What is Google Bolo?

While India is one of the largest countries in the world, it is currently in the midst of an education crisis. Young children simply are not getting the education they need in order to succeed. The biggest gap in their learning is literacy. It is estimated that at least half of the students getting ready to graduate primary school are unable to read at a second grade level. Google has recognized this huge problem and are currently attempting to increase the literacy rates in India through a new smartphone app called Bolo.

Bolo has been specifically designed by Google to help the young children in India improve their reading skills in both Hindi and English. The Android app currently has 90 different fun and interesting stories that will keep kids engaged throughout the reading process. They are also hoping to continuously add more stories in the future to prolong engagement with the app.

Google has added its state-of-the-art voice recognition software to provide instant feedback on the child’s reading. Once the kid opens Bolo for the first time, they will start to read a story out loud. The digital tutor programmed inside Bolo will be able to correct the child every time they mispronounce a word. It will also help them comprehend new words that they do not understand. If the kid continuously uses the Bolo app, then they will gradually see their reading and vocabulary skills improve over time.

Keeping young kids interested in reading can be a challenge these days, but Google has tried to ensure that Bolo users always want to come back the next day. They are doing this by awarding badges and other in-app rewards to keep the kids motivated. Finishing stories also unlocks new words games. This keeps the kids engaged with the app even if they do not want to read another story. The child’s progress is constantly saved and can be viewed by the parents at any time.

The best thing about Google’s Bolo app is that it does not require an internet connection to work properly. While the vast majority of the country has access to a smartphone, internet connections are usually spotty in the rural villages of India. The offline use of Bolo lets every kid get the reading lessons they desperately need.