Virtual Booth

The increasing enrollment of non-native students in Chinese vernacular schools highlights the growing importance of learning Mandarin. However, the language's complex character system and unique tonal pronunciation pose significant challenges for beginners, particularly non-native learners. To address this educational barrier, this project introduces an interactive, gamified learning tool developed using PictoBlox, an AI-integrated block-based coding platform. Our solution focuses on helping students seamlessly practice and perfect their Mandarin pronunciation. Utilizing PictoBlox’s Speech Recognition toolbox, the educational system converts spoken Mandarin speech into text in real-time. The game enforces phonetic accuracy; only precise and correct pronunciation is successfully recognized by the AI to advance the game or validate the correct answer. By merging language education with interactive technology, this project provides a fun, accessible, and self-correcting platform that enhances phonetic skills, ultimately bridging the learning gap and building linguistic confidence for students mastering a difficult new language.