Chinese is a notoriously difficult language to learn. No one knows this better than Matthew Nguyen, who has been captivated by Chinese culture his whole life, but struggled to find the best way to learn the language.
"I was fascinated by how the characters were written, and copying them became a hobby for me," Nguyen said. "But copying seemed like a very daunting and discouraging way to learn the whole language. So what's a better substitute? Stories."
Nguyen said that each Chinese character has a story behind it; one that explains the character's meaning and origin. Nguyen, who's from Vietnam, said he felt drawn to these stories and that they helped him learn the language in college.
But teachers don't have enough time to go over each of these stories in class. And while textbooks occasionally provide background information on characters, the stories often are short, uninteresting and don't resonate with students like Nguygen.
With this in mind, Nguyen partnered with his friend (and native Chinese speaker) Eric Mok to found Inecdote, an education startup that helps students learn Chinese through storytelling.
"We wanted to create a learning tool that resonated with students by providing a story that seemed accurate but ridiculous," Nguyen said. "Storytelling, in my opinion is very powerful. Once you hear certain stories, they stay with you."
There are tens of thousands of characters in the Chinese language. Most native speakers use about 8,000. But to simply be considered literate, speakers must memorize at least 2,000.
Inecdote aims to start with the basics. Currently, the startup offers a set of 100 flashcards that break down Chinese characters into smaller components, then reassembles them by telling stories using historical context and mnemonic devices.
For example, there's a card in the deck which translates to "to taste." At the center is a square, which looks a bit like a mouth. So the character is accompanied by a story about a person eating an apple.
Nguyen and Mok are rising seniors at Macalester College. This summer, they're participating in the school's MacStartups accelerator, which provides student entrepreneurs with funding, housing and mentorship. Inecdote, along with the six other participating startups, will pitch their companies at an event in early October.
"We've always had the idea for this tool, but we didn't know how to get it on the market and make it real," Nguyen said. "The program has given us funds and guidance, and shown us how to start a business and run it effectively."
So far, Nguyen said, Inecdote has been well-received by those that have used it. Earlier this year, the Inecdote team tested their product with a group of Macalester mechanical engineering students with no Chinese background. According to Nguyen, the majority of the students in the group were able to memorize characters using their method.
Inecdote is still in its early stages. But Nguyen has big plans for the business. The company received $1,000 in seed funding through MacStartups. But after completing the program in October, he plans to seek more funding, and begin developing an Inecdote app.
Regardless of where the company goes after Nguyen and Mok graduate from Macalester next year, Nguyen said his lifelong love of the Chinese language will continue.
"Chinese culture is so fascinating to me," he said. "And the language is very poetic. Once you immerse yourself in it, you'll find all sorts of things. Complicated characters shouldn't stop people from exploring that."
