Babbel

Babbel is an online language learning software and e-learning platform available in various languages since January 2008. Thirteen languages are currently offered: Dutch, Danish, English, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Spanish and Turkish. According to babbel.com, it has over 20,000,000 users from more than 190 countries.

Concept

Interactive courses offered on the babbel.com web page can be completed online without installation. There are beginner and grammar courses, vocabulary lessons, as well as courses with tongue-twisters, sayings and songs. Users wanting to learn English online can also find Business English on Babbel, with themed lessons such as “Marketing”, “Human Resources” and “PR”, in addition to English for journalists and rail employees. Those wishing to learn Spanish online can also find extensive vocabulary lessons with exercises elaborating upon differences among Spanish speaking countries. Babbel courses can also be studied on mobile devices. Apps for all major mobile platforms are available: iPhone and iPad are available in the App Store, Babbel Android Apps are available in Google Play store,Windows Phone Apps are available through the Windows Phone store, while Windows 8 and Windows RT Apps are available through the Windows App Store. Babbel relies on current technology and teaching methods that aim to make language learning simple. Multimedia reading and writing exercises, listening comprehension and pronunciation training—including a personalized review manager make a multi-sensory, comprehensive learning experience possible. Training the correct pronunciation is special focus for Babbel.com. With real-time speech recognition technology, users get immediate feedback on their level of success. Babbel also offers the possibility to contact other learners from around the world. There are individual profile pages, a “board” and an internal messaging system.