Digital audio assistants, such as Amazon Alexa, allow us to issue commands via voice, and in doing so we benefit in many ways. As we speak words we can remember them better. Spoken words sometimes become a part of our inner voice. The labels we use about ourselves or others tend to stick in our mind. Just as Twitter made us more concise writers and editors, digital assistants will require improvements in our speech. Can we take advantage of speaking to digital devices in teaching and learning? I think so. To prove it, I built an Amazon Alexa skill called Introduction to Computing Flashcards. In using the skill, or Amazon Alexa app, students are able to listen to Alexa and then answer questions. Alexa helps students prepare for an exam by speaking definitions and then waiting for their identification. In addition to quizzing the student, Alexa is also keeping track of the correct answers. If a student answers five questions correctly, Alexa shares a game code, which is worth class experience points in the course gamification My Game app. Citation: Machajewski, S. (2017). Digital audio assistants in teaching and learning. Blackboard Inc. Retrieved from http://blog.blackboard.com/digital-audio-assistants/

1. Digital Audio Assistants in Teaching and Learning
Posted: Jul 21, 2017.
This is a guest post by Dr. Szymon Machajewski, Blackboard MVP, Learning Specialist at
University of Illinois at Chicago and faculty at Grand Valley State University.
http://blog.blackboard.com/digital-audio-assistants/
Digital audio assistants, such as Amazon Alexa, allow us to issue commands via voice,
and in doing so we benefit in many ways. As we speak words we can remember them better.
Spoken words sometimes become a part of our inner voice. The labels we use about ourselves or
others tend to stick in our mind. Just as Twitter made us more concise writers and editors, digital
assistants will require improvements in our speech. Can we take advantage of speaking to digital
devices in teaching and learning?
I think so. To prove it, I built an Amazon Alexa skill called Introduction to Computing
Flashcards. In using the skill, or Amazon Alexa app, students are able to listen to Alexa and then
answer questions. Alexa helps students prepare for an exam by speaking definitions and then
waiting for their identification. In addition to quizzing the student, Alexa is also keeping track of
the correct answers. If a student answers five questions correctly, Alexa shares a game code,
which is worth class experience points in the course gamification My Game app.
Applications of Amazon Alexa skills in education
Certainly, exam preparation apps are one way to use digital assistants in education. As
development and publishing of Amazon Alexa skills becomes easier, faculty will be able to
produce such skills just as easily as they now create PowerPoints. Given the basic code available
through Amazon tutorials, it takes 20 minutes to create a new exam preparation app. Basic voice
experience Amazon Alexa skills can take as much as five minutes to complete.

2. Universities can publish their campus news through the Alexa Flash Briefing. This type
of a skill can publish news, success stories, and other events associated with the campus. An
example of such a skill is News for University of Illinois at Chicago. The Flash Briefing facility
in Alexa can stack additional feeds from Reuters or NPR to provide a complete briefing.
Alexa can be further used in education as a way to disseminate and review specific
content. In the example of the skill “Teaching Craft: Tips for Inclusive Learning,” faculty and
students can ask for tips on accessible web development, inclusive classroom discussions, and
inclusive teaching strategies. Listening to new ideas helps us to consider them in new
environments such as the car, the bathroom, or anywhere else Alexa has the edge on hands-free
interfacing.
Yet another way to use Alexa in teaching and learning is by using the service as a digital
guide. At Grand Valley State University, in the Technology Showcase, a number of emerging
technologies and devices are displayed for students to experiment with. You can say: “Alexa, ask
Technology Showcase about exhibit five.” You will hear details of what you are looking at and
how it works.
Amazon supports Alexa skill developers by providing detailed tutorials. One of such
tutorials is a decision tree template. This allows developers to create a voice game that tells a
story and empowers the user to make choices. The use of stories in teaching helps students
remember facts and increases engagement. An example of decision tree skill is “Mind Sherpa:
Exploration through Design Thinking”.
In addition to the above examples of Alexa use in education, students can now check
their grades in Blackboard Learn. When school administrators configure the integration, students
can enable My Blackboard in Alexa (see link here to for more information on requirements and

3. configuration). This allows them to check grades and get learning tips. Since Alexa is being
integrated in cars, is available in an economy Echo Dot model ($39), and on the iPhone in the
free Amazon Shopping app, students can check grades in many ways. Recent research from
Blackboard shows that students are more successful academically when they check grades often.
The Alexa My Blackboard skill allows for parents or grandparents to check grades, too.
Since students in Blackboard Learn decide who can access their grade through Alexa, they can
authorize the account of a family member. A parent can listen to one or more grade reports from
many students. This can be useful for the many people who lose dexterity or motor skills and
turn to digital voice assistants for help.
Getting started with Alexa skill development
If you are a faculty member, how can you develop your first Amazon Alexa skill? You
can use any of the tutorials already available. You can also participate in an Amazon Alexa
classroom training provided by Alexa Dev Days. It is possible that schools or maker spaces near
you offer in-person developer sessions. You can use meetup.com to track these opportunities.
A unique opportunity is available to attendees of BbWorld 2017 and the MoodleMoot
2017 conferences. An Amazon Alexa session will be featured as part of the Innovation Center at
the conferences. Faculty and administrators will create their own course game as a voice
experience. The starter code will be shared at the session. The only content that will need to be
added are questions and answers in the specific subject matter.
What can Alexa teach us?
A change in the use of input devices and their interfaces affects how we think. An
example can be provided in the work of Frederik Nietzsche. When he switched from handwritten
manuscripts to a typing ball (a prototype of a keyboard), he reported that he was thinking

4. differently. Researchers studying his writings confirmed that his phrasing and writing style
changed, as well. So, input devices we use affect the way we think.
Consider another example: when students write down notes by hand, they tend to
remember them better. When they type them on a laptop, they use a different part of the brain
and cannot recall them as easily. So, learning can be affected by the input devices, too.
What happens when we speak as an input method and receive output via voice? Positive
or negative self-talk has been recognized as a tool to adjust motivation and to keep us thinking
about an outcome. Reading aloud also has its benefits over reading silently. So, speaking with
Alexa will likely affect learning and memorization.
To play Toccata and Fugue in D minor by Johann Sebastian Bach on most devices, you
simply press play. With Alexa, you have to pronounce the name of the piece. Would this help
you to remember the title? Would this help those around you to remember the title? We know
that broadening vocabulary can have a real effect on enjoyment of life. The need to vocalize our
commands to Alexa likely will cause important changes in the way we learn and live.
About the author
Dr. Szymon Machajewski is an academic technology Jedi and a teacher focused on student
engagement. With his research on peer-instruction and gamification he promotes the adoption of
technology in teaching and learning. He is a recipient of many awards in pedagogy including
Blackboard’s Most Inclusive Classroom of 2016, Catalyst Awards in Exemplary Course Design
(2014, 2017) and Innovative Development (2011). He was selected as a Blackboard MVP for his
work at University of Illinois at Chicago and authored such open source tools as BbStats,
LoginAs, and Gamification Course Tools.