This App Uses Karaoke to Get You Speaking New Languages

Decades of research have found that learning a second language has both short-term and long-lasting cognitive benefits, regardless of age, including language proficiency, social skills, and a broader awareness of other cultures. Not only that, but it can also open the door to new opportunities at work, potentially help with neurological health, and lead to a better understanding of other cultures.

Want to bring these benefits into your life? You can get started with Beelinguapp, which uses a unique mix of audiobooks and karaoke techniques in 14 languages to give you a total language immersion experience. And, lifetime subscriptions are on sale now for only $39.99.

There's Always Time To Learn A New Language

Learning a new language is often played off as something you do in school, and too hard to do in "real life." That's not quite true: An MIT study found that it's easier to learn a new language, but that the real key is practice. The more time you put in to learn a language, regardless of your age, the better your results.

So what about the perpetually busy world we live in? It turns out that this might work in your favor. Researchers have found that regular, short bursts of study, called "the spacing effect," are more effective for retaining and using knowledge in the long term. And taking a break to focus on another task can help you come back refreshed and ready to focus.

Finally, one of the more effective methods of learning a new language is what's called "two-way" immersion, where you teach your language to someone who, in turn, teaches you theirs. The trick is finding somebody to talk to. That's where Beelinguapp comes in, using three techniques to help you learn while supporting proficiency in reading, listening, and speaking a new language.

Text

When you start a lesson on the app, it puts up two text windows, one in your native language, and the other in the language you want to learn. The sentence is highlighted in both languages, and you can click on a sentence to have it played back to you at any time. It also uses stories and texts you're familiar with to settle you in and give you a point to compare. As you get more proficient, you can switch between the windows instead to test out your comprehension or speak sentences aloud.

Audio

Meanwhile, a native speaker reads the story. The audio can be independent of the visuals, so you can shut off your screen and play it back to test your comprehension on a run or while commuting. Listening and speaking are both fundamental to developing proficiency; one study found that doing both had substantial benefits for overall comprehension. This way you can practice both, speeding up comprehension and learning how to sound out the tougher words.

Karaoke

The karaoke styling isn't just to help you keep your place and compare words, Karaoke has been found to help reading comprehension, and as you become more comfortable with your speech, you can read along using the karaoke, allowing you listen and speak at the same time. As you wind the audio forward and back, the highlights move with it, so you can find and repeat difficult sentences.

There are endless demands on our time, no matter what we choose to focus on. Yet choosing to learn a new language, whether you want to get ahead at work or just be good enough to help your kids with their language class homework, will be time well spent.

Set yourself up for success by getting Beelinguapp while it's on sale. You can get a lifetime subscription right now for only $39.99, 60% off the usual price.

Futurism fans: To create this content, a non-editorial team worked with an affiliate partner. We may collect a small commission on items purchased through this page. This post does not necessarily reflect the views or the endorsement of the Futurism.com editorial staff.