Learning a new language from the comfort of your armchair: who wouldn't want to do that? Duolingo alone has more than 500 million users worldwide, over 24 million of whom use the app on a daily basis. According to Duolingo, all those users can reach an advanced language level in 15 minutes a day, but can you really learn a language with Duolingo? We asked language teachers Janine Berns (French), Marly Nas (Spanish), and Henning Meredig (German) for their opinion.
“It's an incredibly fun, approachable app,” says Nas, who personally used Duolingo to learn Italian, Swedish and Greek, among others. “The variety of tasks quickly brings you into contact with various aspects of a language: reading, listening, speaking, and writing, it's all covered,” Berns adds. “Add to that the playful nature, the funny little jokes, and the opportunities for learning with others, and you can see why Duolingo is so popular,” Nas concludes.
The three teachers report that their students also use Duolingo regularly. “For example to expand their vocabulary or to refresh specific knowledge,” Meredig explains. They agree that Duolingo is ideal for becoming acquainted with a new language and getting a feel for it. “For example, if you plan to go on holiday somewhere and you want to understand a bit of what people are saying.”
The words, but not the context
And yet, Berns, Nas and Meredig all see clear limitations to Duolingo. Berns and Nas point to the lack of grammatical explanation. “If you make a mistake, there’s no explanation; you simply see the correct answer,” Nas explains. Moreover, Meredig adds, in Duolingo you learn too little about the differences between informal and formal language. “People use very different language when speaking to their friends or to their boss. Duolingo will teach you the words, but not how to use them in different situations.”
Nas highlights another shortcoming when it comes to ‘her’ language, Spanish. “The Spanish that Duolingo teaches is the Spanish they speak in South America. It won’t teach you anything about the personal pronoun ‘Vosotros (you)’ or the corresponding verb conjugations, even though these are used as standard in Spain.” Nas sees the same problem with Portuguese. “Duolingo teaches ‘Brazilian-Portuguese’, which sounds very different from ‘Portuguese-Portuguese’.”
What would the teachers change if they were in charge of Duolingo? “More grammatical explanations,” both Berns and Nas are very clear on this. Meredig would also add a new type of exercise for advanced learners. “Think of Pokémon Go, which requires you to actually go out to make progress. Similarly, Duolingo could challenge users to apply their language knowledge in real life.”
Immersion
Anyone who hopes to learn to speak fluent French, German or Spanish with Duolingo will come away disappointed, according to the three language teachers. “Starting from a certain level, Duolingo is simply not enough,” says Berns. Nas adds: “A Duolingo course won’t help you beyond A2 level, and even at that level, you still won’t master every skill equally well.”
There is simply no escaping extra teaching and practice to really progress in learning a language. “Most people need a language course or training. And of course, it’s much easier to learn the language by practising in the country itself.” In the meantime, there are plenty of ways to keep practising. Series, music, radio, and yes, even Duolingo will help you get ahead. “Ultimately, you learn best by engaging with a language in various ways on a daily basis.”
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