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Only 45% of EdTech purchasers agree that evidence or data available on EdTech products is easy to understand and apply to the process of assessing materials.
Actionable
Through research we unearth 4 common barriers faced by evidence creators.
01
Decision-makers may not have the expertise, time, or confidence to understand data results, especially if the presentation format is not user-friendly.
Data is very useful… but not everyone knows how to interpret.
— Chief Academic Officer, MN
02
Lengthy resource titles can hinder a user’s deeper engagement with that resource.
In a Discrete Choice Experiment, 60% of respondents indicated a preference for shorter, informative titles containing concrete outcomes relative to a district-specific title.
Our biggest challenge is making sure data is accessible to all players in our selection committee.
— Director of Technology, CA
03
Piloting triggers a sense of sunk cost, making it difficult for individuals to pivot away from a given product because they’ve already invested time and resources into it.
52% of EdTech and 50% of core curriculum purchasers agreed that in their experience, piloting a product/curriculum usually leads to a purchase of that same product/curriculum.
Most of the time piloting leads to purchase… people want it from the beginning, there’s that buy-in.
— Assistant Superintendent, CA
04
52% of EdTech and 50% of core curriculum purchasers agreed that in their experience, piloting a product/curriculum usually leads to a purchase of that same product/curriculum.
63% of EdTech and 71% of core curriculum purchasers selected websites as one of their top three preferred channels for accessing information on EdTech product quality/curriculum quality.
The website search needs to be better organized. I have difficulty finding what I am looking for.
— Teacher Leader, IL
A principle as a solution
Based on these barriers, we came to understand that evidence should be
Actionable
With implementation in mind
Evidence should be communicated in an understandable and forward manner, with examples of how it should be used. Actionability must be emphasized to represent the value-add for users.
Make your evidence actionable
Explore the tools on our toolkit that will help you to enhance your evidence availability.
Explore other principles
Have questions?
We work with organizations of all kinds to develop customized solutions to social challenges.
This project was built in partnership with The Decision Lab, a socially-conscious applied research firm that generates transformational change for people, products, and organizations using behavioral science.