Learning SpanishHow apps changed learning

So you’ve decided to learn Spanish and don’t know where to start? Of course you buy a SIM card and google how to learn Spanish. And you are immediately bombarded with all the latest apps. Apps will help you learn any language in a matter of weeks. Or so they say. Well, I’ve got good news and bad news  for you. The bad news is, unless you’re a prodigy, you’re probably not going to learn a new language in a few weeks. The good news is, language apps can certainly play a part in your mission to learn Spanish. There are literally dozens of language apps there nowadays, but for me the best ones are Duolingo (of course) and LIngvist.

Duolingo

Although Spanish immersion and Spanish lessons at a school are the best options to learn the language, Duolingo is best to absorb new vocabulary, especially when not living in a Spanish speaking country or when you are first exposing yourself to the language. It has the advantage of introducing in a fun way the basic Spanish words you might use in everyday life, if not necessary in a useful order. For example, the phrase in Duolingo “El gato come pan” , The cat eats bread, is a perfectly fine sentence, if not one you would ever use.

Lingvist

Lingvist’s teaching structure is much more fluid. The app continuously gives you sentences and new words to translate, and then moves up in difficulty as what it taught you a few minutes, or hours or even days ago. Its sentences usually make more sense and so its better for learning sentence structure and useful phrases.

However, neither are a replacement of real Spanish lessons. So I would still recommend taking Spanish classes. Apps will help you build your vocabulary, yet a teacher’s help in learning the grammar and structure of any language just cannot  be replaced by any app.