Meet a 21-Year-Old Young Man From Gqeberha Who Created an Educational App in Mzansi Native Languages

• A young man named Andisile Budaza is making waves in South Africa with his latest creation
• The gentleman shared with Briefly News his story of what led him to create his own Educational App despite facing many hurdles along the way
• Andisile released the first version of his app in September 2023, receiving positive feedback from many

Growing up in a modest two-bedroom house in Zwide township, Gqeberha, in the Eastern Cape, Andisile Budaza's life was typical of many South African townships. The eldest of three children, the 21-year-old lived with both parents and two younger siblings. Like most kids in the township, Andisile attended a public school and experienced what could be described as a standard, average township upbringing.

Education and passion for programming

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Academically, Andisile was an average student, often scoring between 50% and 60%. However, his significant challenge was reading in his home language, IsiXhosa, which almost led to failing grade 8. The young man was determined to overcome this hurdle, so he began reading more and improving his skills in both English and IsiXhosa.

In 2019, Andisile matriculated with distinctions in IsiXhosa and Physical Science, marking the beginning of a new chapter. In 2020, he enrolled at Nelson Mandela University to study Computer Science, and it was here that Andisile wrote his first line of code and discovered a passion for programming. Despite the challenges of the first year, he found immense joy in coding.

The creation of the educational app

While speaking to Briefly News, Andisile expressed his sadness after researching and discovering that there were no educational apps on the Play Store in South African native languages, which led him to create his app.

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"I created an educational app to help my younger brother who was struggling with our mother tongue (IsiXhosa), an issue I was also facing in primary school."

He went on to add that:

"In late 2021, as I was helping my brother with his IsiXhosa homework, he got bored and asked for a break. Five minutes into his break, he came back excited, showing me an English word search game he was playing on my sister’s phone. I tried searching for a Xhosa version of that game so he could learn some Xhosa words as he played, but I couldn’t find one, and that’s how I got my educational app idea. At first, it was going to be word search only, but as I was working on it, I got new ideas, turning the app into what it is today."

In 2022, Andisile began drafting, planning, and developing the educational app. This decision, however, led to a significant decline in his academic performance.

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"This app consumed my mind in a way I never expected, as I was isolating myself a lot, spending hours in front of my laptop working on something that made sense to no one but myself. It got to a point where I was zoning out during lectures because I was thinking of what to add next or how I was going to fix some bugs(errors) I had on the app," he said

Despite these challenges, the hard work paid off. In September 2023, Andisile released the first version of his app, receiving positive reviews and valuable suggestions for improvement. These inputs were incorporated into the second version, making the app more robust and user-friendly.

"The app is currently where I want it to be and from now on, I will be just adding more games, sounds and flashcards whenever I get a chance, as I am still doing my Computer Science degree. I don’t regret anything because my brother’s academic performance improved, and he enjoys using my app. My wish is for my app to be used by every primary school pupil in South Africa and for it to spark interest in other languages, creating a multilingual South Africa where the language barrier is a thing of the past."

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Grade 12 learner wows Mzansi with viral self-driven solar-powered car invention

Briefly News previously reported that a leaner has become the talk of the town after he unveiled an incredible invention which he created and Mzansi beamed with pride.

Kasi Economy uploaded an image of a Grade 12 learner on Twitter. The young man smiled in the photo as he showed off his invention. The post shared by Kasi Economy stated that the pupil, Sqiniseko Mpontshane, created a self-driven solar-powered car, and people were amazed by the young man's invention.

Source: Briefly News