Duolingo: Promoting community engagement
PROJECT SUMMARY
Our team worked on a sprint to create a feature that would bring the Duolingo community closer together by having the opportunity of real-world conversations in order to boost effective learning.
TIMELINE
Jun 2024 - Jul 2024
TOOLS
Figma
ROLE
UX Designer
TEAM
Carina Wu Sarah Wu
SKILLS
Mobile Design
User Research
Prototyping
Although Duolingo provides users the learning experience to learn vocabulary on different levels, it lacks the immersive experience of successful language learning, real-life language interactions.
So, how might we create a user experience on Duolingo that promotes connection and application in language acquisition?
The Problem
The Solution
Find Your Duo
The opportunity to connect with a Duolingo community to conversate, customize your learning pace, and access discussion forums.
Preview the solution!
Language Forum
Have access to a language forum that connects you with other Duolingo users who can share their own experiences, tips, and additional resources!
Find your Duo
Choose from a number of potential duo partners to practice conversing with, effectively tackling language acquisition with real world conversations.
The Process
To better understand our user’s needs, we interviewed a handful of avid Duolingo users to gain more insight on the platform. Here are some questions we asked:
User Research
What are your motivations for language acquisition and how imperative to learn a specific language?
The platform has to account for the wide range of users who hold specific motivations of learning a new language, whether it be to connect with family, professional opportunities, etc.
01
When learning a new language, how helpful is it for you to have a community that you can connect with in order to maximize your learning?
Users felt a community can foster motivation, engagement, and accountability which can fully immerse the user into the current language they are learning.
02
To what extent do you think Duoling is applicable to real-word situations and its effectiveness in teaching a new language?
Several users of Duolingo explained its effectiveness in teaching proper vocabulary and grammar, but lacks practical language application.
03
How effective is Duolingo at correcting mistakes while practicing a new language?
There seemed to be a gap in knowledge regarding the lack of content explanations when users made a mistake, limiting their ability to dive deeper into their intended language.
04
User Personas
Zari, 20
Occupation: Student
Location: Pasadena, CA
Motivations
learn conversational Spanish to navigate daily interactions
integrate herself into Spanish culture (connect with friends/family)
Frustrations
limited learning from Duolingo, unable to hold proper conversation
lack of community to help reinforce her Spanish
Eddy, 23
Occupation: Trainer
Location: San Jose, CA
Motivations
focus on grasping basic understandings of multiple langauges
interacts with diverse individuals and strives to communicate with them in their own language
Frustrations
wants practical conversation topics/questions to apply to daily life
wishes for more interaction with other Duolingo users
To dig even deeper, I conducted a competitor analysis to gauge where Duolingo stands among language learning resources. I analyzed three of Duolingo’s biggest competitors and here’s what I found:
Competitor Analysis
Findings
After our extensive research, we were able to better identify Duolingo’s strengths and some key pain points.
Strengths
01
02
03
Gamification, interactive lessons
Approachable, bite-sized lessons
Data Leveraging, Progress Visualization
Pain Points
01
Poor Grammar Explanations
02
03
Lack of an engaging community
Minimal speaking opportunities/application
Ideation
Lo-fi Prototypes
Our main idea, Find Your Duo, allows for users to find other language learners in the Duolingo community to practice speaking based on their skill levels, goals, and preferences. Ultimately tackling the three main pain points: poor grammar explanations/resources, lack of community engagement, and minimal speaking opportunities.
Mid-Fis
01 Find Your Duo Workflow
02 Speaking Practice and Discussion Forum Workflow
From our low fidelity sketches, we created a basic workflow that we could build upon and make iterations to reach our final prototype. Check out our revisions:
01 Building upon profile customization options and adding dimension
Before
After
Designing for Intuitive Touch Interactions
By switching to Duolingo’s branded colors, it became more intuitive for users to recognize and select topics. Initially, the flat color scheme made it difficult for users to identify them as touch targets.
Before
After
Customizing Language Proficiency for better User Matching
Adding sliding scales for the proficiency of each language allows for Duolingo to better match users with partners on the same level.
Before
After
Tailoring Duo Partners Further
Because several Duolingo users may learn multiple languages, it was important to specify which language to duel in. By adding an option to choose a specific language, this resolved any confusion when choosing a duo partner.
02 Reducing Content Overload and Improving Speech Application
Reducing Content Overload
Increasing font size enhances accessibility and readability while maintaining concise text. Users can click 'View More' to expand the text if needed, ensuring content isn't too compact for mobile screens.
Before
After
Improving Speech Application
A sound icon and translate button were added to the user’s speech bubble to offer more resources regarding speech application, promoting correct pronunciation and translation.
Final Solution
Find Your Duo
(1) Opportunity to practice conversational skills with a user in the Duolingo community, (2) Ability to customize language learning goals like preferences and proficiency, (3) Access forum discussions to connect with a community, sharing external resources and tips for language acquisition
Checkout the finished prototype!