Inquiry Unit Project

Carmen Sher

October 18, 2020

SUBJECT AREA OF INTEREST

As a future 2nd grade teacher, I will cover many areas of core subjects in my classroom.
However, I am most passionate about reading and early literacy. Reading is the
fundamental basis to all other learning. I hope to explore all three areas of technology
advancement but in particular I’m most interested in artificial intelligence in regard to
reading.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

You will need to research and cite 2-3 sources using APA Format for your response in
this area.

For each prompt - replace the text with 3-5 sentences summarizing your research and
discusses the Artificial Intelligence (AI) application/technology you explored.

1. How do you think this technology will (or will not) change the way people learn
within your subject area?

I discovered that there are apps such as Read Along being developed by Google
that use AI to help children learn to read. With this particular app, there is an AI
assistant named Diya (similar to Siri or Alexa) that will give visual and audio
positive reinforcement when children are reading words correctly and offer help
when they detect that a child is having trouble reading a particular word. This is
amazing technology that I think will change how children learn to read because it
is self-guided, and visually and auditorily engaging.

2. What are some of the shortfalls of this technology currently? What advancements
(technologic or otherwise) are needed for this technology to reach its potential to
transform the way we learn?
One shortfall I see is that only 500 books are compatible with the app, at least as
of right now. If a child completes all books in their reading level, they will not
have any more content to consume for continued learning. There is also no way
to learn the definition of new words. With it being backed by Google, I think they
could easily add a feature incorporating Google Search where a child could touch
a word and have a definition read aloud to them.

3. Describe how this technology might be utilized (for good or bad) outside of its
original intended purpose? Do you foresee anything we should be wary of?

Kyle Wiggers states that the app is available in 180 countries and 9 languages
(2020). One potential use of the app that wasn’t originally intended may be for a
child to learn a second language, like English as a second language or Spanish
for English speakers. There is even research that proves that a child who can
read in their native language understand the process of reading, even if they need
to learn new letters, sounds, and words to attain reading proficiency in a second
language (Short & Fitzsimmons, 2007).

Extended Reality (XR)

You will need to research and cite 2-3 sources using APA Format for your response in
this area.

For each prompt - replace the text with 3-5 sentences summarizing your research and
discusses the Extended Reality (XR) application/technology you explored.

1. How do you think this technology will (or will not) change the way people learn
within your subject area?

I think XR will be most impactful for children who are reluctant to read. Some
children do not learn from visual stimulation and need to engage with materials in
a more hands-on manner. This is one way I see how a child who might have ADD
or another LD can flourish by experiencing a story in several realities like AR, VR
and XR. Bashiri et al. (2017) summed up how VR can rehabilitate children with
LDs: VR delivers feedback-focused interaction, improves user’s motivation
through the creation of user-friendly environments, and improves cognitive skills
in young learners.

2. What are some of the shortfalls of this technology currently? What advancements
(technologic or otherwise) are needed for this technology to reach its potential to
transform the way we learn?
One shortfall of XR is that it is new, which means it is hard to access and can be
costly. Just as personal computers were once a new technology, XR will not be
fully implemented in curriculum worldwide until it is cheaper and more
accessible. Teachers do not have unlimited resources to buy technology for their
classrooms so you might see schools with a lower poverty level and higher
household incomes get XR and have an advantage over poorer schools.

3. Describe how this technology might be utilized (for good or bad) outside of its
original intended purpose? Do you foresee anything we should be wary of?

XR is fairly privately held at the moment which means companies are free to do
as they please without regulation on things like ads or data privacy. We will want
to be careful when using any new technology to ensure the safety of our
students. I also know that there are stories for example, where Pokémon Go, a
game that uses VR, was causing injuries to children who were too immersed in
the game to pay attention. Other dangers of VR include data misuse with special
concern for the vulnerability of children who may be tracked using this
technology from a young age and who are not capable of consenting to these
risks (Outlaw & Persky, 2019).

Internet of Things (IoT)

You will need to research and cite 2-3 sources using APA Format for your response in
this area.

For each prompt - replace the text with 3-5 sentences summarizing your research and
discusses the Internet of Things (IoT) application/technology you explored.

1. How do you think this technology will (or will not) change the way people learn
within your subject area?

If IoT is all about connectivity, I am here for it in the classroom. Maybe it is too
general to find examples of IoT in teaching reading and literacy to children, but in
the big picture, we can use different apps and devices (or “things”) and turn the
once “dead” classroom into a live feed of progress reports for each child and
give parents more insight into what their child is learning.

2. What are some of the shortfalls of this technology currently? What advancements
(technologic or otherwise) are needed for this technology to reach its potential to
transform the way we learn?
Sciforce (2019) stated, “IoT-enabled education solutions are allowing the
education sector to transform itself for the future. Two obstacles stand in the
way: cost and security.” There needs to be a board of ethics that instates and
upholds laws about cyber security. Cost is something I believe will be resolved
only with time. Within a couple of years, we will likely see two major players
(possibly Google and Amazon) dominate the IoT market. Both players will
support a comparable set of devices and offer similar functionality, but the
devices that work with one platform are likely to be completely incompatible with
the other (Posey, 2019).

3. Describe how this technology might be utilized (for good or bad) outside of its
original intended purpose? Do you foresee anything we should be wary of?

I do think we need to be careful about how connected our classrooms are. When
devices begin measuring and collecting data from students, they’re automatically
putting the security and privacy of students at risk by storing sensitive data in an
IoT network (which are prone to cyberattacks). If connected devices penetrate all
spheres, this can compromise a student ID linked to an individual’s health
records and even to the family’s financial information.

Research Conclusions

Overall my findings on AI, XR and IoT were positive. For reading specifically, I think AI
and XR are wonderful tools and I’m glad to know they exist for students who need that
extra push. I think the future of these technologies is that they will not be rare and
cutting-edge, but instead commonplace and expected to be used by teachers to assist
in learning. Reading will become more interactive, instead of a student silently
struggling by themselves they will be able to engage in the classroom and learn the
context of words and grammar in new ways.

Personal Learning experience

My experience with exploring these three emerging technologies is an interesting one.

Bashiri, Azadeh, Marjan Ghazisaeedi, and Leila Shahmoradi. (2017, November 6). ‘The
Opportunities of Virtual Reality in the Rehabilitation of Children with Attention
Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Literature Review.’ Korean Journal of Pediatrics.

Outlaw, J. & Persky, S. (2019). Industry review boards are needed to protect VR user
privacy. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/08/the-
hidden-risk-of-virtual-reality-and-what-to-do-about-it/

Posey, B. (2019, October 23). Next IoT hurdle: the disconnecting of connected devices.
TechGenix. http://techgenix.com/iot-devices-hurdle/

Sciforce (2019, April 9). Internet of Things for the classroom. IoT For All.
https://www.iotforall.com/internet-of-things-
classroom#:~:text=IoT%20indeed%20enables%20innovation%2C%20starting,us
ed%20in%20the%20classroom%20include%3A&text=Student%20ID%20cards

Short, D., & Fitzsimmons, S. (2007). Double the work: Challenges and solutions to
acquiring language and academic literacy for adolescent English language
learners – A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York. Washington, DC:
Alliance for Excellent Education.

Wiggers, K. (2020, May). Venturebeat. Google’s Read Along taps AI to improve kids’
reading skills. https://venturebeat.com/2020/05/07/googles-read-along-taps-ai-to-
improve-kids-reading-skills/