Can't stick with Duolingo? Speak makes the case for voice-first language lessons

Apps have changed the way many of us learn new things, and solutions like Duolingo — or more recently, Google Translate’s Practice mode — have really been revelations for those of us who may have struggled before to pick up a new language. Another that’s been on our radar for a minute has been Speak, which emphasizes spoken conversations. We already found its approach to teaching quite effective (especially at building language confidence) and today we’re learning about all the new upgrades on the way, including a handy fluency metric for tracking your progress.

The overarching thinking behind these latest changes is that learning a new language should be an ongoing, personalized process. So rather than feeding you pre-packaged lessons, Speak wants to keep you engaged with methods that are tailored to you.

That starts with the app’s home screen, which is getting a overhaul that focuses on clearly communicating your progress. The new system being introduced to measure that is Speak Level, attempting to quantify what you know, how well you’re learning it, and what’s next to tackle. Initial access to Speak Level will be limited to English-learning users abroad, but that’s set to expand to everybody next year.

Easily the best way to learn a language is by speaking it, and to that end Speak is adding new voice-first lesson content, helping you to practice new words and phrases. Speak is also taking a new approach with its roleplay lessons, making them more natural-feeling and reducing the amount of prewritten content.

Of course, keeping up with your lessons is critical to any skill you’re working to actively develop, and Speak is delivering a few improvements aimed at helping out here. Those include new unit refreshers that can get you back up to speed if you had to take a break. And if you’re super-concerned about not ruining your streak, Speak’s adding new tools there, including the ability to pause and repair. Even if you don’t always have the time to catch up how you’d like to, new bite-sized vocab practice sessions can at least help you stay involved.

Be on the lookout for Speak’s big winter update hitting the app shortly. If you’re curious to give it a shot, Speak offers a free seven-day trial for new users.