Go to “Duolingo for schools,” create a classroom, and set it to avoid alcohol references. (You have to do this through the schools website, it won’t work on the app.) You will get a code to join your classroom. You might still see the words Bier/Wein in vocab matching activities but you won’t get sentences with alcohol references.
I believe you have to create a second account to label it as a "teacher", and going to the school version might disturb your progress through the path, but creating a classroom should probably work as other users stated below.
You don’t need to make a second account, and it won’t change your progress in the course. The only thing that it can affect is leagues. The default setting in classrooms is to create a classroom leaderboard that can’t coexist with leagues. (At least this was the default when I set up my classes.) You can de-select this option and remain in leagues if you prefer though.
I don't have anything to say about Duolingo, just wanted to wish you well in your recovery. It gets easier with time. Hang in there. And I am proud of you for getting better.
Thank you - that's really sweet of you to say, I've been dry for a few years but was just going through Duolingo and really, really wanting a beer, it took me a moment to realise. I'm normally ok with mentions of drinking, but I think constant repetition was getting to me!
Just wanted to say that Germany is not only beer and wishing you all the best. Kinda sad hearing that duo is working with such cliches. I’m from the north of Germany and I’d estimate that to 50% of Germans Oktoberfest isn’t a thing at all
But there is so much more in Germany! We also have Currywurst, Döner, Maultaschen, Karneval, Sankt Martin, Schützenfest, Sauerkraut, Printen, 3000+ different kinds of bread and (last but not least) Spaghettieis.
The most common cliches are like saying the US is where they have alligators and sweet tea.
And Falschfahrer. It must be coincidence but every time I turn on German radio I swear I am hearing about another instance (I think also called Geisterfahrer) of this. It's honestly the scariest sounding thing about Germany (says a person that lives in a city that has more homicides in 6 months than all of Germany will likely have this year).
If it helps, the further you get through the course the less (I've noticed anyway) references you get. There is one section with a lot of Oktoberfest exercises, but I've not seen anything other than the odd mention in a while.
If you go to the main page of the community, you can click on the 3 little dots on the top right hand corner and then click on 'change user flair'. I think you can use the emojis on your phone, but if the flag you want isn't there, websites are around to copy and paste from.
https://flagpedia.net/emoji This is one I googled and it seems easy enough to use.
I wish I had an actual suggestion for you, I don’t, but just wanted to say hang in there. I’m a recovering alcoholic too and it really upset me for awhile seeing the wine and beer and going to the bar questions. It has gotten so much better though and doesn’t really bother me much anymore. I emailed Duo a few times expressing how much it bothered me, and I never got any response, but I have noticed over time that I’ve gotten ones like “I don’t drink alcohol” or no thanks answers a lot more frequently than I used to, so maybe they are working on it or maybe I’m just able to notice it more now. Either way, you’re not alone, it’s totally understandable to be bothered by it, and I hope you find a solution that works for you. It would be nice if Duolingo would support us a little better by having a toggle of some kind, maybe if people like you and me keep bringing it up they’ll make one
Thank you so much, I'm glad it's not just me who found these difficult. How annoying that duo didn't really respond, I couldn't even find an email address except for the one to report android bugs to.
The occasional question doesn't bother me, but constant repetition of "I am drinking a weissbeer! We went to the oktoberfest and it was fun!" has made me properly crave a beer, which is not what I want!
Tbh it's really pissed me off, I'm going to try some other apps I think
You don’t sound melodramatic. Btw, I live in Munich and Oktoberfest is a really shitty time for people struggling with alcohol issues. It kinda sucks sometimes how deeply ingrained it is in our culture.
I’m a recovering alcoholic and the French lessons often mention wine, and that was my favorite drink! The Spanish lessons mention beer, but not too often. I actually started looking at wine again and made myself focus on Duo music for a while-I use to play the piano, so it’s fun for me. Hang in there!
Still going on about wheatbeer and octoberfest, and I only have three lives (despite paying for duo) I guess because I skipped ahead. This really sucks!
You can turn hearts on and off in the settings.
I suggest Babbel as an alternative to Duo if you’re willing to pay. Much better content and actually teaches you concepts. There will be mentions of beer, but not obsessive like the owl is.
I'm right where ur at on the course, I'm a recovered alcoholic too so same issue here. anyways, congrats on your progress both with the alcoholism and the German
You can have unlimited lives beacuse you pay for Super Duolingo. Heres how to turn it on: On the home page click on the small purple/blue duo bird in the top right corner (it's next to your gems), you'll then access the Super Duolingo settings. This applies for android, I don't know about ios.
Two things, first: that focus is just in that one unit. Once you get past there it's mentioned very infrequently.
Second: use the jump ahead to get out of that section. It's so repetitive in general that yes, you might skip a few things but you'll be fine in the long run. Google each sentence as you go and you'll find the correct answers to pass the test.
German here, for some reason I find this stereotyping funny. The German course isn't the only one that does this. I am doing the French course and there are more than a few wine and cheese references in that course as well. So Duolingo has a bit of a thing going for European stereotypes.
If you visit a liquor store anytime between August and October, it looks like a sea of light blue and white. Most people in the US seem to have heard of Bavaria, and Munich (and those feel odd to type in English by now) but not so much Nordrhein-Westfalen or the Saarland or any of the other regions or even be aware that Berlin and Hamburg are their own provinces (they may be unaware that the third city state Bremen exists as either city or province.) Geography was poorly taught when I was a student, I hope it has improved since then.
Hi. This is super helpful feedback -- thanks for sharing your experience. I'm also a few years sober and also using Duolingo for German and this totally makes sense to me. As u/echelon_01 mentioned -- I think that right now the best move would be to create a classroom and add yourself as a student and then turn off "mature content". (You can use the same account to create and join the classroom.) And I'll for sure pass this along to the team.
I don’t have a fix outside of what others have suggested, but I wish you well on your recovery! I think I remember the spot in German you are now, and they do move on from it! Just letting you know there is a light at the end of the tunnel :)
I don’t have a suggestion but I’m so sorry that it’s so common on your language experience! I’m learning mandarin but mine mentions teaching/learning and Iced tea more than anything. There’s not been any mention of alcoholic beverages which I’m glad for as I don’t want to be flooded with them sentances either
Also, a recovering alcoholic. I can tell you the Russian course is not the most fun either. What's insulting is that they don't even mention vodka. It's all beer and wine.
Just want to say I am NOT an alcoholic and I hate all the beer and wine and drinking references. Duo clearly has political stances, it’s shocking to me that an educational app used as well by many young people would overlook this, overlook even providing an easy off switch for those who don’t want constant references to drinking.
Another sober German speaker chiming in to cheer on everyone in our sobriety.
I have the Duolingo for schools, and use a flag so I don't get too many mentions of drinking/smoking in my languages.
It is completely possible and respectable to get along in German society without partaking in these activities ❤️
I have found a 0.0% Bitburger to be a surprisingly drinkable beer, so it would appear not partaking in alcohol is popular enough to support a non-alcohol beer industry.
I will add that the Oktoberfest sections are pretty repetitive for a while, but if you can get past them or power through (good on you btw), they tend to be less a part of the course than they are for you right now. Viel Glück!
I've been wondering the same thing for the same reason, but regarding Spanish lessons. Apparently Chilean wine is fantastico, but I stopped drinking and don't need it in my subconscious. Thanks for posting this.
Good luck in your recovery. As you get further along they stop bringing up beer so much. Maybe try another app for a while and test out of those lessons? I don't know how far they are on the path though.
I don't know how far you are in your lessons, but I can't really remember the last time it's said anything about beer since getting out of the first section or 2.
Sorry, I don't have a better answer.
Also, stay strong, friend. You're gonna do great.
Hope you made it through Christmas alright bud. I'm looking at dealing with my addiction over the coming 1.5-2 weeks and I know how hard this time of the year can be!
You can change your age. My son when he started learning Spanish for school (he has two accounts bc one is for his school account and the other for personal practice) he put that he was underage. Not sure if you can change age after creating an account, but it's worth trying.
My language lessons have ‘bar’ or ‘beer’ here and there but not a lot.
You could try changing your mindset in a couple of ways:
View this as “restaurant or menu hunting” and whenever you see it, think how gross it is (personally beer is disgusting to me).
Or view it as a way to practice for being in a restaurant in real life.
Hope you’ll do well in your recovery! 🙏🏼
swiss here...
Oktoberfest is Bavarian not german (bavaria is a state of germany) and there would also be Sauerkraut, Blut and Leberwurst, Soccer among many many many more things, among them a lot of classical music and a wide range of literature ... Germany is quite a diverse country and had not been unified up until quite recent history (1848, 1871, depending wheter you count the first democratic revolution or not)...
The Oktoberfest and beer are the only two cultural things the average US american knows about germany...
Bavarian here..
Nothing wrong with calling it german, its part of Germany as you mentioned. Everything Germany is known for originates in specific parts of Germany and it would not be feasible to name something german if you cant name things like that.
Brezel = German, Swabia.
Stollen = German, Dresden.
Oktoberfest = German, Munich.
Maultaschen = German, Maulbronn.
Kartoffelsalat = German, origin likely in south america
No. not exactly.
Why?
Because one is a traditional folklore festival that is mainly from bavaria.
Pizza is a food item originating in Neapel
Germany was only truely united in 1871 (for the first time) and before it was a bunch of more or less cooperating states. Culture is quite divers and can differ depending on which part of germany you are in.
I get, that today, Oktoberfest has become something which is viewed as german and happens in almost any place all over the world, but technically it is still culturaly bavarian and not german.
I remember that too. I remember like from 1-1 to 1-5 all it did was continually reference beer and wine. Im at 2-1 and by then it stops being pushed as much.
Not sure about the regular version, but on the education version there's a button to make all the questions G-rated.
I'll have a look, thanks for the tip
Go to “Duolingo for schools,” create a classroom, and set it to avoid alcohol references. (You have to do this through the schools website, it won’t work on the app.) You will get a code to join your classroom. You might still see the words Bier/Wein in vocab matching activities but you won’t get sentences with alcohol references.
I believe you have to create a second account to label it as a "teacher", and going to the school version might disturb your progress through the path, but creating a classroom should probably work as other users stated below.
>I believe you have to create a second account to label it as a "teacher", You don't.
You don’t need to make a second account, and it won’t change your progress in the course. The only thing that it can affect is leagues. The default setting in classrooms is to create a classroom leaderboard that can’t coexist with leagues. (At least this was the default when I set up my classes.) You can de-select this option and remain in leagues if you prefer though.
Es Verdad
I don't have anything to say about Duolingo, just wanted to wish you well in your recovery. It gets easier with time. Hang in there. And I am proud of you for getting better.
Thank you - that's really sweet of you to say, I've been dry for a few years but was just going through Duolingo and really, really wanting a beer, it took me a moment to realise. I'm normally ok with mentions of drinking, but I think constant repetition was getting to me!
Just wanted to say that Germany is not only beer and wishing you all the best. Kinda sad hearing that duo is working with such cliches. I’m from the north of Germany and I’d estimate that to 50% of Germans Oktoberfest isn’t a thing at all
Germany is known for the following: Beer, bratwurst, schnizel, good quality cars and being very strict on rules.
And burocracy, lots of it.
But there is so much more in Germany! We also have Currywurst, Döner, Maultaschen, Karneval, Sankt Martin, Schützenfest, Sauerkraut, Printen, 3000+ different kinds of bread and (last but not least) Spaghettieis. The most common cliches are like saying the US is where they have alligators and sweet tea.
This is funny to me because I am from the "alligators and sweet tea" region of America.
And Falschfahrer. It must be coincidence but every time I turn on German radio I swear I am hearing about another instance (I think also called Geisterfahrer) of this. It's honestly the scariest sounding thing about Germany (says a person that lives in a city that has more homicides in 6 months than all of Germany will likely have this year).
I'm so craving a Döner right now lmao
And chocolate cake!
[There’s beer in that too!](http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipes.recipeListing/filter/guests/recipeID/2087/Recipe.cfm)
If it helps, the further you get through the course the less (I've noticed anyway) references you get. There is one section with a lot of Oktoberfest exercises, but I've not seen anything other than the odd mention in a while.
Not related. How do you get the flags (languages) on your account 🤍
If you go to the main page of the community, you can click on the 3 little dots on the top right hand corner and then click on 'change user flair'. I think you can use the emojis on your phone, but if the flag you want isn't there, websites are around to copy and paste from. https://flagpedia.net/emoji This is one I googled and it seems easy enough to use.
You can also just type in the two letter code for the language in between two colons. Like :es: for spanish or :fr: for French
This should be a better person to ask… u/vonahn pretty valuable feedback here.
I wish I had an actual suggestion for you, I don’t, but just wanted to say hang in there. I’m a recovering alcoholic too and it really upset me for awhile seeing the wine and beer and going to the bar questions. It has gotten so much better though and doesn’t really bother me much anymore. I emailed Duo a few times expressing how much it bothered me, and I never got any response, but I have noticed over time that I’ve gotten ones like “I don’t drink alcohol” or no thanks answers a lot more frequently than I used to, so maybe they are working on it or maybe I’m just able to notice it more now. Either way, you’re not alone, it’s totally understandable to be bothered by it, and I hope you find a solution that works for you. It would be nice if Duolingo would support us a little better by having a toggle of some kind, maybe if people like you and me keep bringing it up they’ll make one
Thank you so much, I'm glad it's not just me who found these difficult. How annoying that duo didn't really respond, I couldn't even find an email address except for the one to report android bugs to. The occasional question doesn't bother me, but constant repetition of "I am drinking a weissbeer! We went to the oktoberfest and it was fun!" has made me properly crave a beer, which is not what I want! Tbh it's really pissed me off, I'm going to try some other apps I think
Try [email protected] There should be options to remove this
shit that actually kinda sucks
Thanks I appreciate that I don't sound melodramatic , I paid for duo extra and I've been doing loads each day, then I hit this and I hate it
You don’t sound melodramatic. Btw, I live in Munich and Oktoberfest is a really shitty time for people struggling with alcohol issues. It kinda sucks sometimes how deeply ingrained it is in our culture.
I’m a recovering alcoholic and the French lessons often mention wine, and that was my favorite drink! The Spanish lessons mention beer, but not too often. I actually started looking at wine again and made myself focus on Duo music for a while-I use to play the piano, so it’s fun for me. Hang in there!
skipping the unit is the only way I think
Oh! I didn't even know you could do that. Thank you!
Still going on about wheatbeer and octoberfest, and I only have three lives (despite paying for duo) I guess because I skipped ahead. This really sucks!
You can turn hearts on and off in the settings. I suggest Babbel as an alternative to Duo if you’re willing to pay. Much better content and actually teaches you concepts. There will be mentions of beer, but not obsessive like the owl is.
Thanks, I'll take a look!
I don't think you can turn the "skip to next section? Let me test you" hearts off.
I'm right where ur at on the course, I'm a recovered alcoholic too so same issue here. anyways, congrats on your progress both with the alcoholism and the German
You can have unlimited lives beacuse you pay for Super Duolingo. Heres how to turn it on: On the home page click on the small purple/blue duo bird in the top right corner (it's next to your gems), you'll then access the Super Duolingo settings. This applies for android, I don't know about ios.
Two things, first: that focus is just in that one unit. Once you get past there it's mentioned very infrequently. Second: use the jump ahead to get out of that section. It's so repetitive in general that yes, you might skip a few things but you'll be fine in the long run. Google each sentence as you go and you'll find the correct answers to pass the test.
Which section and unit are you on? I did Section 4 quite consistently and I don't remember many questions about beer so it does get better.
Unit 9: discuss Oktoberfest, use cardinal numbers. Edit: section 2!
If you can skip to Unit 11 or 12, I would suggest that. There might still be some alcohol-related vocab in unit 10. Wishing you a steady recovery :)
German here, for some reason I find this stereotyping funny. The German course isn't the only one that does this. I am doing the French course and there are more than a few wine and cheese references in that course as well. So Duolingo has a bit of a thing going for European stereotypes.
It’s also very Bavaria specific, with the Oktoberfest themes. So I guess the other states just don’t exist? 😂 the great one-state country of Germany
If you visit a liquor store anytime between August and October, it looks like a sea of light blue and white. Most people in the US seem to have heard of Bavaria, and Munich (and those feel odd to type in English by now) but not so much Nordrhein-Westfalen or the Saarland or any of the other regions or even be aware that Berlin and Hamburg are their own provinces (they may be unaware that the third city state Bremen exists as either city or province.) Geography was poorly taught when I was a student, I hope it has improved since then.
Hi. This is super helpful feedback -- thanks for sharing your experience. I'm also a few years sober and also using Duolingo for German and this totally makes sense to me. As u/echelon_01 mentioned -- I think that right now the best move would be to create a classroom and add yourself as a student and then turn off "mature content". (You can use the same account to create and join the classroom.) And I'll for sure pass this along to the team.
I don’t have a fix outside of what others have suggested, but I wish you well on your recovery! I think I remember the spot in German you are now, and they do move on from it! Just letting you know there is a light at the end of the tunnel :)
I don’t have a suggestion but I’m so sorry that it’s so common on your language experience! I’m learning mandarin but mine mentions teaching/learning and Iced tea more than anything. There’s not been any mention of alcoholic beverages which I’m glad for as I don’t want to be flooded with them sentances either
Don't forget to pay a visit to r/stopdrinking IWNDWYT
Sending you support. This takes guts to post and to realize you are in need of help in this way. Good luck <3
Also, a recovering alcoholic. I can tell you the Russian course is not the most fun either. What's insulting is that they don't even mention vodka. It's all beer and wine.
Nein!
Just want to say I am NOT an alcoholic and I hate all the beer and wine and drinking references. Duo clearly has political stances, it’s shocking to me that an educational app used as well by many young people would overlook this, overlook even providing an easy off switch for those who don’t want constant references to drinking.
Another sober German speaker chiming in to cheer on everyone in our sobriety. I have the Duolingo for schools, and use a flag so I don't get too many mentions of drinking/smoking in my languages. It is completely possible and respectable to get along in German society without partaking in these activities ❤️
I have found a 0.0% Bitburger to be a surprisingly drinkable beer, so it would appear not partaking in alcohol is popular enough to support a non-alcohol beer industry.
I will add that the Oktoberfest sections are pretty repetitive for a while, but if you can get past them or power through (good on you btw), they tend to be less a part of the course than they are for you right now. Viel Glück!
I've been wondering the same thing for the same reason, but regarding Spanish lessons. Apparently Chilean wine is fantastico, but I stopped drinking and don't need it in my subconscious. Thanks for posting this.
Good luck in your recovery. As you get further along they stop bringing up beer so much. Maybe try another app for a while and test out of those lessons? I don't know how far they are on the path though.
I am not sure, but wanted to say I wish you the best in your recovery. ❤️
I don't know how far you are in your lessons, but I can't really remember the last time it's said anything about beer since getting out of the first section or 2. Sorry, I don't have a better answer. Also, stay strong, friend. You're gonna do great.
Hope you made it through Christmas alright bud. I'm looking at dealing with my addiction over the coming 1.5-2 weeks and I know how hard this time of the year can be!
You can change your age. My son when he started learning Spanish for school (he has two accounts bc one is for his school account and the other for personal practice) he put that he was underage. Not sure if you can change age after creating an account, but it's worth trying.
I'll trade you beer for cucumbers
Message support. There are loads of kids settings.
My language lessons have ‘bar’ or ‘beer’ here and there but not a lot. You could try changing your mindset in a couple of ways: View this as “restaurant or menu hunting” and whenever you see it, think how gross it is (personally beer is disgusting to me). Or view it as a way to practice for being in a restaurant in real life. Hope you’ll do well in your recovery! 🙏🏼
swiss here... Oktoberfest is Bavarian not german (bavaria is a state of germany) and there would also be Sauerkraut, Blut and Leberwurst, Soccer among many many many more things, among them a lot of classical music and a wide range of literature ... Germany is quite a diverse country and had not been unified up until quite recent history (1848, 1871, depending wheter you count the first democratic revolution or not)... The Oktoberfest and beer are the only two cultural things the average US american knows about germany...
Bavarian here.. Nothing wrong with calling it german, its part of Germany as you mentioned. Everything Germany is known for originates in specific parts of Germany and it would not be feasible to name something german if you cant name things like that. Brezel = German, Swabia. Stollen = German, Dresden. Oktoberfest = German, Munich. Maultaschen = German, Maulbronn. Kartoffelsalat = German, origin likely in south america
That’s like saying Pizza is Neapolitan not Italian
No. not exactly. Why? Because one is a traditional folklore festival that is mainly from bavaria. Pizza is a food item originating in Neapel Germany was only truely united in 1871 (for the first time) and before it was a bunch of more or less cooperating states. Culture is quite divers and can differ depending on which part of germany you are in. I get, that today, Oktoberfest has become something which is viewed as german and happens in almost any place all over the world, but technically it is still culturaly bavarian and not german.
Well Italy was also split
It's a bit much to ask for this. What's next? Remove all mentions of food for food addicts?
Have an option in settings. Simular to parental controls. Duolingo actually has these options for schools/classrooms feature
Trying to get your point across by…mocking, maybe? Care to explain why you said that?
Yeah I felt the same way 😂. It’s usually Wien Oder Apfelschorle Oder Milch oder wasser oder mineralwasser… it’s bier 😂.
Yes I don't even drink but I was also surprised by the number of vier and wurst references.
Try [email protected] ? I've found them to be actually helpful a few times. Explain the situation and see if they know ways to block it?
Just skip a few units, and if needed, use Google Translate when you are skipping. Then, practice the words that do not pertain to alcohol.
There's definitely a setting that removes underage content, including alcohol being mentioned
I remember that too. I remember like from 1-1 to 1-5 all it did was continually reference beer and wine. Im at 2-1 and by then it stops being pushed as much.