Young boy invents 'virtual teacher' for home-school help

Social isolation has been a tough learning curve for parents who are having to act as teachers. But 10-year-old Lucas Buchanan may have just invented a solution – the virtual teacher.

"I had to manage my own tasks, and it got very hard sometimes," Lucas told 9News.

So, using his knowledge of software writing, Lucas created My Class Buddy, which uses voice-activated technology to help with home study.

"Having your virtual teacher there is just like having a real teacher there to answer questions," he said.

My Class Buddy can tell students what they should be working on, provide advice on how to solve problems, and even recommend a break.

Lucas' app is a contender in the Young Change Agents' first national virtual competition, the Coronavirus Youth Design Challenge.

The competition will be judged by representatives from Google, Facebook and Microsoft.

"I think that these judges will be very excited to see it, and also potentially offer some mentors and things as well, to help these young people improve on their ideas," Young Change Agents CEO Margaret O'Brien said.