[neko_ranger]

"Gamification" is not necessarily bad, it's just how you do it. Even mathacademy.com has weekly leagues, and it does make it more motivating and social.

Put the learning stuff at the forefront, and the gamification stuff can be on the side for people who find that fun. The difference is something like mathacademy is trying to actually teach you math, duolingo is trying to hook you to look at ads.