Education

There was once a time when you went to one place for music, another for education, and so on, but many companies are now attempting to turn themselves into a jack of all trades to compete for survival. The latest example is Spotify, which has announced a test for video-based learning courses. The new feature joins the platform's music, podcasts and audiobooks lineup. 

Spotify has teamed up with a range of content partners: BBC Maestro, PLAYvirtuoso, Thinkific Labs Inc. and Skillshare. They offer content in four main categories: making music, getting creative, learning business and healthy living. "With this offer, we are exploring a potential opportunity to provide educational creators with a new audience who can access their video content, reaching a bigger potential swath of engaged Spotify users while expanding our catalog," Spotify stated in the announcement. The platform claims that around half of users have "engaged" in self-help or educational podcasts. 

The test courses are available only to UK users, with free and premium subscribers receiving at least two free lessons per course. The series will range in price from £20 ($25) to £80 ($101), regardless of a person's subscription tier. Users can access them on mobile or desktop. Exact pricing and availability might change if the feature moves past the test phase. 

This forays into video-based courses follows shortly after Spotify introduced music videos in beta. They're available on select tracks and, like the classes, aren't available to US subscribers (the UK is among the 11 countries with access). 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/spotify-launches-educational-video-courses-in-the-uk-131559272.html?src=rss

Spotify launches educational video courses in the UK

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Mobile phone ownership has become standard for people of most ages, and, while there's a convenience argument, experts and regulators alike have expressed concerns about children's well-being and distraction while learning. To that end, the UK government has become the latest to announce guidance for banning the use of phones during school. It follows other European countries like France and Italy, which prohibit phones in classrooms. 

Some schools in the UK already have no-phone policies in place, but these guidelines could bring widespread adoption and uniformity. "This is about achieving clarity and consistency in practice, backing headteachers and leaders and giving staff confidence to act," Gillian Keegan, the UK's secretary of state for education, said in a release. "Today's children are growing up in an increasingly complex world, living their lives on and offline. This presents many exciting opportunities – but also challenges. By prohibiting mobile phones, schools can create safe and calm environments free from distraction so all pupils can receive the education they deserve."

While the UK government encourages schools to create their own policies, it outlines a few overarching options. The first — and most extreme — is a complete ban on mobile phones from school premises. However, the guidance acknowledges that this could create complications or risks for children when traveling to and from school. The next option takes care of that problem while still taking phones away. It suggests having students hand in their phones when arriving at school.

Then there's the locker route, where phones are kept strictly in students' lockers or whatever personal storage they get at school. While this allows students to keep possession of their device, it still wouldn't be usable at any point in the day, even when accessing the locker during breaks. The final option aligns with what many schools do — let students keep their phones in their bags, but they should be turned off and never accessed. 

The guidance also recommends teaching students about the mobile phone's potentially harmful impact on young people. Study after study has found that social media, in particular, can negatively impact young people's mental health. The UK government argues that, in addition to combating the social media issue, restricting phone use can increase students' concentration, time being active and spending time with peers face-to-face. 

Parents are encouraged to contact the school directly rather than through a private phone if they need to get in touch with their child. The guidance also encourages parents to discuss the rules at home and, once again, the risks of phones and the internet.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-uk-moves-another-step-closer-to-banning-phones-in-schools-132518091.html?src=rss

The UK moves another step closer to banning phones in ...

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You will soon find a kid-friendly section inside OpenAI's newly opened store for custom GPTs. The company has joined forces with Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization that rates media and technology based on their suitability for children, to minimize the risks of AI use by teenagers. Together, they intend to create AI guidelines and educational materials for young people, their parents and their educators. The two organizations will also curate a collection of family-friendly GPTs in OpenAI's GPT store based on Common Sense's ratings, making it easy to see which ones are suitable for younger users. 

"Together, Common Sense and OpenAI will work to make sure that AI has a positive impact on all teens and families," James P. Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, said in a statement. "Our guides and curation will be designed to educate families and educators about safe, responsible use of ChatGPT, so that we can collectively avoid any unintended consequences of this emerging technology."

According to Axios, the partnership was announced at Common Sense's kids and family summit in San Francisco, where OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shot down the idea that AI is bad for kids and should be kept out of schools. "Humans are tool users and we better teach people to use the tools that are going to be out in the world," he reportedly said. "To not teach people to use those would be a mistake." The CEO also said that future high school seniors would be able to operate at a higher level of abstraction and could achieve more that their predecessors with the help of artificial intelligence. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/openai-and-commonsense-media-team-up-to-curate-family-friendly-gpts-074228457.html?src=rss

OpenAI and CommonSense Media team up to curate family-friendly GPTs

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