Learning a Language for Free While Translating the Web. Does Duolingo Work?

Abstract

Duolingo, a free online language learning site, has its mission to help users to learn a language while using its learning exercises to translate the web. Language is learned through translation with Duolingo being as effective as any of the leading language learning softwares. Launched in June 2012, Duolingo boasts already at the time of writing 300,000 active language learners ready for the task. This article independently assesses the extent to which Duolingo, at its current stage of development, meets those expectations.