Duolingo - Great for Memorization, not Communication

I started learning Spanish 5 years ago. It started with a continuing education class at VCC, there were less than 10 students in the class, and a very entertaining textbook. Then I decided to go backpacking in South America 3 years ago and thought it might be a good idea to pick up Spanish again, so I turned to the most popular App of 2013 - Duolingo. I had learned basic sentence structure in the class I had taken but Duolingo armed me with a ton of new vocabulary. But it wasn't until I got to South America that I realized the vocabulary I learned while playing Duolingo was not all that relevant. I knew zoo animals, and North American foods, which you can't even find in South America. Language, which by definition is a tool to communicate, requires a back and forth dialogue to learn and Duolingo did not provide that for me.

While living in Buenos Aires I decided to take Spanish lessons, 75 hours of private Spanish lessons later I finally had some relevant vocabulary. While traveling I was so insecure about my Spanish level that I spent my days with other English speaking travellers, I even did a homestay to pick up more Spanish, but we spoke English because I couldn’t understand the Spanish.

Upon return home, I enrolled in university level Spanish for a full year. The teacher spoke English for most of the class, there were regular tests, we flew through material whether everyone grasped the concept or not, and I could actually speak Spanish by the end. All the previous experiences had contributed to my success, and motivation to continue to learn Spanish but nothing beat the traditional classroom curriculum.

"A positive attitude towards the subject means a greater reception towards learning it," MindSnacks' Pickard says. "Games really help with this." Games are a great supplement for classroom curriculum, to help increase motivation and engagement, but on their own students will fail to learn the more intricate parts of a subject such as theory and reasoning.

They say the best way to learn a Language is to immerse yourself, everyone is different, but I am a strong believer of having the pressure of tests and assignments in a fast pace. This could be due to the extent of English spoken on the planet, that it is just so much easier to speak English wherever you go, and the challenge of being a Self-Directed Learner is too great when I just want to relax and be on vacation.

#Memory #Games #LearningaLanguage