There are many reasons we’re looking to learn languages now more than ever. In our increasingly multicultural societies, it only makes sense to know how to converse with the wider community around us who may not have come to terms with local languages as of yet. Using an app makes the experience a much easier one because all of what we need as users to learn a language will always be right at our very fingertips. It also doesn’t matter where or when you’re using the app. So long as you’re able to spare as little as 15 minutes a day, then you can be well on the way to learning a new language.
Each app caters to several different languages, so it’s important to read descriptions carefully prior to installing an app to ensure the language you’re looking to learn is available. Many of these apps also provide other useful tools when it comes to language learning experiences, such as online exchange forums and webcam conferences to help provide hands-on learning experiences. These are sometimes marketed as premium features though, which again is something you’ll have to delve a little deeper into in order to determine additional costs where they apply. Learning a language as a whole though is something that can be done entirely for free from the following apps:
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Duolingo
Duolingo is perhaps one of the more popular language apps and for good reason: there’s no requirement to fill in intrusive registration forms to sign up for an account. While registering an account does provide a way for students to track their progress, they’re not required to access the Duolingo platform. It’s just a matter of touching the language you want to learn and starting from there.
Duolingo is one of the more user-friendly experiences because it is based on pictures and is, therefore, a better option for visual learners. This is something that Ron from sellmyphone.co.uk particularly agrees with. Pictures, written text, and a bit of audio will be presented to learners to help them associate the new words with the pictures they’re seeing on screen. It is an excellent way of building an exemplary vocabulary very quickly, but Duolingo doesn’t neglect the properties of grammar either. Sentence structure, verb conjugation, and other language necessities are also included in the Duolingo lesson plan as students progress through to having greater levels of competency with the vocabulary of their chosen language.
Duolingo is one of the more versatile apps when it comes to languages and there are many European and Asian languages on offer. For the most popular selections, Duolingo is a hard name to beat when it comes to learning languages from an app.
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Memrise
Memrise is another free language learning app. It operates very similar to Duolingo when it comes to presenting images and allowing learners to make the associations on their own, but it also has a rather unique way of teaching learners the vocabulary of their target language. It presents the target vocabulary alongside an English word with similar spelling or pronunciation, which encourages learners to make the association that way rather than always directly linking to pictures. It’s certainly a more grown-up version of learning and may appeal to more academic types who aren’t all that interested in finding out the apples and oranges of learning a new language.
Memrise also has a mix and match game that presents target vocabulary against a set of definitions, which encourages learners to make the connection more quickly in order to effectively use words in a sentence. This process will repeat itself continually until learners are able to demonstrate competency in using their newly learned words before moving on.
Memrise isn’t as a language rich in terms of how many are available in the library, but it is well worth a look if you’re tired of the traditional visual association that’s prevalent in the language learning market.
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Busuu
Busuu is the more social of language learning apps. It acts similar to a popular social networking website but connects learners with those who natively speak the target language for positive language exchanges around the world. While this provides a great way of learning a language, it is not free: language exchanges come at a separate cost. There is a useful free-to-use aspect to the app that teaches the basics of many popular global languages but does purposely leave learners at a lower level in order to encourage migration towards its premium service. It is useful for those who are just seeking the conversational basics of a target language though and may be an ideal choice for someone just about to travel.
There are a lot of different options when it comes to learning a language and learners needn’t feel tied to any one particular app. Each has their distinct advantages and disadvantages, so it’s a great idea to play around with the various apps on the market today in order to find the best fit for your own personal learning style and preferences.