Amazon Inspire, a free service for digital educational resources
Amazon Inspire is a free service for the search, discovery and distribution of digital educational resources.
The initiative has been developed in support of the company's commitment to making digital classrooms a reality. Features include a discovery option and peer reviews that will provide educators – regardless of funding or location – access to upload and share free digital teaching resources.
Joseph South, director for the Office of Technology at the U.S. Department of Education, says that to truly transform learning in our schools, it is crucial that we put high quality open educational resources at teachers' fingertips.
"The leadership of states, districts and innovative platform providers is critical for setting a vision and creating an open ecosystem where educators and students can access the tools, content and expertise necessary to thrive in a connected world."
Rohit Agarwal, general manager of Amazon K-12 Education, says Amazon joins educators in recognising the power of digital by creating this personalised and engaging learning environment.
"However, we also know that making that promise a reality is a time consuming proposition and teachers tell us that they spend upwards of 12 hours a week searching for and curating resources for classroom instruction, placing a high degree of trust in resources shared by their peers," says Agarwal.
"With Amazon Inspire, we aim to quickly and easily put the best and most trusted digital resources at teachers' fingertips, saving them valuable time that can be devoted to what they do best and enjoy most—teaching.