our activities in our target markets.
What major industry trends do you think entrepreneurs in your sector need to be aware of? How will Language Discovery Group capitalise on these trends?
The world is fast becoming a smaller place with more and more people speaking and communicating with each other in their second languages, however it is vital that they communicate well and be culturally sensitive and tolerant with each other, because language and culture are basically two sides of a same coin.
Your recently developed software Palayago has been gaining popularity. In simple terms, what is Palayago?
It is a web-based platform that Pals can Playfully communicate with each other using Go (meaning language in Japanese) using our special system.
Who is Palaygo being offered to?
Primary and secondary students in Australia and other countries.
What geographic markets does Palaygo serve? What makes it different from other software and language platforms?
We currently operate in Australia and Japan but now preparing to enter China. Palaygo is a communication tool that students can communicate with similar aged peers easily, educationally, safely and with great fun and is fundamentally different from translation but better way of using and learning languages.
What are the next steps in the development of Langauge Discovery Group?
We plan to expand our service, organisation and markets in Asia Pacific and beyond.
What’s the most interesting part of your job?
It is to see smiles on children’s face in various countries as they discover the fun and the meaning and the potential of learning and using second languages!
Thanks for your time Frank
Thanks for the opportunity to share about us and our service!
About Palayago
Language Discovery has developed software "Palaygo" that enables language learners to learn a new language in real situations and let them be intrinsically motivated and have fun to learn languages and different cultures through daily communication with similar aged online friends.
This solves a huge problem in the world where almost all language educators agree that ‘Communication’ and ‘Intercultural Learning’ are keys to better language education by keeping students interested and motivated – a major issue for educators – teachers, governments, parents and education providers.
There is a huge demand for language education and numerous solutions around the world in terms of teaching and learning methodologies, however the ‘Communication’ and ‘Intercultural Learning’ are the missing pieces. Accordingly, our solution does not compete head-on but instead complements existing language solutions. Language Discovery has recently released a new version of "Palaygo" and has already receiving tremendous feedback from school children and teachers in Japan and Australia, demonstrating that “Palaygo” is a unique solution in the language learning market.
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