Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Raby W. Bah. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Raby W., thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission the drives your brand?

Hi, I’m Raby and I am the founder of Owl Learning, a Georgia-based company that offers language programs to children using an interactive and creative curriculum that provides a fun and unique learning experience.  

A college major in Electrical Engineering and a fascination with the semiconductor industry led me to a successful career starting with a Semiconductor Test Engineer position, where I worked on testing high voltage silicon carbide devices. From there, I became a Process Engineer, working on critical steps during the fabrication of innovative memory solutions that go into a wide range of electronic devices that we use in our day to day lives. I eventually became a Process Operations Manager leading a team of nine engineers and technicians. 

This all changed though, in 2014 when I became a mother. It was then that I decided to take a break from my engineering career to make my new role as mom a full-time position. Over the last 8 years, I have been passionate about teaching my children everything I can. I made it my goal to find the best resources available for my children including everything from finding a book to teach my 3-year-old to read to finding excellent math and coding programs for my children to explore. Much to my dismay, when my children started to attend elementary school, I discovered that the Spanish program once offered was no longer available. I searched for a Spanish program so that my children could continue to benefit from learning a second language, but sadly could not find one that met my family’s standards. This is when I decided to take matters into my own hands and created my company, Owl Learning. 

Raby W., before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I started Owl Learning because I wanted my children to have the opportunity to continue learning Spanish in elementary school after their wonderful experience of taking language lessons in preschool. Unfortunately, our local elementary school, like many others in the country, did not offer a Spanish class for children. My kids tried different programs (one-on-one lessons, group classes, self-paced apps, etc.) but none of them met our standards. My kids weren’t engaged at all, and definitely weren’t having fun. Although my daughter had a great preschool experience with her Spanish teacher, the other programs we tried simply did not provide the same opportunity. This is when I decided to create a program that would not only meet our standards but would also replicate that amazing preschool language learning experience she enjoyed so much. 

Research shows that learning a second language increases critical thinking, problem-solving and listening skills. Starting early along with consistency are key to success when learning a new language. 

Children can achieve native fluency if exposed early. However, many of our children do not get the opportunity to learn a second language until middle or high school. Owl Learning aims to bridge this foreign language gap by providing virtual immersion language programs to elementary school students across the country. 

Owl Learning is not your typical language school. At Owl Learning, we focus on getting the children engaged and interested…and we focus on having fun while learning. We want our students to want to come to class. We want them to be excited to join us, learn a new language, and make friends. 

We offer small group classes with experienced teachers who are passionate and truly love working with children. Our classes are all virtual, so parents do not have to worry about a stressful commute. The classes are designed to last for 25 minutes, because let’s face it, after 30 minutes, children tend to lose focus – especially the little ones. We found that these 25-minute lessons, when coupled with frequency, are a highly effective way to teach a child a new language. 

We use different teaching methods and tools to ensure students remain engaged throughout the class while interacting and communicating with their peers. We use stories, songs, games, math, science, arts and crafts, and so much more to make it a fun and positive learning experience for everyone. 

Learning a new language is a long-term endeavor; it requires frequency, consistency, and commitment. Therefore, we encourage students to practice daily because they need to be constantly exposed to the language in order to acquire it. Therefore, in addition to the twice-a-week live language learning sessions, we also provide supplemental resources for continuous learning. We work with parents to help them understand that it takes time and effort to lean a new language, and that they can expect their student to develop conversational skills within 3 to 6 months with consistency.  

At Owl Learning, our resources aren’t limited to the typical grammar and vocabulary lessons students typically receive when learning a new language. We have math and science worksheets, and so much more for them to explore. Students not only get to learn a new language, but they also get to practice and reinforce concepts they are learning in school. This additional education includes multiplication or addition worksheets, life cycle of a butterfly lessons, different states of matter, and more. We also include tons of arts and crafts and other creative lessons and activities to keep them learning and engaged.  

We believe we have truly found the right combination to make learning a new language fun and engaging for children at Owl Learning. 

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

Our customers are the parents, but our users are their children. We ensure that we keep the kids engaged and interested in the classroom while providing value, visibility, and results for the parents. We make sure our parents are aware of what their student is learning with frequent and effective communication and are careful to give parents what they need without overloading them with unnecessary information. In addition, we have amazing teachers that love working with kids and do their job extremely well. The kids are excited to come to class and they love learning with their friends while their parents are thrilled that their children are thriving, which goes a long way toward fostering brand loyalty. 

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

I genuinely believe in leading by example and not being afraid to get down in the trenches to help your team. I have found that this motivates my employees and direct reports and fosters an environment of respect throughout the company. My philosophy is that you should be invested in your team’s success by having a coaching mindset and providing all the resources your team needs to thrive. Your team members should be involved in identifying their own strengths and weaknesses and you should work together to implement strategies to address them. I feel that a good leader should be able to recognize their talent and shortcomings and be ready and able to adapt and be prepared to change/reorganize responsibilities to ensure each team member is motivated and challenged. I also try to have regular one-on-one conversations with my team members and an open-door policy, to foster an environment where they all feel like that can come to me at any time with any ideas or concerns. And finally, a good team should be given credit where it is due, recognized, and appreciated for what they do for your business.  

Contact Info:

• Website: https://myowllearning.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/myowllearning/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/myowllearning/