Category: Tech Today
There are hundreds of paid and free apps for learning new languages in iOS. However, as any student of any foreign language knows, not all methods for learning or practicing a new language works. Everything from skill level to learning ability and maturity affect how good a method is in helping a student learn. One thing is for certain - no app (or learning method) in the world can make a person fluent in a target language. Moreover, learning and keeping a language is a lifelong affair.
It's a cliche but Duolingo, a free iOS app for learning a handful of languages, makes learning the basics of a language fun. Duolingo's non-threatening interface and point system gently encourages you to keep going. In addition, the different types of activities included in the app keep things interesting without discouraging:
1. Listening and typing spoken foreign words
2. Non-intrusive vocabulary and grammar introduction
3. Sentence construction using interactive word blocks
4. Speaking (which Duolingo "checks")
5. Rosetta-style image association of words
6. context-sensitive word hints
7. on-the-fly translation practice
The exercises are randomized and efficiently teaches the user words and phrases (including spelling and grammar). If you failed in one teaching session or review set, you get to start over without feeling too bad about yourself. I chose Spanish with the objective of just learning a few useful phrases, understanding the grammar and helping me flesh out the Spanish I'm currently studying using the Pimsleur method. Having continuously studied other foreign languages using the audiocentric method, I found Duolingo refreshing and entertaining and definitely a change of pace from just listening. The app (and the iPad) makes typing specialized characters easy too (long press the root character like "n" or "u" to display options).
Users can also network with other Duolingo users and compete with each other with points though the social networking aspect isn't nearly as compelling for me as the learning itself. Duolingo is free and promises to stick around as long as they have users. The downside with Duolingo is users require Internet access, which is understandable considering the media-centric teaching approach it uses.
As mentioned at the beginning of this review, not all learning approaches work especially when it comes to beginning a foreign language - each student is different. However, Duolingo deserves a thumbs up for its non-threatening and universal approach that almost everyone can benefit from.
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