Duolingo English Test Syllabus 2023: Check Section-wise Format, Types of Questions, Time limit

The Duolingo Test Pattern is a little different from other English language tests that can be taken from the test centers. Duolingo is a convenient, fast, and affordable exam that is designed to take the test online anywhere, anytime. Duolingo is accepted by more than 4000 institutions worldwide as an English language proficiency test. The Duolingo English Test is a 1-hour online test. The Duolingo Test pattern is divided into two parts broadly. One is a 45-minute adaptive test that has a series of questions that evaluate a candidate's English skills. The other is a 10-minute Writing and Speaking test that has open-ended prompts that are shared with institutions alongside a candidate's score. The first 5 minutes is an introduction that walks the test takers through the test rules and requirements. It is scored on a scale from 10 - 160. The Duolingo Pattern has 4 parts that are designed to monitor the English language proficiency of the candidate in all aspects. The difficulty level of the questions are in no particular order. You may encounter any kind of questions, easy of difficult, first.

Check: Duolingo to TOEFL Score Conversion 2023

Sections	Ability analyzed
Literacy	Ability to read and write
Comprehension	Ability to listen and read
Conversation	Ability to speak and listen
Production	Ability to write and speak

Duolingo Test Pattern Highlights

Test Name	Duolingo English Test
Mode	Online
Sections	2
Types of Questions	Objective + Descriptive
Duration	60 minutes
Test Pattern	Introduction - 5 minutes Adaptive test - 45 minutes Writing and speaking sample - 10 minutes

Duolingo Exam Pattern

The Duolingo English Test is of 60 minutes in total. We have given the complete break up of the exam below.

Introduction	5 minutes
Adaptive test (Graded)	45 minutes
Writing and speaking sample (Ungraded)	10 minutes

Duolingo is an Adaptive test

Duolingo is an adaptive test and is designed to evaluate the reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills of the candidates. The Adaptive section of the test is of 45 minutes. The Adaptive test section is a graded section of the DET 2022. The adaptive test means that the questions in the Duolingo English Test adapt to the answers given by the test taker. So, the difficulty level of the questions is set accordingly. As the test is AI-driven, the questions are generated by a grading system implemented by Duolingo. So, the system selects questions from a large pool of questions, so, no question gets repeated. Apart from this, the test duration is of 60 minutes but there is not a limited or defined number of questions. The grading system will end the test when it is ensured by the score secured by the test taker.

Duolingo English Test - Video Interview

The video interview is a different section that is a 10-minute test. It includes a Writing and speaking sample and has open-ended prompts that are shared with institutions alongside the test taker's score. As asked by Duolingo, you need to have a front-facing camera, a microphone, working speakers, and a reliable internet connection. In this section, a candidate needs to 

• Describe an image
• Speak about a given situation
• Speak on a topic for a few minutes

Duolingo English Test Syllabus

The complete online 1-hour test is divided into 3 different parts. The introduction, Computer Adaptive Test, and Video Writing and speaking sample. Below we have mentioned in detail each of the parts of the Duolingo syllabus.

Introduction

The 5-minute introduction walks the test taker through the test rules and requirements. As for the test requirements, you need to have a valid government ID to register for Duolingo. Also, one needs to have the required computer set up that includes a working computer/laptop, reliable internet, a front-facing camera, a microphone, speakers, and a well-lit room. Also, candidates need to follow the rules and guidelines strictly while taking the test, or Duolingo can either cancel the test or invalidate your score or the test taker can be permanently banned from the Duolingo English Test.

Adaptive test (Graded)

• This is the most important part of the Duolingo English test as it includes a series of different questions that evaluate the candidate's English skills. 
• The 45-minute section analyses the English skills through short questions
• The difficulty level of the questions changes according to the performance of the test taker

Video Writing and speaking sample (Ungraded)

It includes open-ended prompts that are shared with institutions alongside your score. The 10-minute section includes 2 prompts out of which the candidate has to answer one.

• You will be given 30 seconds to choose the prompt
• 1-3 minutes are there to attempt the video-speaking sample
• 3 to 5 minutes are dedicated to the writing sample
• Test takers are given time to review their video samples and also write sample answers before submission

Types of questions in the Duolingo English Test Adaptive section

Questions Type	Subscores	Time limit
Read and complete	Literacy, Comprehension	3 min
Read and select	Literacy, Comprehension	1 min
Listen and select	Comprehension, Conversation	1.5 min
Listen and types	Comprehension, Conversation	1 min
Read aloud	Comprehension, Conversation	20 sec
Write about photo	Production, Literacy	1 min
Speak about photo	Production, Conversation	1 - 1.5 min
Read and write	Conversation, Production	0.5 - 1.5 min
Listen and speak	Conversation, Production	0.5 - 1.5 min

Although the exact number of questions that are going to be asked is not defined but one can know the type of questions that are going to be asked in the Duolingo test pattern.