It's easy for students to search the web when working on assignments, but Microsoft now wants to teach those students how to spot misinformation and otherwise think critically. In addition to an existing Search Coach, Microsoft is introducing a Search Progress feature in Teams for Education that helps teachers foster healthy online research habits through practice work. Educators can not only require a certain number of sources for an assignment, but check to see that students are searching responsibly — they'll know if pupils are only clicking the first site in the results, or using filters like NewsGuard to check source quality. Students can show their reasoning and work before turning in a project, too.
The Progress tool bolsters Search Coach (shown below), which encourages students using Teams to both search more precisely and watch out for falsehoods. They can limit searches to certain domains (such as .gov or .edu), date ranges and file types. They can even pass queries through fact checking sites to learn if a claim holds up under scrutiny. Bing's safe search is enabled by default, and the results are ad-free. Teachers can also use search trends to refine their lessons.
Search Progress will be available in preview form later in the year. Search Coach is already available in Teams worldwide. Both features will work with over 50 languages, Microsoft says.
Microsoft also wants to improve students' overall reading skills. The company's Reading Coach will be available in the Immersive Readers for Word Online, OneNote, Teams Assignments, Minecraft Education and other platforms, giving students more reading fluency experience both online and in the apps they use. Reading Progress, meanwhile, will add comprehension questions to be sure kids truly understand what they read. Both upgrades will be available later this year.
Netflix announced on Sunday that it's working on a remake of the One Piece anime, starting from the beginning of the manga. There's no release date yet. Wit Studio, the animation studio behind the first three seasons of Attack on Titan, will be producing it.
Apple has begun piloting an App Store feature called contingent pricing that will let developers offer cheaper subscriptions to customers based on the other subscriptions they already hold. The company says it's meant to help developers "attract and retain subscribers."
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin has announced its return to flight with the New Shepard rocket, targeting Monday December 18 at 9:30AM ET for liftoff. New Shepard was grounded for over a year after a failure on September 2022 during an uncrewed mission.
Apple, Visa and Mastercard are being sued by beverage retailer Mirage Wine & Spirits on behalf of US merchants who accept Apple Pay. The lawsuit argues that Apple accepted a bribe from the two companies in an agreement to stifle competition, resulting in inflated merchant fees.
NASA shared a photo of two tomatoes that turned up on the International Space Station after eight months lost. They were harvested by astronaut Frank Rubio, who returned to Earth in September. The tomatoes held up well in space, appearing only dehydrated but otherwise intact.
This week: Google’s Gemini is the biggest threat yet to ChatGPT, Microsoft upgrades its chatbot, too, Lenovo’s huge handheld PC is here
Users can now download Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint from the Meta Quest store for free.
California's Civil Rights Department (CRD) has announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with Activision Blizzard for a case it filed in 2021, accusing the company of systemic gender discrimination and fostering a culture that encouraged rampant misogyny and sexual harassment.
Apple will pay $25 million to settle a class action lawsuit that accuses the tech giant of misleading customers over Family Sharing.
An anonymous and inventive Nintendo fan has recreated the Game Boy classic The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening with a twist. The widescreen Windows remake adds high frame rate support and lets you zoom out to view a larger portion — or even all — of Koholint Island.
Teenage Engineer’s OP-1 Field synthesizer just got a fairly substantial system update. Software version 1.5.0 brings a fun new bit crusher effect and an easier way to merge tracks.
The massively popular RPG Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t coming to Xbox Game Pass, according to the developer. The game did, however, recently launch on Xbox Series X/S.
This week's best tech deals include the Xbox Series X for $349, a four-pack of Apple AirTags for $80 and discounts on Apple gift cards.
Twitch has quickly taken back its policy update that gave users permission to post sexual content as long as it was labeled.
Looking for a late holiday gift for someone who loses things all the time? Consider getting them some Apple AirTags. A pack of four has dropped to $80.
The OnePlus 12 has officially launched in China and now the company’s most powerful phone is coming to the rest of the world. OnePlus has announced global availability on January 24, including the US.
Samsung’s current flagship soundbar is a complete package, and a sonic powerhouse.
Here's a list of the best laptops you can buy right now, as reviewed by Engadget editors.
Instagram is rolling out a feature that allows users to create their own templates for Stories using text, GIFs and images. Other users will be able to riff on and add to someone else's template.
So long E3, we knew you weren’t long for this world.
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