The main aim of the project WordByWord – Aprender Minderico: A multimedia software for learning Minderico vocabulary supported by the Foundation for Endangered Languages was the development of a vocabulary trainer for Minderico which could simultaneously catch the interest of the younger generation for the language of its ancestors (via its combination with new language technologies), support language teaching and reactivate the knowledge of passive speakers.
Today we are proud to release a new version of WordByWord – a free, open source, easy-to-use multimedia vocabulary trainer developed by Vera Ferreira, Peter Bouda, and Ricardo Filipe at CIDLeS. A beta version of WordByWord has been created and tested in 2011 at CIDLeS. With the support of the Foundation for Endangered Languages, the program could be deeply improved and extended.
WordByWord takes an ordered list of words in two languages, organized in lessons, and presents the words in random order. It also allows the user to listen to the pronunciation of the words in the target language. The main language course in WordByWord is Minderico for Portuguese speakers but the program is flexible enough to easily adapt to other languages.
For each lesson there are three modes of interaction with different difficulty levels: multiple choice, a fill out mode (to practice writing), and a display mode (to train pronunciation). The audio files for Minderico were created by three Minderico language consultants (Elsa Nogueira, Rita Pedro, and Pedro Manha), who collaborated actively in this project.
In the school year 2014-2015, WordByWord will be an integral part of Minderico lessons at the local school.
Learn more about WordByWord and download the program here.