Hello!
I am making a Finnish course with @A_User based on the lessons I have made on Duolingo called Slow Finnish. I have made nearly 100 lessons on Memrise so far and I was wondering whether there is an ideal length for a course. Should I continue or is it time for Slow Finnish 2? What do you think? 
There’s no straightforward answer to this. It’s not only a case of how many levels there are but also how many items in each level. Some of the courses I am doing have levels containing less than 20 items and some have levels with 50 items. One course with 50 also has 70 levels and I sometimes think I will never reach the end!
Personally speaking, I prefer smaller and fewer levels because they feel more manageable.
One other thing to consider. With the 1, 2, 3 option, there may be an expectation amongst learners that the course content is going to be progressively more difficult (eg Beginner, Moderate, Advanced, etc).[Edit: A way around this may be to call them "…(Part 1), "…(Part 2), etc.]
I would like to think that my course is “progressively more difficult”. Most of the lessons have at least 30 items although there are shorter lessons too. I have to think about this. Let’s see what others have to say. Thank you for answering!
Just a few more things to consider: longer courses allow learners to build longer streaks. On the other hand, for those who want to download a course on the app and use it offline, smaller courses are more manageable (downloading a course successfully can be a pain).
Personally I’m indifferent to both: streaks are nice, but I’m already used to “restarting” with new courses. And I don’t use the app for sentence-based courses, so I haven’t even tried downloading it.
Personally, I prefer courses with 15 items per level. It’s fairly easy to sit down, plant 15 items, feel a sense of accomplishment for completing a level, and then move on to the next course with the brain power and motivation to continue working. And then I’m happy to do it again the next day… and the next.
As for overall course length, I’ve completed a number of courses with 750-1500 items. That’s a very comfortable length—long enough for a nice streak, but not so long that it’s difficult to complete in less than 3-6 months of consistent work.
That said, a high-quality, well-designed course can get away with being longer than 2000 items because it’s enjoyable. (I’ve completed one course with 4500+ items, and I’m 2/3 of the way through another one. I’ve also worked on long courses that weren’t good enough, so I lost interest and abandoned them after 1500-2000 words.)
Thank you for answering. So it is quality over quantity then.
Sort of… To me, “quality over quantity” implies that it’s better to have a high-quality, short course than it would be to have a long course, regardless of quality. That’s not what I was trying to communicate. I was trying to say that if a course is high-quality, long is no problem.
I’ll add that I’m delighted when I find a high-quality course that’s 2000+ words—then it will be a while before I have to look for courses again…
Thank you for the clarification!
This would be my preference.
I don’t pay attention to streaks and points and that stuff. Just if a course is high quality and engaging. And I get the sense that someone knows what they are doing. I don’t like to waste my time on low quality stuff.
I do download languages I’m working on to my phone because I like to do some reviews and speed reviews while commuting or if I’m waiting in line somewhere. So in that sense smaller sizes are nice. Though when a language is my priority I will make room for it. (Right now much of my phone is taken up by various Swedish apps).
Maybe a poll would be good to find out how much each factor matters to the people interested in Finnish?
How would I conduct such a poll? Most of the people taking my course are not on the forum.
I prefer that instead of splitting one course into serveral, it be kept whole and divided into clear sections with corresponding numbered sub-sections. Breaking up the course likes this makes it less intimidating, and gives a sense of progress.
This can be achieved using multimedia levels; their special icon creates a visual break amongst all the standard levels. These also provide an oppurtunity to give a brief introduction to a section, aswell as relevant information and tips, and even some fun background information on Finnish culture or history (preferably something that relates nicely to the course) for motivation.
Thank you for the tip!