Google's Learn About = A Whimsical, Wonderful AI Knowledge Grab Bag!
Remember those days when something was just plain fun? That’s the feeling you get when you interact with Google’s Learn About!
Google advertises this AI-enhanced platform as a way to “[g]rasp new topics and deepen your understanding with a 💬 conversational learning companion that adapts to your unique curiosity and learning goals.” And it certainly does this in a charming, AI way . . .
Figures 1-3: Learn About homepage default questions: “Are flamingos born with pink feathers?”, “Why do some sea creatures glow?”, and “What causes the northern lights?”
TIME TO LEARN ABOUT . . .
After being greeted by the homepage (refer to Figures 1-3), click the “Try Learn About” button. You’ll be taken to the chatbot page - which offers you a collection of pre-made inquiries (refer to Figure 4), but also allows you to type a prompt of your choice into the chatbot or to upload an image (refer to Figure 5).
Figure 4 The chatbot page - showing a variety of pre-made responses a user can select.
Figure 5 The Learn About chatbot and image upload icon/feature.
I chose “Tell me about the history of writing.” Learn About’s response was an eclectic collection of content (shared in a visually-engaging way): a text response to the question; a visual, interactive timeline; images; options for following-up on related material; the option to explore the idea with greater or less depth or search for additional images; suggested topics related to writing I could explore further.
Figure 6 Content response to the pre-made prompt on the history of writing.
Figure 7 Content response (continued) to the pre-made prompt on the history of writing.
I enjoyed having so much information shared with me through a variety of approaches! Interspersed within the text and videos are “learning cards” = icon-identified call-outs of standout details such as: Build your vocab, Interactive List, and Why it matters. Learn About supporting information states that additional “learning cards” include: “common misconceptions,” “stop and think,” and “test your knowledge.”
Wait - there’s more . . . Unsure about a word’s meaning? Then highlight it! A pop-up menu gives you options for a deeper dive right away:
What is this?: learn a new definition or explanation.
See a picture: you’ll be shared a collection of images related to the word
Search the web: find more information.
Ask about this . . . : engage with AI to have your question answered!
Figure 8 The pop-up box menu for uncovering more about a highlighted word.
I highlighted the word “invention” within the history of writing and received the following: a definition, explanations as to why it matters, and an interactive list of famous inventions.
Figure 9 AI-generated responses for explaining the word “invention.”
I entered my own prompt and asked “why do leaves turn colors in the fall? and Learn About generated an Interactive List learning card on the key pigments in leaves.
Figure 10 A learning card on the key pigments in leaves.
HOW DOES LEARN ABOUT FIT INTO TEACHING?
While this barrage could be seen as overwhelming, I prefer to frame it as a wonderful technique for engaging a learner with new material for the first time = look how dynamic, complex, and interesting the subject is!
Also, doesn’t this serve as a great model for a creative summative assessment in which students need to find, collect, organize, and share information through multiple means regarding a single idea or topic?
Students could also be asked to critically evaluate the material shared in response to a prompt: is it relevant, are the sources legitimate, is there anything missing, and so on.
CAVEATS
Google Learn About is an “experimental” site and may be prone to glitches. For instance, for the majority of last week my prompts received an “error” message. But it was up and running again over the weekend - and it’s worth the wait. For a period I also had difficulty adding ALT text to images, but that feature appears to be working well now.
ENJOY!