Building a Literacy App for Shikomori: Why Every Child Deserves to Learn in Their Own Language

One Country, Three Islands, Three Different Dialects

The Union of Comoros is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, home to three main islands (Grande Comore, Anjouan, and Mohéli), each with its own distinct variety of Shikomori, the language spoken by the vast majority of Comorians. Despite being the mother tongue of most children in the country (1), Shikomori has historically had little presence in formal education (2), which is conducted primarily in French. Research consistently shows that children learn best when they first develop literacy in their mother tongue (3). The absence of Shikomori-language learning tools is not just a cultural gap; it is an educational one with real consequences for every child who sits down in a classroom and is asked to read and write in a language they do not yet speak.

Enter Alpha Tiles

As part of the STEPS Comoros project, our team is partnering with SIL Global, an international language development organization with decades of experience supporting endangered and minority languages, to build an Alpha Tiles app in Shikomori. Alpha Tiles is an Android-based literacy game that helps learners recognize letters, sounds, and words through interactive, game-based activities. It is completely free to use and, critically, designed to function offline, making it accessible to children in areas with limited or no internet connectivity.

Follow along as we share updates from the islands, including progress on the app, voices from our partners, and stories from the communities at the heart of this project.