Hello I'm Neesham 👋🏼
I am an A-level student passionate about creating engaging and accessible experiences.
The Problem
Language-Learning Apps Focus On Gamification And Not Learning Efficiently
As an A-level student, my friends and I noticed that we had learnt how to speak languages more efficiently by engaging with TV series rather than language-learning apps.
The solution
Interaction Is Essential
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Community feed:
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A community feed can be engaging and allows a "link" to be formed.
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By posting on it, users can develop writing skills and an understanding.
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The reply function can be used as a correction tool, so many can benefit.
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It can be a nice way to discover native speakers that can help you
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Social interactions can help retain users
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Immersive Libraries:
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Different topics, so users can choose what they enjoy from a variety.
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Listening can help with familiarising the language
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The script includes the original language for users and the translated version of the language they want to learn, which helps improve reading and understanding
Voice rooms:
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By using these voice chats users can build understanding and improved speaking abilities.
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Many can benefit through interaction.
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It can be a nice way to discover native speakers that can help you
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Users can host them so many yet limited people can join
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Social interactions can help retain users
4
Finding Native Speakers:
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Making friends who speak other languages can be engaging
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It can be easier for users to make friends who support you, like tutors. Users won't have to pay and can help whomever they want freely.
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Social interactions can help retain users.
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Finding native speakers who can help can make learning more personalised
Research + Competitor Analysis
Primary Research
secondary Research
1
According to easytolearn.io :
The best way to be fluent in a language is through listening and reading, and we should learn from children who listen to a variety of contexts rather than isolated chunks and mimic it
2
According to Altalang.com :
Humans are social creatures, and if we want to hold a conversation, human interactions are essential; they also allow adaptability.
3
According to studyfrenchspanish.com :
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Chatbots enable you to practice elementary-level conversations without the anxiety of a person. This means you cannot communicate with apps the way you interact with people, and you cannot adapt to the conversation.
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The issue with gamification is that once you start playing it, you focus on beating the level and not learning the language.
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Apps are very impersonal compared to face-to-face interactions.
" If you teach people explicitly to memorise vocabulary and grammar rules, most people will do that... But it's much harder to take that knowledge and translate it into the ability to use language- to speak it, understand what you're hearing, and respond in an appropriate way." - Loewen from Msutoday. msu.edu
Memrise
Duolingo
Drops
Falou
Analysis
After gathering some data points, I discovered some main themes.
Major Insights
Theme 1: Social Interaction
Social interaction is necessary to learn foreign languages. Interacting with people is very different compared with AI. It can also be engaging, allowing the user to be committed to learning.
Users are motivated by wanting to keep their relationships.
"Insufficient interaction hinders learning, as it lacks pragmatic skills, feedback, speech imitation, and adaptability in conversation."
Theme 2: Familiarising
Familiarising- by reading and listening- allows the user to recognise and understand what's being said.
Theme 3: Variety of context
When apps use flashcards or small bunches of information, users cannot use them properly or in a larger context.
Growth can motivate individuals to develop their knowledge more
Individuals can feel more confident when learning a range of topics and applying them to a wider context.
Lack of this can make users feel hopeless and make them quit early.
If you lack this, then users can only know about specific circumstances and not a wider theme.
Insights
"Insufficient human interaction hinders learning, as it lacks pragmatic skills, feedback, speech imitation, and adaptability in conversation."
Overall, I realised that whilst gamification can help with memorising keywords and phrases, there must be other means for knowledge to stay in long-term memory for application in real situations.
How Might We...
Enable users to apply their knowledge of language as if they were in a real-world situation?
Card Sorting
Information Architecture
User Persona
Empathy Map
Pain Points
User Flow
Get started
New user?
Yes
No
Create account
Log in
Password correct
No
Enter email
Reset Password
Study Duration
Reason for learning
Select level
Thank you
Choose language
Home
Yes
Library
Community feed
Hosting
Profile
User Course
Recommended courses
Trending course
Continue course
Personal Messages
Explore feed
Friend Feed
Add friend/ Native Speaker
Different Profiles
Different hosting
Friend Hosts
Accomplishments
Day streak
Memorised words
Voice rooms
Practice reading
Practice Writing
Practice Listening
The Initial Designs + Ideas:
Initially, due to my own experiences, I wanted users to be familiar with the language they choose to learn by having something similar to Netflix. However, I realised it could get complicated since some series or movies do not have different dubs. In terms of the actual UI, after some trials, I prioritised the functionality and simplicity over the aesthetics to make it user-friendly.
Low fidelity Wireframes
Log in screens
Profile screen
Home Screens
Library screen
Community screen
Hosting screen
Home Screen
Version 1:
Version 2:
Version 3:
I decided to place the message icon here
Library screen
Version 1:
Version 2:
I decided to add a favourites and all sections here
Colour scheme
To This
Typography
The Final Screens:
Animated Prototype:
Recollection:
Challenges:
What I'd Do Differently:
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I did not know what features to prioritise adding or how much before it became cluttered.
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Prioritising aesthetics or simplicity.
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Childish or slightly serious typography.
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Finish quicker.
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Try taking interviews for primary research rather than surveys for more detail.
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perhaps make the product more diverse