Duolingo Advice: How to improve your language knowledge
Translation: Þula Guðrún Árnadóttir
Most of us know this cute small bird. The green owl sends us messages every day: “Hey, it’s Duo,” they start off with, and following that is some motivational message. Most readers have surely made a new year’s resolution to learn a new language but then given up, whether a week later, or during exam season, or out of sheer laziness. I myself have set this goal twice (Spanish 2018 and German 2021) and kept to it both times. Duo has been my best friend since I downloaded the app and we have met almost daily for four years. In between, I have occupied myself with other courses and I am going to use this knowledge to advise you, dear reader, the best way to go about learning languages using Duolingo.
1. Don’t just rush ahead
Everything in language learning is built on trusting the foundation that has been laid and then adding to it. You are not going to learn the conditional perfect nor conditional clauses if you don’t know basic grammar. Nothing is more important than going over a level that you have already completed and reviewing it, no matter how boring it sounds. I fell into this hole in the Danish course and ended up having to start from the beginning as I had not been paying attention. Be better than me!
2. Buy grammar books
Duolingo trains you in many good things, but grammar and linguistics are not its strongest side. When it comes to irregular verbs there is nothing better than a reference book. Most decent bookstores have a reasonable selection of textbooks like Correcto for Spanish, Sådan siger man for Danish, Latnesk málfræði, and many more.
3. Enjoy the stories
Duolingo offers many short stories in Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, and Japanese. The stories are read out loud as you follow the text, so both reading and listening comprehension is trained. The difficulty increases steadily as you learn more and is a good indication of how well you have been paying attention. If you are struggling with the stories you have just gained access to then you probably have to revisit the previous level.
4. Use headphones
Few things are as important when learning a language as training your listening comprehension. Words stick in your memory when you hear them and thus you should use your headphones often.
5. The podcasts
French and Spanish students have the option to listen to a number of podcasts in the target language. It probably sounds far-fetched to start listening to podcasts in a different language but only half of each episode is in the target language. The rest is in English and helps you to stay on track. When you have progressed further in the course, the podcasts are ideal to listen to on car rides or on the bus as the stories are always interesting and about historically accurate topics.
6. Make flashcards
Make flashcards for all the declensions and recite them until you remember them. If you feel like you are not memorizing the vocabulary then it’s a great idea to put it into Quizlet or a similar programme (if you take time to search for it you might find a collection of cards someone has already made when they were at the same level as you).
7. Get in contact with a specialist about future learning
If you want to learn more than ordering yourself a beer on the beach, then Duolingo is not enough on its own. In the end, you will realize that in order to improve your language skills you need more tools in your toolbox. The best person to turn to in those circumstances is someone who has been in the same situation as you, a professor at the university, an old teacher from high school, or even a friend.
9. Don’t overdo it
It is better to take a break than to burn out. Duolingo offers to freeze your streak for up to two days at a time. If you don’t have time or energy to sit down to study then you should put it aside and turn to something that is piquing your interest at that moment.
9. Invest in Duolingo Plus
Now it is highly likely that you, dear reader, are one of the thousands of poor students who scrape by until the end of the month. If you are serious about getting a grip on your target language, there is nothing more useful than Duolingo Plus. Of course, it is nice to get rid of the ads, but also: Duolingo records the progress of their Duolingo Plus subscribers and you can see how your language skill increases over time.