Want to learn a new language but short on time? Language learning doesn’t have to be as time-consuming as you may think. In fact, if you spend just 15 minutes a day using Babbel, you can start having basic conversations in your new language in three weeks! Here’s how we know it works.
Experts believe practicing for 15 minutes daily is the perfect amount of study time. It has to do with the concept of learning in small chunks, which helps our brains absorb new material. With this in mind, Babbel’s team of language-learning experts designs each lesson to take around 15 minutes to complete, teaching you a few new pieces of info that you’ll easily remember and build on over time. Babbel takes a scientific approach to language learning that’s been proven effective by researchers at Yale University, City University of New York, Michigan State University and more.
We wanted to test out these expert findings to see if they hold true when real learners use Babbel. To prove this, we challenged a complete beginner to study with Babbel for only 15 minutes a day. Watch the video above to see how she did!
Here are the top five reasons Babbel makes even the most beginner language learners successful:
1. Lessons are tailored to your native language
The Babbel app is available in seven languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Italian and Swedish. From these seven languages, you can choose to learn any one of 14 languages. That makes for nearly 100 language combinations, and Babbel needs to be able to accommodate for all of them. Why? Let’s take a simple example. As an English speaker learning German, you won’t need as much help translating the verbs bringen and singen as the average Spanish speaker, whose verbs traer and cantar bear no resemblance to their German counterparts.
Every Babbel unit is developed with your native language at the very forefront of the developer’s mind. We know you’ve already learned at least one language successfully — your native language — so we build on the grammatical concepts that you’ve already mastered and gently introduce the new ones.
2. It’s designed to get you speaking as soon as possible
You all probably know the Eddie Izzard sketch where he effortlessly recites phrases from his school days: “The mouse is under the table and the monkey is on the branch.” Like most good comedy, it’s funny because it’s true. Generations of language learners can sympathize with the unfortunate predicament of being able to successfully construct semi-functional sentences (if you’re in a French zoo), but still struggle to complete basic daily tasks such as buying a bottle of water in a shop.
At Babbel, we believe that keeping oneself hydrated is more important than discerning the location of monkeys, so we avoid drilling abstract grammar and vocabulary, and focus on real-life dialogue. After the first unit you’ll be able to introduce yourself, talk about where you’re from, how you’re doing, how you got to wherever you are, and — most importantly — say what you’d like to drink. In fact, if you’re bored of reading English, you can get started in your language of choice here. Select Spanish and you could be ordering sangria at your local tapas bar by this time tomorrow (unless you’re reading this at breakfast time, in which case, I recommend you go for the huevos rotos con papas fritas — ¡te echo de menos, amigo!)
3. It offers 10-15 minute, bite-sized lessons that fit conveniently into your schedule
The most common excuse we hear for not learning a new language is: “not enough time.”
People are busy nowadays. Your daily schedule looks like the first Lego™ tower you ever made, with blocks of meetings perched precariously on top of one another. So, it’s probably time you took a vacation. But before you do, indulge in a few of your Babbel lessons. Each lesson is designed to take you 10-15 minutes, they’re ideal for accompanying the commute, a quiet lunchtime snack, or a post-work glass of wine and that well-deserved bit of time for yourself.
Bottom line: If you have 15 minutes a day, you have time to learn a language!
4. You can choose the topics that are relevant to you
The Babbel app makes it easy to pick and choose which specific topics you’d like to learn each day. Whether you want to learn how to order food, how to get around a city, how to conduct a business meeting or even how to flirt with someone, there’s a Babbel lesson covering the topics that are most relevant to you.
“Babbel does a great job at making [the lessons] apply to your everyday life. There’s a lesson on almost anything and everything that would apply to your situation,” said Taylor, who studied Spanish with Babbel.
5. Lessons are fun and interactive
We’re all capable of learning a second, third or even fourth language, but we often go about it the wrong way, opening dictionaries at A and bailing out at B, or assuming that our first communication fail is indicative of all future attempts. Babbel preaches the little and often approach, with a diverse offering of relevant lessons that keep you engaged and promote your reading, listening, writing and speaking skills. The timely introduction and repetition of new vocabulary and grammar explanations ensures you make sustained, upward progress and never feel overwhelmed.