Four months of Japanese!
I have officially spent four months—120 consecutive days (as of right now, it is 119 days!)—obeying a green bird’s passive-aggressive notifications. I’m currently sitting at a Japanese Score of 13 and have successfully fought my way into Section 2, Unit 10. By all accounts, I should be ordering sushi like a local. In reality? I’m still staring at Katakana like they’re abstract geometric art.
Let’s talk commitment. On a good day, I give Duo a solid 30 minutes. On a day where life is happening (or a new show is on Netflix, or something in politics or Splinterlands), I do the bare minimum to keep my streak alive while brushing my teeth. It’s a low-impact workout for the brain, but after 120 days, you’d think the characters would have stuck. But to be fair, I have spent a lot of time of other Japanese language learning tools, like NHK Japan podcasts (I am listing to lesson 41), and random Japanpod101 YouTube videos.
The problem? I’ve realized I’m not "learning" Japanese; I’m "playing" Japanese. That is not always bad! I certainly know more if I haven't done anything! Sure! But, have I made enough progress? If I consider 30 min a day on average (not just on Duo, but total), that would be about 60 hours! I think 60 hours in a class room (and with homework), I would have been at a better place overall. Mind you, if I would be doing homework, that would be additional 60 hours or more, so the comparison is not entirely fair.
The Romaji Crutch (And Why I Hate It)
One of my biggest gripes is the Romaji script. I absolutely loathe writing in it. It feels like a middleman that refuses to leave the party. Every time I type "N-I-H-O-N-G-O" instead of engaging with 日本語, I feel like I’m cheating. It’s the "training wheels" that actually make it harder to learn how to ride the bike. I want to read the beautiful, complex characters, not the phonetic English translations that Duo keeps dangling in front of me.
Where’s the Logic? (The Grammar Gap)
The most frustrating part of this 120-day journey is the total vacuum of grammar. Duo loves to throw a sentence at you like: "The lawyer ate the green tea flavored umbrella" (okay, maybe not that weird, but close).
But it never tells you why the sentence is built that way. Why is that particle there? Is the bird angry at me? I’m left guessing the rules of the language like I’m trying to solve a cold case with no evidence.
By other means I have learned the basic sentence construction now: A is B
AはBです
But, Duo never teach me this rule. I mean it went through numerous sentences with that pattern, but never explicitly mentioned it. To me, that is a big problem!
I started wondering if it was just me or the tool I was using. To find out, I looked into LingoDeer, an app often praised for its focus on Asian languages. Here is how they stack up based on my 120-day experience:
Duolingo vs. LingoDeer
| Feature | Duolingo (The Daily Motivator) | LingoDeer (The Language Teacher) |
|---|---|---|
| Philosophy | Gamification first; learn through pattern recognition. | Structured curriculum; learn through logic and rules. |
| Scripts (Kana) | Taught through repetitive drills; often feels like an "extra" tab. | Integrated strictly; lessons focus on stroke order and phonetics. |
| Grammar | "Implicit" learning—you have to figure out the rules yourself. | Clear "Learning Tips" that explain why a sentence is built that way. |
| Audio Quality | Clear, but often text-to-speech (computerized). | High-quality recordings from native speakers. |
| The "Hook" | High! The streak and leagues keep you coming back. | Moderate; more focused on the lesson than the game. |
The Verdict at 120 Days
I’m at Section 2, Unit 10. I have a 120-day streak. I have a score of 13. And yet, if you put a Japanese newspaper in front of me, I’d probably just point at the pictures.
Duolingo is great for making me feel like I’m doing something, but it’s time to stop the Romaji nonsense and actually learn the characters. If I’m going to spend 30 minutes a day on this, I might as well come out of it being able to read more than just the word for "Lawyer"
弁護士
Well, to be fair, I don't think I can read that kanji confidently....
If you have done Duo Japanese, you will understand the frustration!
My older sister is a cool lawyer
私の姉はかっこいい弁護士です。
Please tell me, there is a real use for that phrase! LOL. I don't know about you, but I haven't seen any "cool lawyer"! Also, for the record, I don't have an older sister, but even if I did, I would be hard pressed to call her 'cool' at 55!
