‘We wanted to provide a platform for children to understand new languages’
CATHERINE Coffey’s family are all scientists and so she was alone in her interest in and pursuit of arts in College.
She applied to Trinity College Dublin (originally to study English and French) but was offered her second choice, philosophy and French, and took it happily.
But during her time in TCD, Catherine, from near Killarney, Co Kerry, and a former student of the Intermediate School, Killorglin, found her education horizons broadened even further.
One of her best friends from Kerry also in Trinity studying computer science, Machaela O’Leary, suggested to Catherine that they look at a joint business venture.
Lexi was born. The plan was to create an app to gamify second-language learning for young children, with the goal to create a more immersive environment to learn a language in a natural way.
“We wanted to provide a platform that allows children to retain and understand new languages,“says Catherine.
They had their eyes on Launchbox, a Trinity programme for student entrepreneurs, with the prize of a place on a summer programme on campus where they can develop their idea with mentors.
“We knew guys who had done it the previous year and they said it was fantastic, although a lot of students don’t know about it,” says Catherine.
During third year in
Trinity, Catherine had taken advantage of an initiative called Gradlink, where she was linked up with a professional PR executive, who helped her with developing public relations skills, which assisted her in pitching for Launchbox.
The Launchbox programme for 2017 wraps up over the next week, when the teams will have to pitch again, and an overall winner decided. A third member of the original team, Sinead Kelly, is no longer involved. Catherine and Machaela, who have how finished their Trinity programmes, will devote the next year to developing Lexi.
Already, the original idea has evolved into something different and, instead of focusing on language learning for children, they are looking at an app that will help non-native English speakers to upskill. They are targeting graduates from Spain and Italy who want to polish their English.