30 Jun
The Future of Education Technology is Interactive
We’ve all learnt a lot recently about what works and doesn’t work in distance learning for kids, and for their parents. One of the big takeaways seems to be the importance of self paced learning. Another is how much more effective learning is for kids when it’s interactive. “Teachers want to engage kids with interactive […]
24 Jun
Equity in Voice Technology
Equitable voice technology is a non-negotiable, and yet, according to Stanford University’s FairSpeech project, all 5 of the leading speech recognition tools “misunderstood black speakers twice as often as white speakers”. At SoapBox Labs, we take equity very seriously. Our aim has always been to build voice tech for kids that caters to the diversity […]
17 Jun
Our Tech in Action
At the Voice Global conference today we’re showcasing how our technology works by demoing our verification, speech recognition and fluency solutions. Below our Director of Speech Technology, Dr. Amelia Kelly walks through our verification solution – for letter sounds/phonics, words, and sentences. Amelia shows us how our technology delivers immediate and accurate feedback and assessments […]
15 Jun
Join Us at Voice Global
SoapBox Labs is a proud sponsor of Voice Global’s 24 hour conference taking place this Wednesday, June 17th. Founder and CEO Patricia Scanlon is speaking at 11am ET on how “Voice technology can transform a child’s reading journey”, and our virtual exhibition space will be accessible throughout the day. When you visit our Voice Global […]
09 Jun
Change is needed. Learning to read can change a child’s life.
CEO Dr. Patricia Scanlon comments on an article in Forbes this week entitled “How ‘Reading Instruction’ Oppresses Black and Brown Children”. Writing in Forbes this week Natalie Wexler gave an ominous assessment of the huge inequalities in US schools wrt reading. ‘On national tests last year, only 18 percent of black 4th-graders scored proficient or […]
05 Jun
SXSW EDU – The Speech Tech Pioneers Panel
This SXSW EDU virtual panel discussion is a must-watch for innovators and educators in the education, edtech and voice tech industries. It brings together voice technology pioneers from across these industries to explore how voice tech can be used to revolutionize and expand access to literacy and language learning experiences for kids, while ensuring the […]
03 Jun
Helping EdTech Companies Prepare for the Fall
What will school look like when it returns in the Fall?In this article Emily Tate from EdSurge discusses the options.Classrooms will likely have to move back online, for periods of time at least, into the future and teachers will need “to pay close attention to the development of each child and ensure that appropriate grade-level […]
25 May
Voice in Education Podcast
“Bells and Whistles of Happiness”That’s how Julie Daniel Davis, CETL described her feeling as an educator when she learned about SoapBox Labs’ voice tech for kids, and specifically, how it respects kids’ fundamental right to voice data privacy. Julie is the creator of the Voice in Education podcast and in this week’s episode she talks […]
18 May
PUSH for Families in Need
Over the last week, SoapBox Labs team member and computational linguist, Agape Deng, undertook a fundraising campaign on behalf of a charity here in Dublin called Inner City Homeless (ICHH). Agape invited friends and colleagues to sponsor her to do pushups, offering a menu of options based on your level of sponsorship. She raised a […]
15 May
How Voice Tech Supports Teaching Remotely
Online classrooms are great but it’s hard – nigh impossible – for teachers to offer the same level of individual support and attention to their students when they’re learning remotely from home. As award winning teacher, Mary Kovats, described it in this recent Chalkbeat article: The hardest part is trying to figure out how to […]
