{"id":171776,"date":"2025-12-02T18:31:53","date_gmt":"2025-12-03T00:31:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/?p=171776"},"modified":"2025-12-03T18:37:02","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T00:37:02","slug":"bilingual-literacy-ai-chiapas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/cities-and-prosperous-communities\/bilingual-literacy-ai-chiapas\/","title":{"rendered":"Researchers Develop AI Platform to Support Literacy in Tsotsil Communities"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

More than four million young people and adults in Mexico are unable to read or write<\/a>, according to data from the National Institute for Adult Education (INEA). Chiapas has the highest illiteracy rate in the country, with 11.5% of the population aged 15 and older unable to read or write\u2014that’s roughly 11 to 12 out of every 100 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, the 2020 Population and Housing Census, conducted by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), reports that 28.2% of the population in Chiapas speaks an Indigenous language<\/a>. One of the most widely spoken languages is Tsotsil, a Mayan language spoken in the Highlands of Chiapas and used by approximately 550,000 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Platform Aims to Strengthen Bilingual Literacy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the highland region of Chiapas, researchers from the School of Humanities and Education<\/a> (EHE) at Tec de Monterrey, in collaboration with the Chiapas Ministry of Education, have developed a technological solution to combat illiteracy in the area<\/strong>. The project also seeks to promote social justice and help preserve the linguistic heritage of Indigenous communities<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The initiative centers on a bilingual Tsotsil\u2013Spanish literacy platform powered by artificial intelligence<\/a> (AI) and designed to function without an internet connection, according to Alejandro Mart\u00edn del Campo<\/a>, researcher and leader of the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than just a translation<\/a> tool, the platform is intended to foster an educational process that both recognizes and honors the Indigenous language while also opening up greater opportunities through functional bilingualism with Spanish, Mart\u00edn del Campo explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe goal is for this platform to support a dual-literacy process. We want people in different communities to have the option to strengthen their knowledge of Tsotsil\u2014whether by refining it, completing their learning, or even relearning it if they’ve stopped using it. At the same time, we aim for that learning to be complemented by Spanish, so they can communicate fluently in both languages,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Can the AI System Do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This tool will be able to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Transcribe speech to text in both Tsotsil and Spanish<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Translate bidirectionally between the two languages<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Convert text to speech using a native accent<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Operate offline on mobile devices or school computers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This initiative is part of the Digital Society Lab at the School of Humanities and Education (EHE), which promotes the preservation of Indigenous languages through digital humanities. The team includes educators who design learning pathways and educational materials tailored to different audiences, as well as technology specialists who develop the platform and integrate the AI components.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The project also collaborates with government partners in Chiapas and members of Tsotsil communities to review and validate the language content and support implementation in rural areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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