So Long, Duolingo

 

For a number of years, I have been trying to teach myself German on Duolingo, a free language learning program on the internet.  I wanted to learn German because I have cousins who live in the German-speaking region of Switzerland.  Almost all of them speak English fluently, and, in fact, most people in Switzerland speak English.  Nevertheless, I wanted to learn the language.  

(It should be noted that the dialect spoken in the German region of Switzerland is almost a separate language which is unintelligible to people in Germany.  However, everyone learns standard German in school, and it is officially used in education, government and in the media.)

Over the years I would use Duolingo for a while, then stop, and then return, sometimes going back to the beginning.  In Switzerland I tried speaking a bit with my cousins.  One cousin said my pronunciation was very good.  On my last trip, shortly before the pandemic, I also traveled in Austria and Bavaria.  I was able to communicate a little... I could order from a menu and ask directions.  Of course, when my rudimentary German failed me, almost everyone would switch to English.  But I think that my attempts to speak the language were appreciated. 

I went back to using Duolingo more seriously, and I had a streak of more than 700 consecutive days.  During that time, they were always making changes in the course.  They turned the course into more of a competition, in which you could advance to a higher league.  However, if you didn't do enough lessons each week you would be demoted.  Some people criticized that feature, but I found that it spurred me to continue my streak.  I was in the Diamond League, the highest league.  One change that I did not like was that they did away with user comments.  If you didn't understand the grammar or syntax of a particular sentence, in the comments section you could ask a question.  Often someone would reply with an explanation.

I should also mention here that Duolingo has a free course, and also a premium course for which you have to pay.  I was perfectly satisfied with the free course. 

Then just a week or so ago they made some major changes that I found completely unacceptable.  Before it was possible to go back and review earlier lessons all the way to the beginning of the course.  Now you can no longer go back and review previous material.  I was most upset by the fact that they are limiting how many lessons you can do in a day.  Each day you receive five "hearts".  Every time that you make a mistake, you lose a "heart".  When you have lost all your "hearts", you cannot go any farther.  In a matter of days, I went from second place in the Diamond League to the bottom of the demotion zone.  If you pay for the premium course, you get unlimited "hearts".  Obviously, it is a blatant attempt to get people to switch from the free program and to start paying.  

Sorry, Duolingo, but it is time for me to say "Adiós¨.  I won't say "Auf wiedersehen", because that literally means "until we see each other again", and I don't intend to return.