Real-time Kiswahili lecture support
University lecturers teach complex scientific concepts in English, while many Kenyan students are equally comfortable learning and discussing ideas in Kiswahili. AI254 is developing technology that captures spoken lectures, transcribes the lecturer's words and provides real-time Kiswahili translations on students' devices. Students can follow the original English explanation while accessing Kiswahili support when scientific terminology or complex explanations become difficult.
Open AI254 LIVEEnglish transcription
AI254 LIVE
Biology 101
What happens during a lecture?
Why AI254 exists
Kenyan universities teach many STEM courses in English. Students encounter specialised terminology, unfamiliar scientific expressions and explanations that can be difficult to process during a live lecture. Existing general-purpose translation tools are not specifically developed around the terminology and teaching patterns of university-level science.
AI254 is working on this problem by combining speech recognition, live translation and carefully developed Kiswahili scientific terminology. Our initial work focuses on Biology, where we are building the language resources needed to translate scientific explanations while preserving their academic meaning.
AI254 supports English-medium teaching rather than replacing it. Students keep the lecturer's original English explanation on screen and use the Kiswahili text where it helps.
Classroom testing
AI254 has completed two early-stage classroom pilots at Maasai Mara University involving Biology 101 students and lecturers. The pilots examined translation accuracy, student experience, comprehension, participation, confidence and technical performance.
These were early-stage pilots used to test and improve the system. They are not a formal institutional endorsement, and we do not report examination or learning-outcome gains from them.
2
Classroom pilots
9
Lecture sessions across the two pilots
108
Student participations
68 in Pilot 1 and 40 in Pilot 2. Some students took part in both, so this is not a count of unique individuals.
BIO 101
Initial subject: Biology 101
Inside AI254 LIVE
Students join with a session code, follow the English transcription with Kiswahili translation beneath it, and open terminology explanations. Lecturers control the session and see exactly what students receive.
BIO 101 · Session BIO101
The Cell: Structure and Function
Proteins are assembled on ribosomes, either free in the cytoplasm or attached to the endoplasmic reticulum.
Protini huundwa kwenye ribosomu, ama zikiwa huru ndani ya saitoplazimu au zikiwa zimeshikamana na retikulamu endoplazimu.
The mitochondria release energy from glucose through a process called cellular respiration.
Mitokondria hutoa nishati kutoka kwa glukosi kupitia mchakato unaoitwa upumuaji wa seli.
This is why mitochondria are often described as the powerhouse of the cell.
Hii ndiyo sababu mitokondria mara nyingi hufafanuliwa kama kituo cha nishati cha seli.
Plant cells also have chloroplasts, where photosynthesis takes place.
Seli za mimea pia zina kloroplasti, ambamo usanisinuru hufanyika.
Who can use AI254?
Access Kiswahili support while following English-medium lectures, particularly when studying complex scientific concepts.
Conduct normal lectures while making translated explanations available to students through a shared live session.
Explore the use of AI254 in selected courses, organise pilot sessions and evaluate how the technology performs in their teaching environment.
We welcome conversations with universities, academic departments, lecturers and research partners interested in exploring live Kiswahili lecture support.