When the Data Doesn’t Tell the Story: 5 Pitfalls School Systems and EdTechs Meet in Impact Evaluation (and How to Avoid Them)
By 4:30 p.m., the conference table tells the story of another long day: coffee rings, half-scribbled notes, and a stack of vendor decks claiming “proven impact.” The superintendent wants data for the board packet. The finance chief asks what will justify renewal. Instructional leaders scan spreadsheets, trying to connect logins to learning. Everyone agrees that […]
Why School Districts Need Data-Driven Purchasing Decisions
Picture a director of curriculum at 9:07 p.m., blue light on a spreadsheet that never ends. Tabs stack. Emails ping. Every vendor promises “measurable impact.” Slides glow with smiling students and tidy charts. Tomorrow’s cabinet meeting looms. The superintendent wants a recommendation. The finance chief wants a reason. Teachers want fewer logins and more minutes […]
The Role of Evaluation in the Product Development Lifecycle for EdTech
Your development team is celebrating a new feature release. Sales wants a case study. District leaders want proof. Your inbox is full of feedback, some glowing, some confusing. The question hanging over every sprint is simple enough to make you wince: Does this actually help students? If it does, show it. If it doesn’t, fix […]
Spot the Difference: What Passes as Evidence in Education
You’re in a budget meeting. A vendor says their program boosts student outcomes by 20%. The slide sparkles, heads nod, and a small voice in your mind asks the only question that matters: twenty percent compared to what? Last year’s cohort? A different school? A handpicked group of super-engaged kids? Or is it just a […]
Why Your Most Engaged Students Might Be Misleading Your Impact Data
You roll up product usage for the semester, and it looks great. Daily streaks. Badges. Charts that climb. Your most engaged students are excelling, and the gains appear substantial. Teachers are sharing wins. Your dashboard is glowing. Procurement is hopeful. Here’s the snag: those same students were already the ones who color-code their planners, ask […]
What Does Evidence Based Actually Mean for Schools?
You’ve seen it. On websites. In slide decks. Written across the top of grant proposals in bold. These days, just about everything in education is marketed as evidence based. Evidence based practice in education empowers teachers to use proven strategies, delivering better outcomes and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. The phrase is everywhere. It […]
Beyond Anecdotes: The Power of Quantitative Data in Education
We’ve all heard the glowing success story. A teacher tries a new program in her classroom. She swears by it. The kids are thriving, test scores are up, and the classroom culture is vibrant. Maybe there’s a local news story or a social media post that makes the rounds. It feels good, sounds good—so it […]
Efficacy vs. Effectiveness: Why Understanding the Difference Matters in K–12 Education
When a district leader says, Show me the data, what they often receive is a polished report, full of impressive outcomes from a handful of students in just the right setting. The graphs are clean. The language is confident. The results? Glowing. But there’s a catch. Most of that data comes from what’s called an […]