1978 TI Speak and Spell
By: Skylar Kostinden
November 11th, 2021
TI Speak and Spell
The TI Speak and Spell represented the first time an educational toy utilized speech that was not recorded on tape or phonograph record in the 20th century. The first Speak and Spell was introduced at the summer Consumer Electronics Show in June 1978. It was created by a small team of engineers in a Texas Instruments lab led by Paul Breedlove starting in 1976. The toy was originally advertised as a tool for helping children ages 7 and up to learn to spell and pronounce over 200 commonly misspelled words (1).
At the TI headquarters in Dallas Texas, the engineers were drawn to the idea of creating an electronic spelling bee.The engineers wanted to make sure the device wouldn't bore the children educationally so they created a variety of games to keep the children stimulated and actively interacting with the device. It was a device that allowed many children to remain engaged while still having fun which is significantly valuable for the development of children (2).
The speak and spell also utilized certain marketing strategies to achieve consumership within it’s target audience. It was used in blockbuster children's movies like Toy story and E.T. which of course made a lot of children who watched these movies at the time want to purchase the toy they saw being used in these hit movies (3). In conclusion, the device has clearly been proven to help children succeed academically while also allowing them to be engaged and have fun which resulted in it’s immense popularity culturally within its time.
Footnotes:
1- “Speak & Spell (Toy).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, August 4, 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speak_%26_Spell_(toy).
2- G. A. Frantz and R. H. Wiggins, "Design case history: speak & spell learns to talk," in IEEE Spectrum, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 45-49, Feb. 1982 (https://ieeexplore-ieee-org.colorado.idm.oclc.org/document/6366797)
3- Retroist, Post author By. “A History of the Speak & Spell.” Retroist, August 18, 2021. https://retroist.com/speak-and-spell/.
