Why Experts Say This App Is The Perfect Tool For Learning A New Language

When most people set out to learn a language, they have a clear goal in mind. And more often than not, that goal is to gain the ability to have basic conversations in their new language. They’re not necessarily looking to master every intricacy, but they want to be able to speak the language in practical situations. And Babbel’s team of linguistic experts designed the app to help people get to that conversational level.

We spoke with a couple of those experts to find out what makes this app the best choice when learning a new language.

The Babbel Method For Learning Languages

Babbel is designed to help you succeed in your language-learning goals. Our team of more than 100 language experts have carefully crafted your lessons using what they call the “Babbel Method.” How does it work? To put it simply, the strategies used to teach you the new language are created by experts and backed by research. This means you’ll learn how to have basic conversations, and you’ll actually remember what you learn.

Ben Davies, one of the linguistic experts we spoke with, explains how Babbel gives you the whole package when it comes to language learning.

“We use the communicative approach to language learning — the idea that we don’t just give you words; we don’t just give you grammar; we give you everything together. In one lesson, you’re going to learn some new vocabulary. You will then learn it with relevant grammar concepts. As soon as you start to practice the words, you see them in a variety of contexts. And with Babbel, they are all very much real-life contexts.”

These real-life contexts are one of the main ways Babbel is different from other language-learning apps. The ability to have basic conversations in practical and relevant situations is paramount.

Another Babbel language expert, Sara Grippo, tells us how this works in practice.

“For example, after having finished the first lesson about ordering in a café, our learners will know the basic vocabulary and some grammar structure which will enable them not only to order what they want but also to understand and to react to what the staff in the café is saying to them.”

The next step in the Babbel Method is making sure you’ll be able to remember the material you learn down the road. To this end, Babbel’s team of experts uses the concept of spaced repetition and the app’s Review Manager.

Davies explains this idea: “We have a whole bank of different trainers and exercises a person can do, and we’ve put a lot of thought into how many times you see a certain word and in what contexts, giving you the best chance of remembering that word in the short term. Once you’ve learned it in that lesson, it then goes to the Review Manager, which tells you when the word is ready to be reviewed. This works on an algorithm based on spaced repetition. Every time you successfully remember the word, it helps it stay in your long-term memory.”

Pretty cool, right? And effective! Let’s look at some other ways Babbel helps you learn a new language.

Babbel’s Lessons Are Designed To Help You…

Have a real conversation
Babbel measures success by your ability to have real-life conversations in your new language, whether that’s ordering food and drinks, introducing yourself to a new friend or asking for directions. You’ll practice dialogue you can use in real-world scenarios and complete lessons developed by native speakers.

Speak correctly and with confidence
Gaining the confidence to actually speak a new language out loud is a challenge. That’s why Babbel’s lessons have you speaking from the very first day, and the app’s speech recognition technology gets your pronunciation on point.

Remember what you learn
You may have forgotten a lot of the things you learned in school, but Babbel uses proven learning methods to make sure your new knowledge sticks with you. Regular review sessions will ensure you remember what you learn for the long term.

Practice at your own pace
Babbel’s bite-sized lessons only take 10 to 15 minutes to complete, making them easy to fit into your schedule. And they’re structured so that spending just 15 minutes per day can lead to fast and effective progress in your new language.

Learn on the go
Many of us lead very busy lives, constantly running from one thing to the next. But Babbel lets you learn anytime, anywhere — on your desktop, smartphone or tablet. And your progress is synced across devices, so you can always pick up right where you left off.