Why Duolingo Is Not Enough: The Vital Role of Real Classes and Professors in Language Learning

“Oh! You teach Italian! I use Duolingo a lot and I’m not learning much!” - as a plurilingual speaker and language professor, I listen to this sentence (or any possible variation in present, past, or future tenses) at least twice a week. Let’s dive into this and try to understand what Duolingo is and how to use it.

To follow the trend, “I tried it so you don’t have to” of influencers everywhere, I’d like to propose my own trend: “I use it, so you can decide if it’s for you or not”.

Duolingo has become one of the world’s most popular tools for learning languages online. Its gamified platform draws millions of users, making language learning accessible, free, and fun. But can an app—no matter how engaging—ever be a true replacement for a classroom and a skilled teacher? The evidence says: absolutely not.

Duolingo: A Powerful Tool, Not a Standalone Solution

Duolingo is efficient at introducing vocabulary, basic grammar, and providing daily exposure to a foreign language (1↗, 2↗, 3↗). In fact, studies indicate that motivated beginners can achieve the equivalent of a first-semester college course with regular Duolingo use. Learners often report increased confidence and satisfaction with their progress, especially in the initial stages of language acquisition (3↗, 4↗, 5↗). I’d like to add that since it started, many improvements have been made, with oral production and comprehension exercises and the possibility to videocall AI in some languages. I use it in German, for example.

Screenshots from Duolingo app: trace a hanzi and translate Catalan

However, both research and the wider language teaching community consistently emphasize the limitations of app-based learning (2↗, 4↗):

  • Lack of Real-World Communication: While Duolingo helps develop vocabulary and reading/listening skills, it falls short in equipping learners for authentic, spontaneous conversations. Seventy-eight percent of educators agreed that Duolingo supports communication, but many note that app-based exercises alone cannot replicate the nuances of live interactions (4↗). In my journey learning Catalan (in 2017), I knew how to talk to horses and mice, for example, but living in Barcelona, that experience wasn’t as helpful.
  • Shallow Cultural Context: Language isn’t just a system of words and grammar. Culture, idioms, humor, and social cues play a massive role. Apps, as yet, cannot foster this depth of understanding on their own (2↗, 6↗).
  • Motivation and Retention: Many learners struggle with consistency when using apps in isolation, often dropping out or plateauing after initial enthusiasm wanes (3↗).

The Case for the Human Touch: Classes and Professors

Authentic learning happens when students engage with the language in real communication, receive personalized feedback, and are challenged to express themselves in unpredictable contexts. Here’s why real classes and professors are irreplaceable (7↗, 6↗, 8↗):

  • Interaction With a Skilled Guide: Teachers adapt lessons in real time, addressing misunderstandings, challenging students, and encouraging discussion that goes off-script from an app’s rigid structure.
  • Exposure to Authentic Materials: Professors introduce newspapers, audio clips, guest speakers, and videos—materials that immerse students in the living language and culture, not just isolated phrases (6↗, 8↗).
  • Community and Confidence: Language is social. A classroom provides real listeners and speakers, peer encouragement, and a sense of belonging that motivates ongoing learning (7↗, 9↗).
  • Personalization and Accountability: Skilled teachers spot weaknesses, tailor learning plans, and hold students accountable—capabilities that even advanced AI cannot yet rival - no matter how savvy tech people are to convince you otherwise.
Screenshots from Duolingo app: review a previous mistake and learn a new word

Recent Duolingo Controversies and Policy Concerns

Duolingo’s recent decision to pivot toward artificial intelligence-generated lessons or replace human contractors with AI has sparked heated backlash from users and language professionals alike (10↗, 12↗, 13↗, 14↗). Many fear a drop in educational quality and the erosion of cultural and linguistic nuance. Despite CEO reassurances after the “AI-first” incident, the incident highlights mounting concerns that cost-saving corporate strategies risk reducing learning to a homogenized, automated experience—devoid of the human element that makes language meaningful (10↗, 13↗, 15↗).

My personal conclusion

I’ve been using this App since 2017, when I was living in California and couldn’t find a tutor for Catalan while doing my research in Romance languages and trying to decide where to apply for my PhD program. Did it work for me? It did. Why? Because it wasn’t my first attempt at learning a foreign language, I could already speak four other languages from the same linguistic family, and I was highly motivated. Currently, I’m using it every day - with, may I proudly add, a streak of 270 days - with Mandarin, Portuguese, and German. In order, a language I’m learning, a language I’m deepening, a language I’m reviewing. Is this all I do for these languages? No. I’m taking private tutoring classes in Mandarin, and playing with Duolingo for six months has helped me fight the overwhelming feeling of being lost for our first meeting, and it keeps me motivated, but that’s pretty much it. I owe everything I know to my excellent teacher. Portuguese, I’m taking private tutoring classes too. I want to be able to converse more and solve any doubts I might have about the language. Let’s face it, I mostly use it on Duolingo for easy points to stay in the Diamond League… German, what a fascinating language I’ve learned in three semesters in Grad school! I love this language, and one of my dearest friends is from Germany. After years of not using it to focus on other languages, I felt guilty. So, I got back at it with Duolingo, to keep it fresh. Is it working? Time will tell, for now, it just feels so much easier after Mandarin that I want to play around with it to treat myself a little.

So, honestly, use Duolingo if you like a competitive challenge to motivate you every day; in this case, it’s an excellent tool! But to truly learn a language, join a class led by a real professor - and, hey, I’m telling you this not because I’m one of those real professors, but because I've been a student of so many of those real professors! Only then will you gain the confidence, cultural fluency, and communicative skills that mark an authentic, lasting mastery of a new language. Apps are powerful assistants; teachers are the real guides (2↗, 6↗, 8↗).

To dive deep into this:

If you’d like to explore these issues in depth, consider reading the following articles and studies:

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