Last week, the Sunday Times published a story about the Prince Of Wales delivering an address in Welsh with proficiency in the language that the headline writer said was “thanks to Duolingo.”
The article prompted a letter to the editor from Pamela Baxter, who is Chief Product Officer, English, over at Cambridge University Press & Assessment. While Baxter expresses her belief that apps are helpful, the letter does note that “human expertise is indispensable when it comes to language learning.”
The folks at Duolingo would probably agree with that.
Amusingly, the letter includes a somewhat clunky reference to the IELTS test. I’ll quote the whole paragraph:
“Human expertise is indispensable when it comes to language learning. Our company has been providing language learning and testing for more than a century. Via the International English Language Testing System we are clear that people must play a critical role at every step of teaching, assessment and qualification, even as we use technology to improve the learning experience. To learn a language properly the quality and integrity of teaching and assessment matters. That means human expertise, interaction and challenge. Free apps can be a good start, but they are no alternative to the human side of learning.”
Why shoehorn the IELTS test into an otherwise well-written letter?
Well, the future King of Canada isn’t the only stuffy Brit using Duolingo’s app. Here’s a snippet from the Duolingo English Test blog, taken from a post made in December:
“Starting on January 1, 2025, MP and Peers will be able to compete in the Westminster Language Challenge, running until the end of March. The stakes are high: the top three performers will win a share of £20,000 to donate to a charity of their choice, with the overall winner crowned Duolingo’s Westminster Language Champion at an event in Parliament in April.”
One might argue that this challenge is part of a charm offensive to gain wider acceptance of the DET in the United Kingdom. Zoom in on the second photo on the blog if you want a little proof of that.
Anyway. The people at Duolingo are quite good at what they do. As I’ve mentioned here ad nauseam, there is more to the success of the DET than cost and perceived easiness.