Michelle MercerUsing reflective AI (artificial intelligence) technology, the Osmo team had an “aha” moment. The benefits of learning the alphabet in tactile ways have been well documented; however, most children around the world still learn their ABCs with the same methods and materials used 100 years ago. In the United States, being able to identify and name letters is perhaps the best predictor of success with reading through the 7th grade and beyond. Simply providing digital adaptations of traditional teaching methods—like an alphabet e-book instead of a printed one—don’t always meet the full potential for mastering the alphabet, which is the foundation of literacy.
Learning letter names is dependent on understanding the form of letters. German educator Friedrich Fröbel, who created the concept of kindergarten, provided young students with geometric manipulatives—including sticks, rings, and arcs—that encouraged open-ended experimentation with the shapes to form the letters of the Roman alphabet. Almost a century later, Maria Montessori developed a method of tracing sandpaper letters with a fingertip to help her students learn letter shapes.
Inspired by these well-documented tactile modalities for mastering the alphabet, the founders of Tangible Play, the creators of Osmo set out to create a hands-on learning experience that would also leverage a modern one: using a tablet.
Touchscreens provided by mobile devices like phones and tablets are ubiquitous in today’s world and appealing to young children who aren’t ready to use keyboards or a mouse to navigate a digital app. The portability of these devices means that children have an early comfort with using them in a variety of situations, including during a commute to school and in the classroom.
Using reflective AI (artificial intelligence) technology, the Osmo team had an “aha” moment. What if a tablet could “see” geometric manipulatives as a child moved them into formation?
Once this unique product was developed, the team at Osmo tested it with volunteer families who lived outside well-known, tech-savvy metropolitan areas. This designed-based research was extremely valuable:
- Wooden pieces were replaced with colorful, food-grade silicone sticks and rings that were durable and washable.
- 83 percent of the families were “very satisfied” or “extremely satisfied” with the test version.
- 75 percent thought it was “very educational” or “extremely educational”, validating that Osmo was more than a toy
Reflective Artificial Intelligence Technology
Play has long been valued as an important teaching tool associated with the development of language, social, and motor skills in children, but increased screen time and omnipresent technology is redefining what constitutes play.
Reflective Artificial Intelligence Technology (RAIT) is a new genre of edtech that bridges the gap between traditional play and modern technology. Osmo used RAIT to develop hardware and software that transformed tablet time into a tactile experience. This strategy was a departure from typical tablet apps, where the user’s eyes are focused on the screen and the screen is the only manipulative.
Instead of relying solely on the touchscreen, Osmo uses a stand and reflector to leverage the built-in camera on a tablet to “see” tangible manipulatives on the workspace in front of the tablet. This approach creates a unique opportunity to transform passive screen time into an engaging and empowering experience for young learners.
Educators are embracing tools like Osmo that ,when used in developmentally appropriate ways, are beneficial for young children’s intellectual growth. Specifically, RAIT can help early childhood professionals provide developmentally appropriate interventions for emerging readers, including alphabet knowledge and phonological awareness.
With this in mind, Osmo developed Words, a literacy-focused game where a picture first appears on the tablet screen. The child uses physical letter tiles to fill in a missing letter or spell out a complete word that matches the on-screen image. RAIT recognizes which letter tiles the child places in front of the screen and provides immediate feedback.
In a study designed to compare traditional and RAIT play-based literacy intervention, 23 kindergartners from a single classroom were assigned to one of four groups:
- Individual play-based
- Group play-based
- Individual play-based RAIT
- Group play-based RAIT
The study resulted in two major conclusions : First, intervention has a positive effect on the development of emergent literacy skills. Second, the amount of learning was not dependent on the intervention type. Whether RAIT or traditional play-based, individual or group, all intervention types were beneficial to emergent literacy.
This information is meaningful because RAIT interventions provided the same positive outcomes as traditional, teacher-driven interventions. Given the typical scenario of a kindergarten classroom with one teacher, an app like Osmo Words is a powerful resource for fostering the development of emergent literacy skills.
The Future of Osmo
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the edtech industry was growing steadily, but its trajectory has surged since the pandemic necessitated a shift to virtual learning.
Although many parents continue to be concerned about their children having too much screen time, they are leaning into technology. One silver lining of the pandemic is that parents had to get involved in their child’s learning like never before, and educators see continued engagement. Edtech tools like Osmo help parents follow their children’s progress.
Teachers are seeing the value, too. One of Osmo’s initiatives during the pandemic was to make the app easier for teachers to use in remote settings. Once teachers and students began returning to the classroom, educators increasingly used Osmo to enhance curriculum.
As one teacher said, “Tech is exciting for kids. And they like interacting with Osmo; they’re not just sitting on an iPad and staring at it.”
Many teachers have found that Osmo is a valued teaching assistant. It can be used individually or in small groups where lifelong skills like collaboration and social-emotional learning are fostered while students learn foundational concepts.
Early education professionals and elementary educators are inspired and motivated to help prepare their students for what’s next, including having access to and comfort with the technology they’ll be using in middle school, high school, and beyond.
Even before the pandemic, a 2016 survey from McGraw Hill found that four out of five college students reported that digital learning helped them improve their grades. The survey showed that 81 percent of students said it improved their efficiency and effectiveness, and 69 percent reported an improvement in their focus.
Osmo was invented by a father who saw firsthand the fascination his young children had with technology and how adept they were at learning to navigate it. Pramod Sharma saw an opportunity to elevate his children’s experience with technology to make it fun and educational. When Osmo was developed by Sharma and Jerome Scholler, it was widely perceived as a toy, but in the years since, Osmo has also earned an award-winning reputation as a powerful classroom tool that engages students and supports teachers.
“Now, our mission is to have educational goals for everything we do,” says Scholler.
Sources:
- Designing Tangible ABCs: Fröbel’s Sticks and Rings for the 21st Century, Heidy Maldonado, Ariel Zekelman, 2019
- Evolution of a Tangible Letter Learning Game Through Design-Based Research Development, Heidy Maldonado, Ariel Zekelman
- Osmo: Toy or Learning System? Identifying a Road to Success, Marianne Szymanski, Rebecca Castillo, 2021
- Learning Beyond the Screen: Assessing the Impact of Reflective Artificial Intelligence Technology on the Development of Emergent Literacy Skills, Matthew W. Broda, Ph.D., Abigail L. Frank
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