Language learners can import and learn using content from the internet

US based platform motivates wannabe linguists by letting them learn from the books, articles and podcasts they’re interested in.

As the world of work becomes more globalised, it is becoming increasingly important to have a basic knowledge of other languages beyond the international business language, English. We have written about several innovations that have presented us with novel ways of learning new languages, amongst them this platform that facilitates video chats between those teaching and those wanting to learn, and this social robot that teaches children new languages. Now LingQ helps its users learn languages through real content.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MC5NaKdZdg

Wannabe linguists can start with beginner lessons and progress through to learning from real content like podcasts, audiobooks and interviews as they improve, letting users import their own content from the web. LingQ has also developed a platform for users to communicate with each other, and learners can join live conversations with native speakers. The platform aims to provide users with meaningful communication and interesting content in their target language, offering real motivation to progress. Some interesting additional features include being able to look up and save new words and phrases to a personal database and the ability to track learning activities including listening time and words read.

Could this kind of technology be used in the classroom?