BaxterBot: Virtual Bernadoodle helps students learn in Pasco County

PORT RICHEY, Fla. - Tracey Curtis has a new assistant in her sixth grade world cultures classroom, and he’s a virtual Bernadoodle named Baxter.

"I have a lot of learners who are a little shy and don't want to interrupt class and draw attention to themselves, so it gives them the opportunity to ask those questions right away," Curtis said.

BaxterBot, named after Scholar Education’s co-founder’s South Tampa pup, uses algorithms to answer questions students ask about the lesson.

"It has made it so much easier in the classroom without everyone raising their hands, it's kind of less distracting," student Jaylynn Vera said. "We can get through the book faster without questions on vocab. Instead, we can just put the book down for a second, type it into Baxter and then go back to wherever the teacher left off in the book," she said.

"I like it better this way because it's easier for all of us to learn at once," student Luciann Pope said. "If it's just a teacher, we all have to raise our hand and ask questions. But I think it's so much easier because one of us can, we can all ask different questions or the same question at the same time and get a response," Pope explained.

READ: Pinellas County students getting exposed to classical arts, opera

Curtis’ class at Dayspring Academy in Pasco County is the first to use the technology.

"When I first started [teaching 20 years ago], we had a computer. It was a big deal. We got a teacher computer, and then, you know, progressed to a few in the classroom. And now, everybody has one, and they have all of the information at the students fingertips. It's just mind-blowing. And now this additional tool with Baxter, it’s pretty incredible," Curtis said.

Baxter can also put lessons into scenarios to help students learn, and adapt to a student’s needs on the spot.

"We can play games with him but also, games can help us learn," student Nolan She said. "I thought it was pretty cool that he was a dog. I thought it would just be a weird robot."

The technology can also translate, which is a huge help for students.

"Sometimes I just don't know a word," student Sophie Paz said. "I just have to look at the text in Spanish because this is my first language," she said. "It helps me a lot when I'm in class, since sometimes I don’t understand a word or something," Paz said.

READ: Sarasota schools revamps 40-acre farm land for students learning about agriculture

Teachers also have the ability to turn Baxter off if students are getting distracted by the technology. Baxter’s counterpart, Professor Bruce, helps streamline teacher’s workload by making recommendations for lesson planning based on students’ performance and frequently asked questions to BaxterBot.

It gives teachers real-time insights. The insights also make sure students aren’t using Baxter for shortcuts.

"That feedback helps me tailor my next set of lessons or even change direction mid-lesson," Curtis said. "I have noticed more engagement and a lot of self-directed learning. That's one thing I want our learners to do is take ownership of their learning, and when they have this tool in front of them, they can ask as many questions as needed to go deeper, to gain a strong foundation and go beyond if they're ready to move on to explore additional information."

Scholar Education’s Head of Education, Marlee Strawn, said they hope to have BaxterBot in several other schools across the area by the beginning of next school year.

"Having the opportunity to harness this really advanced technology to help provide personalized learning for the students has been a game changer in the education world," Strawn said.

They hope to eventually expand into public, private and charter schools across the country, according to Strawn.