On Monday, Google announced a series of updates aimed at incorporating Gemini AI and other AI-powered tools into the classroom. At the ISTE Edtech conference, Tech Giant introduced over 30 AI tools for educators, a version of the Gemini app for education, expanding access to the co-video creation app Google Vids, and other tools for managed Chromebooks.
The update represents the major AI push in the EDTECH space. At Edtech Space, educators struggle to adapt to how AI tools are entering the learning environment, like AI chatbots and startups that promise to “check everything.”
Today’s school-age children and teens are more likely to ask chatgpt for homework help (or do it for them) than asking teachers to re-explain the concept. Meanwhile, in higher education, universities are working on whether plagiarism detectors can identify AI-written content.
Amid this confusion, Google has paid upfront AI tools and believes that “responsible AI” can help promote “more engaging and personalized learning experiences” when used in conjunction with human-driven education.
Since announcing plans to bring Gemini into classrooms last year, Google said on Monday that the Gemini AI suite for educators is now available for free to all Google workspaces in their education accounts.
This includes over 30 new features, including the ability for teachers to brainstorm ideas, generate lesson plans, and use AI technology to personalize student content.
Over the next few months, Google will be able to create interactive study guides for teachers using classroom materials using AI Research Tool Notebook LM.
Teachers can also create custom versions of Gemini AI called “GEMS.” This serves as an AI expert to help students who need additional support or want to better understand the subject.
This is essentially just employing an activity that students are already doing – asking the AI chatbot to explain topics and answer questions, redirecting that activity to Google’s own AI technology.
Soon, teachers will also be able to provide real-time support for their AI-powered reading peers to their students while reading in the classroom.
Google is expanding basic access to AI-powered video creator Google Vids to make it available to all Google Workspaces for educational users. Teachers can use this tool to create educational videos, while students can use VIDs for book reports and other assignments.
The company is also rolling out a set of new features designed to help students advance against learning standards and skills, see analyses about student performance and engagement, Gmail’s highly secure Gemini user data and data views, and manage who has access to AI tools such as Gemini and Notebook LM.
Additionally, along with some updates to the Managed Chromebook, Google has introduced a new teaching mode called Class Tool. This allows teachers to connect directly with students via Google Classroom and share content on their children’s screens, including videos, articles, slides, quizzes and more. These tools can be adapted to the student’s own language when needed, and are designed to keep children focused on learning by restricting views to specific tabs.
