Friday 6 January 2017

Amazon Echo in Education?

So Amazon released a new toy in September in the UK called Amazon Echo. For those unaware, the Amazon Echo allows for voice control of various different functions, such as a calendar, shopping list, music and web searches. It can also do IFTTT (If this then that) functions, as well as control your Internet of Things household, such as smart switches and lights.

In something of a rarity for voice commands, the Echo, or Alexa as I call her, is actually pretty decent at picking up and understanding the human voice. But I didn't want to turn this into advertisement for the Echo, but rather ask the question of whether a voice controlled device like the Echo has a place in the classroom?

Students use devices in classrooms to access the internet to answer fairly simple questions. What if you could ask a device that sits in the classroom that question? What year was the Battle of Hastings? How long do you bake a Mushroom for? How much wood does a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

I like the idea that facts are just a question away, and could see it being useful in lessons where skills are more important to learn than just straight facts. If we acknowledge that learners are always going to have Google to find facts, an Echo device would make it near instantaneous to find out information, rather than waiting for laptops to login, browsers to load or relying on batteries to be charged.

So will I be introducing an Echo to a classroom any time soon? No, I don't think the current Echo is quite prepared for the classroom just yet.  As it has access to radio stations and music that you wouldn't necessarily want, and no ability to restrict what the Echo can do. Also it's voice recognition, whilst very good, isn't perfect, and it could lead to some frustration for students and staff alike. You have to quite specific to get the answer your looking for. For example, asking 'How to cook a Mushroom?' doesn't get an answer. But ask 'How long should I cook a Mushroom for?' Does get the desired answer.

Then there's the questionable issue of having a microphone listening to everything that happens in a classroom...

But niggles aside, I think there might be a market for a Education Echo. As Google, Apple and Microsoft start to move in this direction, a voice enabled electronic assistant in the classroom might not be too far away.

Of course I'm not the only one to join the Dots (aha, sorry)

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