AuraNexus has partnered with the Marymount School of New York to debut its EdTech interactive video platform providing students and teachers with personalized learning at scale. The technology is the first of its kind to pair video with vocal recognition, delivering much-needed innovation within the education industry grappling with COVID-19.
As the pandemic continues to uproot conventional learning models, schools throughout the country are looking for new and effective tools to provide students with a virtual classroom experience. The need for such tools led AuraNexus to develop proprietary technology geared to address the issues with distance learning and to strengthen the way students interact and communicate with their teachers. Through user-led, voice-activated conversational video, the platform takes pre-recorded video content and leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance engagement and retention. Students now have the ability to “talk” to their teachers 24/7.
The company was co-founded by Andrew Kimmel, a network television producer ( The Bachelor, Dancing With the Stars, The Great Christmas Light Fight) and former Head of Live Video for BuzzFeed News, as he looked to create a new medium to make viewers active participants with videos. “With the rise of vocal recognition technology, there is still a lack of human-to-human interaction to go along with it. In having a real person respond directly to user questions, it gives the experience of a real conversation – something that isn’t available with chatbots or animations, but is desperately needed at this time,” said Kimmel.
The technology offers students the ability to learn at their own pace, provides a safe space to ask questions, and allows them to engage in dialogue with Mr. Walters as they would in an office-hours setting, no matter the time of day. With AuraNexus, students can directly engage with an “experience” of Mr. Walters to ask questions related to their current physics coursework and receive answers in real-time. The result is a more accessible, engaging, and effective approach for students to master their coursework, while effectively increasing student retention compared to other conventional learning methods. Additionally, the technology frees up time for educators and provides pertinent information for teachers related to coursework.
The pilot program is being led by Eric Walters, an Honors and AP Physics teacher and the Director of STEM Education at Marymount, an Apple Distinguished School recognized for leading the path in innovation for education. “I see substantial potential for personalized instruction like this moving forward,” said Mr. Walters.
The partnership aims to continue building AuraNexus’ technology to support online lecture content delivery, streamline the admissions process, and develop other aspects of virtual learning with personalized experiences for students and teachers. “The goal here is to empower students to be curious and learn without limitations. What we are doing now is only scratching the surface,” said Kimmel. “Vocal recognition video has the potential to improve many existing systems throughout every industry; we’ve designed it not only to humanize technology, but instill a greater sense of empathy and knowledge for all who use it.”
AuraNexus is actively developing more features for use in other markets that include corporate HR, social responsibility, and edutainment.
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