Aug 2022 - Dec 2022
Individual Project
User Research, UX Design, Visual Design
During my years as a Chinese teacher, I’ve noticed that mobile apps are very popular among Chinese learners. The concept of studying for five minutes everyday for great long-term returns sounds very appealing. However, most attempts seem to end nowhere. Very few people achieve fluency or even intermediate proficiency just by using language learning apps. This observation led to the question - Is possible to learn a language through an app?
To find out what people expect when they start learning a new language, and to what extent the language learning apps meet their expectations, I first conducted a user survey.
On a scale of 1 to 5, people rated the effectiveness of language learning apps an average of 2.47.
60% of users find a disconnection between what they learn on apps and what they need in real life.
72% of participants lose motivation within the first month of learning with apps.
69% of participants use language apps once a week or less.
I conducted a competitive analysis on four leading Chinese learning apps on the market. To find out how apps currently address user pain points, I analyzed the main features from three perspectives - Course design, Motivation techniques, and Learning Community.
To dig deeper into how people study a new language and how they interact with mobile learning apps, I interviewed five Chinese learners who have used or are currently using language learning apps, and two Chinese teachers who have 5+ years of teaching experience.
Student Perspective
The results indicate that users don’t feel motivated by techniques commonly used by apps, such as day streak. Users are motivated when they can share study progress with others.
Users report that they don’t know when and how to apply what they learned on the mobile app in real life scenarios. Users prefer an interactive experience where they can practice conversations that they will actually use in real life.
I struggle to stay motivated. It’s satisfying to see that I’ve made a 7-day learning streak. But that can rarely last more than two weeks.
I’m only learning Chinese because I want to make my life in China easier. Now I’m struggling with simple things like picking up deliveries, going to the bank, making appointments. The courses on the apps are not relevant enough to my life.
Teacher Perspective
Teachers report that students learn better when engaged in a healthy competition. It’s useful to have an accountable study partner with whom they can share and compare study progress.
Learning a language is a huge investment, and students expect practical results. Students want to be able to learn what’s relevant to their daily lives so they can immediately apply what they learn in familiar contexts.
Students are more engaged when they are learning with a friend. When they know they can beat their best friend, they are much more motivated to study.
If a student likes to play football, I like to teach them words and phrases they can use when playing or watching football. They always get so excited and motivated to learn!
How might we integrate accountability and student-directed learning into the app experience to help students learn practical skills and maintain motivation?
I conducted usability testing with 5 potential users. Most users felt positive about the design concept, however I discovered some problems with the onboarding experience and the homepage. Here are some iterations I made:
We tend to seek confirmation of our own beliefs. Before I started this project, I had a rough idea of how the app should look like. When I started my user research, I tended to look for patterns that confirm my initial hypothesis. The results of my first round of usability test indicate that there’s a discrepancy between what users really want and what I had assumed. For future projects, I will keep a critical mind and listen to the users.
When I started to ideate, I spent a long time feeling frustrated because I couldn't find the perfect solution. I ended up with many ideas, but none of them solved the user's problem perfectly. Through rounds of user testing, I realized that instead of looking for a definite solution, I have to look at the big picture and find a balance between the trade-offs of different solutions to maximizes overall user benefits. Next time, I will ideate as much as I can, carefully evaluate the trade-offs and determine what best meets users’ needs and expectations through more user testing. Perfect the design through iterations rather than trying to find the perfect solution at the beginning.
