Duolingo
Overview
Duolingo’s gamified lessons make language learning engaging, but its lack of cultural context and immersion limits learners' ability to use the language naturally. Without exposure to cultural norms, traditions, and real-world usage, there’s a disconnect between structured lessons and authentic communication.
This concept project focused on closing that gap by integrating culturally relevant content and immersive scenarios. My goals were to:
Improve cultural relevance
Enhance immersion without disrupting engagement
Project Info
Timeline
Tools
Design Exercise
2 weeks
Figma
Domain Research
To identify gaps and opportunities for improving Duolingo’s cultural immersion, I began with a competitive analysis. By examining other language-learning platforms, I gained insights into how they approach cultural context and user engagement
My main findings were:
Language learners, especially beginners, struggle to maintain long-term motivation without engaging and interactive elements, such as gamification or real-life conversation practice.
Existing language-learning apps lack sufficient cultural context, making it difficult for users to apply language skills naturally in real-world situations.
Many platforms prioritize structured lessons and grammar drills, but few emphasize conversational fluency or practical speaking skills, which are critical for real-world use.
There is a growing demand for personalized language-learning experiences, where users can set preferences, customize learning paths, and receive feedback tailored to their progress and goals.
Customer Insights
With the analysis of Duolingo and it's competitors I was still missing a key piece of the puzzle: talking with actual Duolingo users.
These discussions aimed to uncover users’ motivations, challenges, and preferences in language learning, providing valuable context to inform the development of new features. By understanding the perspectives of real users, I sought to identify areas for improvement and enhance the overall learning experience on the platform.
A Guiding User
Using the research as a basis, I created a persona that could represent the need for long-term motivation as well as the desire for cultural immersion in the language-learning process.
Design Goals
Before beginning the process of brainstorming potential solutions, I summarized the goals of the project based on the user persona and research.
Explore strategies to increase long-term user motivation, focusing on engaging experiences that keep learners committed over time.
Focus on creating opportunities for cultural immersion to help users feel more prepared for real-world conversations and to apply their language skills naturally in diverse situations.
Exploring Ideas
Based on the information collected in research, I held a brainstorm session to come up with as many ideas as possible, and then organized these ideas into more digestable categories to consider technical implications of each.
Safety Consideration
Safety and anonymity are core principles for Duolingo, as users cannot upload personal identifiers or engage in direct communication beyond limited in-app features like partner streaks. This focus on anonymity informed the brainstorming process, helping evaluate the impact of potential solutions while maintaining user safety and trust.
Lo-Fidelity Concept
In the lo-fidelity wireframes, I focused on translating ideas for the 'Duos' feature into layouts emphasizing matching, preferences, and chat functionality. By prioritizing interactions over visuals, I iterated quickly based on feedback to ensure clarity, accessibility, and seamless navigation, laying a strong foundation for user-centered design.
Hi-Fidelity Screens
With the analysis of Duolingo and it's competitors I was still missing a key piece of the puzzle: talking with actual Duolingo users.
These discussions aimed to uncover users’ motivations, challenges, and preferences in language learning, providing valuable context to inform the development of new features. By understanding the perspectives of real users, I sought to identify areas for improvement and enhance the overall learning experience on the platform.
Duo Partners Matching
Duo Partners Conversations
Solution Overview
"Duos" enhances Duolingo by connecting learners with native speakers, addressing the critical need for cultural immersion and practical language skills identified in our research. This feature fosters authentic connections and encourages real-world practice while maintaining the anonymity and privacy protections associated with Duolingo.
By empowering users to build confidence and gain conversational fluency, "Duos" helps learners develop a deeper understanding of the culture behind the language.
Match with native speakers
Set your match preferences
Optimized chat for learning
Future Considerations
While the current screens focus on the main interactions of the 'Duos' feature, the next steps would involve building out more detailed interactions to enhance the overall user experience.
Additionally, aligning with safety considerations, I propose developing a flow to offer 'Duos' as an upsell service within Super Duolingo. This approach would create an extra layer of safety by limiting access to users with verified subscriptions, fostering a more secure and trusted environment for cultural exchange.