Two Pakistani Software Engineers Make Urdu Speech Therapy Platform for Kids
By Fizza Atique
Twosoftware engineers from Karachi’s first women’s university Jinnah, have developed a speech therapy platform that can change lives of hearing impaired kids and adults forever.
Shanza Khan Shahani and Rabab are the two young vibrant girls that let thousands of people to have a dream again. The dream of being normal. The dream of hearing everything and speaking without any hurdle. This will also help slow learners to get command over language. The have launched this therapy in collaboration with Bolo Tech.
The software actually targets kids but it can also help other adults who have hearing problems. Speech therapy is indeed a costly and time-consuming option. This therapy not only saves time but is a perfect alternative to speech therapy. A speech therapist can give a person certain hours to learn to talk.
On the other hand, this software can be used for hours daily. Unlike speech therapists, the software can be used to practice for hours on a daily basis without spending large amount of money.
What Is Bolo Tech? Bolo Tech is actually a digital speech therapy platform that is based on Urdu only. It assimilates audio and visuals to help people learn the right pronunciation of Urdu alphabets and words.
They have made detailed lessons from the Urdu Qaida. They also have some interactive games that help in improving a person’s speech. Right now the girls are incubated at TheNest I/O, a tech incubator in Karachi. It was launched by Pakistan Software House Association for IT and ITES (P@SHA).
Co-Founder Shanza said: Every minute at The Nest counts for us as we will never get the same opportunity to be able to work on the product without any interruption the way we have gotten at this incubation center. At home, there are always electricity shortages, internet problems and family members disrupting our workflow.
During the four-month incubation, these young entrepreneurs will receive advice and support from industry veterans and mentors. The will have access to technology as well as investors. They aim to improve Bolo Tech but right now they will focus on the Urdu language only. In a couple of weeks they plan to launch the first version of this software having complete curriculum. In future they will launch its final version that will have different games and more exciting features.
The two girls have plans to develop different lessons and designing a curriculum in regional languages of Pakistan after they acquire full command over the software. PhoneWorld
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
