What can Duolingo teach you about Creating an Addictive Course? -

Duolingo has created an elearning experience that's enjoyable and efficient. Here's how to apply its best features for your class.

433 days back, I signed up for an account for myself on Duolingo for the first time. I know the exact number since that's what my streak has been. Since that time, I've primarily spent my time on the mobile version of their app and I've tried the classes for Spanish, Russian, German and Korean.

Indeed they do! Duolingo does not come without flaws However, it offers a learning experience that offers a far easier on-ramp to trying out a new language than any of its competitors (that I've used). The most important thing is that the experiences it offers are useful that can be used by educators from other fields as well. If you're in the market for a more engaging elearning experience, Duolingo is a highly effective approach.

Five observations I've made which can be applied to almost any elearning course.

1. Make use of all kinds of games As much as you can.

Gamification refers to the process of ensuring that learning objectives have a connection to particular functions or triggers in ways which reward students or encourage the spirit of competition. Duolingo is notable not just for using gamification well, but for deploying games in various methods. The ones I've identified include:

• Streaks. Not wanting to end my streak is my primary reason for me to stay in the application. No joke.
• Points. Duolingo lets learners create a daily goal for points in addition to linking points with other elements of gamification.
• The leaderboards are HTML0. I don't compete for a top spot every week and when I have to, I find the challenge exciting.
• Leagues. Early on, my determination to be in the top league made it easier for me to keep my streak going. This kept me returning until I was in the Diamond league, and now each time I fall from the diamond league, the need to get back on top gets me to compete with the same intensity.
• badges. I had to make it to the diamond league in order to get the diamond league badge. After that, I needed to win the diamond league for the badge. Now I need to earn the highest grade in each skill within a class so that I will get that Conqueror badge. Isn't it amazing how the process never ceases?
• Crowns. Earning crowns provides a satisfying sense of achievement. It is fun to check off boxes.
• Timed challenges. Timed challenges add another level of difficulty however they also increase the speed of recall. Speaking in a spoken language it is essential be able to form words in the correct grammar structure under time pressure. This is a fantastic example of how gamification is also a great tool for real-world educational goals.

It supports a variety types of gamification features with ease, but others can be accomplished through tweaks or additional add-ons. For instance, learners get points for taking questions, these points could be tied to a leaderboard and you could set a time limit on quizzes, and badges can be awarded when the learner does a particular task.

2. Accept mistakes.

I would have lost my 433-day streak somewhere around Day 100 if it weren't because of Duolingo's streak thawing. At first this felt somewhat like cheating however the reality is that there are times when life gets in the way. If I had lost a streak 100 days later the event of a crisis arise at work or due to personal tragedy, the loss of that streak would be pretty demoralizing--so much so that I might actually quit the app.

Duolingo is also able to keep track of your mistakes in order to allow you to practice those sentences again for extra points. So, it's always an opportunity to improve when you're using Duolingo. It's not a matter of if you've made a mistake, it simply an area that requires a little more practice. In the event that life gets impeding your getting better at it for a short time then there's no reason to punish you for it.

3. Make sure you have flexibility and mobility in the top priorities.

Lessons on Duoliongo rarely take more than 5 minutes. It means that you'll have plenty of the time needed to complete the lesson. And if the content is interesting, almost always a reason to do multiple.

The content is so short and so portable, there are instances when I've been trying to finish a class in a public space in which it's not acceptable to repeat the same phrases over and over. Duolingo can help by providing options that say "I can't listen right now," or "I can't use my voice in this moment." This lets learners keep learning regardless of whether they're in a crowd or in a busy area.

4. Engage with a range of skills with a variety of learning styles.

When I first started with Duolingo's lessons, they mostly consisted of transcribing sentences back and forward either with or without word bank. At times, I was asked to listen to a sentence and write down what I heard, or I was asked to read a sentence out loud so the app could test my ability to pronounce. Most of the time, questions were based on some basic forms.

Since its launch, Duolingo has expanded question formats and provided new kinds of learning exercises. The most well-known courses are an "stories" section that also helps improve your reading comprehension. They also have audio-based lessons that help build listening comprehension. The regular classes now contain longer audio quests, where learners must pay attention for a long time and respond to a question regarding the content they have were hearing.

Together, these various question type cover three of four main parts of learning languages including writing, reading, speaking and listening. The only one, speaking, which will most likely require a private one-on-one tutor, is lacking.

The most important thing is that the variety of content types makes for an exciting and enjoyable experience. A year ago I was getting exhausted of switching phrases back and forth. As I age, I am tired of the normal lessons I am able to switch around with different types of materials.

The same can be done by offering different content types--or by using a range of question types in the creation of your tests. There are a variety of types of questions like multi-choice, single-choice (true false) as well as fill-in the-blank, matching, sorting and essays.

5. Always be innovating.

Finally, if there's one that I've always been impressed by with the Duolingo app, it's that during the time I've been using it the app has only improved. Every month they update their features in order to improve the learning experience. They've created challenging new tasks, created a cast of characters that enhance their narratives as well as expanded their badges. designed additional question formats as well as launched daily and monthly point-based challenges each having their own unique reward for gamification.

Being a user, I feel that the way I'm using this app has created a positive feedback loop that enhances my experience of the app over time. This is a very enthralling experience.

Naturally, the majority of teachers don't have the resources to create a professional app like Duolingo. On a more modest level, you could keep an eye on your learners when they offer comments, and consider ways to enhance the learner experience of your course. If you're constantly advancing your knowledge and up-to-date, you'll be able to avoid being caught off-guard by the competition.

It's a lot of work and time to design an enjoyable e-learning process, however the return is enormous.

Duolingo has both its supporters as well as its critics. Myself I am frustrated because it seems that the Spanish course keeps getting longer and the Russian program is still in the beginning stages of development. A few languages, including Korean do not have enough support for learning and writing with the alphabet. In addition, I worry that other languages have been added in haste, and more as a show rather than an actual educational experience.

However, it can't be disregarded that Duolingo is more invested in making a positive learning experience for its users than any other learning course I've experienced, and does this with an obsession with UX, UI, and user data. It's not just led to an app that is more addicting, but one that actually aids students achieve their goals in learning.

After one year of Duo's Spanish course, where I've obsessively tried to reach the top level in each ability, I'm only at Checkpoint 2. But the other day, I had a short chat in Spanish with two friends. One of whom had completed Duo's Spanish course and another is an ESL instructor of mostly spanish-speaking students. One of my teachers asked me about the plans we had planned in the morning. I shared the food items I had in my refrigerator and offered to cook breakfast for them.

This is a minor win it's not a huge one, but nothing is more satisfying than an accomplishment to inspire you to go on.