"When my son started school, English became his primary language, and it was difficult to help him maintain his native Chinese mother tongue.
The language schools we tried relied so much on rote memorization and traditional teaching methods that it was hard to keep him engaged, let alone retain what he was learning," Hugh Yao, founder and CEO of Singapore-based LingoAce, tells TechNode Global.
"That's why I founded LingoAce.
For today's modern learners, I wanted to reimagine language learning and education through immersive experiences to nurture confident, next-generation multicultural Communicators."
That mission has paid off: Yao's company has taught more than 6.5 million students in more than 100 countries, and it just closed a $180 million funding round.
Among other things, LingoAce's online Mandarin Chinese course is the world's most popular for K-12 students, reports the Wall Street Journal.
Yao says he decided to start the company because he wanted his children to learn Mandarin Chinese effectively when living in Singapore.
"As a parent, he realized that traditional learning methods do not engage modern young learners," Yao says.
"Today, we have learners from more than 100 countries and have taught more than 6.5 million classes."
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