Emily Tate Sullivan Senior Reporter | EdSurge Research
During the pandemic, school districts accumulated a large number of digital tools due to necessity and urgency. With pandemic relief funding decreasing and pressure increasing to show educational impact, many districts are now tasked with streamlining their digital ecosystems.
LearnPlatform reports that U.S. school districts used an average of 2,739 edtech tools during the 2023–24 school year. District leaders are now reassessing these tools to eliminate redundancies, cut costs, and prioritize what benefits students and teachers.
EdSurge reached out to three school systems in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Natick, Massachusetts; and Grapevine, Texas about their strategies for reducing their edtech ecosystems.
These districts agree that an edtech strategy must begin with a clear instructional vision. This principle is outlined in the EdTech Systems Guide released by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The guide details the edtech purchasing cycle into three processes: selection, implementation, and evaluation.
“You can’t start trimming if you don’t know what you have — and why you have it,” says A.J. Coté from the Massachusetts education department.
Eric Hileman from Oklahoma City Public Schools describes how they transitioned from having 1,800 apps during the pandemic to implementing a strategy for evaluating tools based on privacy, use, and impact using programs like 1EdTech’s TrustEd Apps program. “We discovered a literacy program that cost $37,000 and that no one had used,” says Neal Kellogg from Oklahoma City schools.
In Natick Public Schools in Massachusetts, Grace Magley focuses on streamlining through an equity lens. The district created an Equity and Accessibility Committee in 2022 to develop a more inclusive framework for evaluating edtech tools.
“AI is transforming tools and pushing prices up,” says Magley. “We had to rethink how we evaluate everything from automation to vendor values.”
Kyle Berger from Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District emphasizes student engagement over cost. “If students aren’t engaged, it doesn’t matter how much we paid for it,” he says.
Beth Rabbitt from The Learning Accelerator stresses the importance of considering student and family voices when evaluating edtech. “You might find a tool that’s low-cost, easy to maintain and highly valued," she says.
The focus is now on fewer tools, smarter systems, and better outcomes for all learners.
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