What is the problem Duolingo attempts to solve ?
Duolingo attempts to solve two problems in one go. One, it tries to provide a free language learning application to people who would want to learn a new language for reasons of education, hobby, work or as an academic pursuit . On the other hand, it also tries to translate the web across multiple languages so that all knowledge could be freely accessible.
Is the problem worth solving ?
Let us look at both the problems Duolingo attempts to solve -
1. Learning a new language
A few of the common reasons for learning a new language are emigration, family and friends, better opportunities at work, study or research, travel, studying abroad, required course, culture religion etc.
To put the need for learning English language in a perspective, sample this - According to Ambient Insight Research Report 2012, the Digital English Language Learning Market is Soaring in Asia. The five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for digital English language learning products in Asia is 14.2% and revenues will climb to $1.6 billion by 2018, up from the $863.1 million reached in 2013.
Following are two snapshots from the Ambient insights Research 2012 -
Duolingo attempts to solve two problems in one go. One, it tries to provide a free language learning application to people who would want to learn a new language for reasons of education, hobby, work or as an academic pursuit . On the other hand, it also tries to translate the web across multiple languages so that all knowledge could be freely accessible.
Is the problem worth solving ?
Let us look at both the problems Duolingo attempts to solve -
1. Learning a new language
A few of the common reasons for learning a new language are emigration, family and friends, better opportunities at work, study or research, travel, studying abroad, required course, culture religion etc.
To put the need for learning English language in a perspective, sample this - According to Ambient Insight Research Report 2012, the Digital English Language Learning Market is Soaring in Asia. The five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for digital English language learning products in Asia is 14.2% and revenues will climb to $1.6 billion by 2018, up from the $863.1 million reached in 2013.
Following are two snapshots from the Ambient insights Research 2012 -
Additional reasons -
According to Ryan McMunn, language expert and CEO of BRIC Language Systems, those entering the workforce in 2014 with second language fluency can expect an additional 10 to 15 percent pay increase. A 2013 British Chambers of Commerce study found a substantial negative effect on exports that must be attributed to language complacency.
Studies indicate that learning a new language might even boast cognitive abilities. According to the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, a 2007 study in Massachusetts showed that students who studied a foreign language “outperformed their non-foreign language learning peers on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test after two to three years and significantly outperformed them after seven to eight years on all MCAS subtests."
2. Translating the web
According to Wikipedia, estimates of the percentages of Web sites using various content languages as of 12 March 2014 -
1 English 55.7%
2 Russian 6.0%
3 German 6.0%
4 Japanese 5.0%
5 Spanish 4.6%
As against this, the British council notes that only one in four people can speak English at some level of competence. That leaves more than 50 % people without access to the vast world of knowledge that the internet provides. Thus the need for translating the web seems to be real and urgent.
According to Ryan McMunn, language expert and CEO of BRIC Language Systems, those entering the workforce in 2014 with second language fluency can expect an additional 10 to 15 percent pay increase. A 2013 British Chambers of Commerce study found a substantial negative effect on exports that must be attributed to language complacency.
Studies indicate that learning a new language might even boast cognitive abilities. According to the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, a 2007 study in Massachusetts showed that students who studied a foreign language “outperformed their non-foreign language learning peers on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test after two to three years and significantly outperformed them after seven to eight years on all MCAS subtests."
2. Translating the web
According to Wikipedia, estimates of the percentages of Web sites using various content languages as of 12 March 2014 -
1 English 55.7%
2 Russian 6.0%
3 German 6.0%
4 Japanese 5.0%
5 Spanish 4.6%
As against this, the British council notes that only one in four people can speak English at some level of competence. That leaves more than 50 % people without access to the vast world of knowledge that the internet provides. Thus the need for translating the web seems to be real and urgent.