Google is injecting audio-first education into its core learning app Classroom by launching a new feature that turns lesson materials into podcast-like episodes, using Gemini.
The tool, developed to allow educators to repackage teaching into freewheeling, conversational audio that students can listen to on their own time — an embarrassment of aural “riches,” officials said — opens a door to that medium through which many already pass daily.
Available for schools that have Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals, Standard, and Plus, the feature is located inside the Gemini tab in Classroom and is designed to enhance comprehension without increasing high-production work for teachers.
How the Gemini podcast feature works in Google Classroom
Teachers begin by choosing a grade band, subject area, and learning objectives. Gemini then creates an audio script and records a podcast-style lesson that can imitate formats students are already familiar with, like interviews, roundtable chats, or a casual host-and-guest conversation.
Teachers can select how many voices to use and tune it to their class culture — more formal for AP prep or more conversational for middle school SEL, for example. The output is intended to supplement rather than replace existing materials, a way for instructors to quickly produce listenable reviews, introductions, or extensions of core lessons.
Google describes the tool as part of its broader set of Gemini for Classroom offerings, which also currently include idea tools to help with brainstorming, lesson planning, and differentiated materials. The audio feature builds on that momentum by incorporating an approachable modality with low friction to entry.
Why audio might increase engagement for students
Podcast listening is entrenched among younger people. According to Edison Research, monthly podcast listening has grown relatively steadily across the U.S., and industry estimates have roughly 35 million Gen Z Americans tuning in monthly. When students are already where you want them to be — on headphones — you can turn review sessions into something that feels less like homework and more like a known media habit.
There’s also a pedagogical case. By providing an additional pathway to content, particularly for those who benefit from hearing information explained multiple ways, audio can enhance Universal Design for Learning. Rewindable lessons could scaffold note-taking and spaced repetition, and help reduce cognitive load from dense text.
Universities have been using the format for years to create lecture series and explain research results. If Classroom can bring those same experiences to K–12 educators and students, that could help lower the barrier for teachers who don’t have time to learn audio editing or juggle external platforms.
Classroom applications and examples for teachers
In social studies, lessons about the Constitutional Convention can morph into a moderated “panel” of historical figures debating trade-offs — in this case, propping up cause-and-effect analysis. It can prepare students to work on hands-on activities during class, and in science it can prepare students for safety, materials, or hypotheses so that students come into the physical lab with new tools.
Language arts teachers might make character roundtables to unpack themes and symbolism; world language classes could produce short dialogues, at varying levels of difficulty, as listening exercises. Brief recap episodes can provide a targeted refresher for students who missed class — or are getting ready for assessments.
Importantly, teachers will be able to work around the audio by incorporating comprehension checks into the material with existing Classroom tools — such as prompts, short reflections, or quick quizzes — to make sure users have an active rather than passive experience.
Responsible AI and review practices for schools
Like any school-based generative tool, quality depends on teachers’ supervision. Google is asking educators to make sure they see the script and check that audio is appropriate in terms of age and curriculum — and based on standards and policies at the local level. That advice reflects guidance from groups including UNESCO and ISTE calling for human-in-the-loop workflows, transparency over AI use, and continued assessments of the possibility of biases.
Schools will also need to factor in questions of privacy and implementation — such as the availability of headphones, places for quiet listening, and norms around when audio is acceptable. Meanwhile, expectations of citation and originality are still important at all levels, particularly as students come into contact with ever more AI-written content across the curriculum.
What this means for edtech and classroom adoption
The move places Classroom squarely in the trend of AI-powered content creation that goes beyond text — a space rivals are also tackling. Text-to-speech has been tried on other platforms and AI lesson assistance as well, but packaging teacher-led instruction into a slick podcast-like format within a well-used LMS could pick up the pace of adoption.
If schools notice that engagement or retention are up, particularly among active auditory learners, audio episodes could become a common complement to slide decks and handouts. The largest payoff might even be the time: turning a set of goals into an on-demand, student-friendly episode in minutes as opposed to hours of production.
For now, the advice to educators is practical: Marshal Gemini and devise a variety of ways for students to come into contact with key ideas; exercise editorial control over what gets produced; and put a bow on the listening experience by combining it with activities that warrant turning ears on.
When it’s done well, classroom podcasts can make truly complex material sound like stuff students actually want to press play on.
