DuoLingo is my favorite free online language learning program. I must enjoy it because I have been using it on a daily basis since 2014. I began by studying the Spanish language and soon added five other languages.
DuoLingo often adds new features which the user needs to experiment with to understand. The first thing I noticed was that the crown levels add a surprising amount of new material (five more levels) to each topic. For me in Spanish, this feature was welcome because I had long ago completed the "tree" which contains all of the possible vocabulary and grammar topics. A new challenge was just what I needed to add complexity to my Spanish study.
So I jumped right in with my iPhone and started a crown level. A new circular counter with five segments appeared in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. What was that I wondered? I soon found out. Every time I made an error of any kind, a segment of the counter disappeared.
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| Only two segments left! |
And when all the segments were gone? I had "lost"and was not allowed to continue with the program until I regained my "health."
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| Out of health! |
My options were: (1) Spend 450 of the gems I had collected on the program to refill. (2) Purchase gems for cold hard cash from the program to refill. (3) Wait about five hours for my health to be automatically refilled. (4) Trudge up the stairs to my laptop and do a few easy lessons to refill the counter. (The web version doesn't have crowns or counters.) (5) Buy DuoLingo Plus for a monthly fee.
None of these options would help me progress in my language study. As a business model for DuoLingo, I can understand what the program wants the user to do. But from the viewpoint of a language learner, cutting off my language learning is not at all helpful.
One of the big controversies in language instruction is whether error correction helps or hinders a learner.
One of the big controversies in language instruction is whether error correction helps or hinders a learner.
On the DuoLingo web version, a line appearing at the top of the screen advances or retreats depending on whether you give a right or wrong answer; however, you are allowed unlimited access with no penalties. The web system is a gentler form of error correction. The new mobile crown system is much more punitive. Imagine if I were to make a language error speaking in real life and be barred from further conversation unless I paid a ransom or waited several hours! That just isn't realistic.
DuoLingo is the best language learning platform that I have found. It is accessible, motivating, and innovative. The stated mission of the program is free language education for the world. I love it and use it every day.
But that darn health meter really bugs me and gets in the way of my language progress. I wish I could log onto DuoLingo one day in the future and find that those intimidating counters were just another failed experiment.
But that darn health meter really bugs me and gets in the way of my language progress. I wish I could log onto DuoLingo one day in the future and find that those intimidating counters were just another failed experiment.
