Three universities partnered with Amazon last year to provide some students with free voice-activated devices (Echo Dots) programmed to answer questions from students about everything from grades and financial aid to meal plans and faculty office hours, reports Lindsay Ellis in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

In the Spring 2018 issue of EdNext, Michael Horn wrote about how voice-activated technology could someday be used in K-12 classrooms in “Hey Alexa, Can You Help Kids Learn More?”

As he hears from one superintendent

 … children younger than five … are surrounded by digital devices that can adapt to their specific needs and strengths. This next generation of students is growing up in a world not only where learning is ubiquitous, but also where talking to devices—asking them questions and giving them instructions—is commonplace.

— Education Next