The Language of Belonging: How Three ISZL Students Built an App to Help Newcomers Feel at Home in Switzerland

What began as three friends trying to find their place in Zug became Sprich+, a language app designed to make settling into Switzerland faster, easier, and more welcoming.

When Revansh, Darsh, and Andreas first sat down in their Grade 9 Principled Innovations Program (PIP) sessions, none of them imagined that a shared frustration would grow into a fully launched language-learning app. Two years on, that app called ‘Sprich+’ is live, and its story is one of curiosity, persistence, and a community that backed three students every step of the way.

The idea began with something all three knew well. Each of them had lived in Switzerland, in and around Zug, for more than ten years. They had thrown themselves into local life: Revansh played in the regional Zuger Jugendorchester, Darsh joined a local chess club, and Andreas tried team after team in football and ice hockey. Yet each of them still felt, in their own words, like an outsider. The barrier they kept running into was language. Without confident German, and especially Swiss-German, feeling truly part of the local community seemed just out of reach.

In their PIP sessions, the three friends began turning that experience into an idea. Early in Grade 9, they were learning the foundations: how the design cycle works, how to build a strong presentation, and how to communicate and sell an idea to an audience. These were the tools they would soon put to the test. By the end of the year, they had shaped a concept they believed in and were ready to share it, first presenting their pitch to their class, and then to a panel of judges.

That pitch was the turning point. Their idea of an AI-powered app to help international students learn German and integrate more easily into life in Switzerland, won the support of ISZL’s Fund for Excellence (FFE), which provides funding for innovative learning projects. As Darsh reflected, the development of the idea would not have been possible without the FFE, which supported the team financially, socially, and structurally. With that backing, the boys’ idea became a project they could actually start to build.

What followed was two years of steady, real work. In Grade 10, the team moved from inspiration to planning, deciding which software to use, what content to include, and how the app should look and feel. They also took time to inspire the year group below them, sharing their experience and showing younger students what was possible. By Grade 11, they were deep in development: writing code, building in the AI features that make the app feel personal, and dividing the roles of designer, developer, and content creator between them.

Throughout, their PIP sessions gave them the time and structure to keep going. As well as squeezing the project into spare time outside of school, the students also used their PIP time to research, design, test, and refine. Sprich+ grew gradually, feature by feature, with the School encouraging them to learn through the process, including from the parts that did not work the first time.

The result is an app built around real life. Sprich+ offers personalised practice in listening, reading, writing, and speaking, in both High-German and Swiss-German, using AI to let learners practise conversations whenever they like. It is designed to align with the ISZL syllabus, and the students have added motivating touches such as school leagues, so that learning a language feels like a game played with friends rather than a chore.

For Revansh, Darsh, and Andreas, what started as three students wanting to feel more at home has become a tool they hope will help others feel at home faster. As Revansh said, the question that stayed with him was simple: why should it take so long for anyone to belong?

Sprich+ has now launched as a website version, and the team is already thinking about what comes next: new features, fresh content, and ways to reach more learners. It is a wonderful example of what can happen when students are given the time, the support, and the belief to turn an idea into reality.

Well done, Revansh, Darsh, and Andreas for a remarkable achievement, and a real gift to our community.