Forward Education
Product by Forward Education
The Bottom Line
Partially. Forward Education combines physical climate action kits with coding instruction to teach applied STEM concepts. While tangible project-based learning is a strong pedagogical approach for computer science, The Learning Standard has not yet evaluated this system to confirm its instructional efficacy. Its reliance on educator facilitation means results will vary.
Pros
- Integrates physical hardware with software coding to support multimodal learning.
- Uses project-based learning focused on climate change to increase student engagement and real-world application.
- Provides structured lesson plans that reduce cognitive load for educators new to computer science.
Cons
- Lacks independent verification of learning outcomes through The Learning Standard evaluation.
- Requires significant teacher facilitation and cannot be used as an independent learning tool for your child.
- Pricing opacity prevents educators from easily assessing cost-benefit ratios against competing STEM kits.
What Do We Know About Forward Education?
Forward Education relies on teacher-led instruction and physical building kits to teach coding, meaning it is not an app your child can use independently at home. This system is designed primarily for classroom environments where educators guide students through climate-focused STEM projects. The platform combines physical hardware with coding interfaces. Learning science shows that physical manipulatives improve spatial reasoning and conceptual understanding in computer science. By grounding abstract coding concepts in real-world climate problems, the system utilizes situated learning to help students build meaningful context for their skills. However, because The Learning Standard has not yet evaluated Forward Education, we cannot definitively verify its effectiveness. Your child will likely experience this tool during science or technology classes rather than as a standalone download. The quality of the learning experience depends heavily on the teacher's ability to facilitate the lessons and connect the hands-on building tasks to core academic standards.
How Does Forward Education Work?
Forward Education uses project-based learning with physical hardware kits and guided coding interfaces. Students receive physical components to build automated systems, such as smart greenhouses or renewable energy models. They then use block-based or text-based programming to control these physical constructs. This approach leverages experiential learning, requiring students to immediately apply new coding knowledge to tangible objects. When your child writes a script, they see the immediate physical result, which provides instantaneous feedback and helps correct misconceptions. The platform provides educators with a centralized dashboard containing lesson plans, wiring diagrams, and coding tutorials. Teachers introduce the climate problem, guide the physical assembly, and oversee the programming phase. This scaffolded approach minimizes the extraneous cognitive load often associated with learning raw code, allowing students to focus on the logic and problem-solving aspects of computer science.
Strengths and tradeoffs of Forward Education
The biggest strength of Forward Education is its use of tangible, real-world climate projects to contextualize abstract coding concepts, while its biggest weakness is its complete reliance on active teacher facilitation. Strengths: The system excels at applying situated learning. By asking students to code solutions for climate change, it gives purpose to raw programming syntax. Grounding software instruction in physical hardware kits also provides immediate visual feedback. When a line of code fails to move a physical sensor, students engage in productive struggle and iterative problem-solving. Weaknesses: Because this is a classroom-oriented kit rather than an adaptive software platform, it lacks built-in spaced repetition or automated retrieval practice. Students only engage with the concepts during the designated project time. Furthermore, the absence of independent student progression means advanced learners cannot accelerate beyond the teacher's lesson plan, and struggling students do not receive algorithmic remediation. The Learning Standard has not yet evaluated the exact instructional sequences to determine if the provided worked examples effectively guide novices before pushing them into open-ended problem solving.
Who Might Benefit From Forward Education?
Best for classroom educators who want structured, project-based STEM kits to integrate climate science with introductory computer science. Forward Education targets schools looking to move beyond screen-only coding by introducing physical hardware. It serves students across various age groups by scaling the complexity of the programming tasks, starting with block-based coding for younger children and advancing to text-based languages for older students. This system is not intended for parents seeking at-home, independent coding apps for their children. It requires dedicated instructional time, physical workspace, and a teacher to guide the problem-solving process.
Data Transparency
Does Not Meet Data Transparency Standard
Forward Education does not meet our data transparency standard. Its privacy policy does not document basic protections, including a commitment against targeted advertising, limits on sharing children's data and contractual limits on service providers.
9 of 35 checks passed
Level 1 · Basic protections
Does not sell data or target ads at students, limits sharing, and lets parents see and delete their child's data.
Not documented: a commitment against targeted advertising, limits on sharing children's data, contractual limits on service providers, a COPPA or FERPA commitment, parents' right to see their child's data, parents' right to delete their child's data
Level 2 · Parent control (meets the standard)
Families can get their data out, know who processes it, and know how long it is kept.
Not documented: a data retention timeline, named service providers, self-service deletion
Level 3 · Direct data access
Families or schools can pull their own data through an API, in a stated format.
Not documented: an API for retrieving their own data, a named export format
View all 35 checks
Parent Access2/8
Does the policy mention parents specifically?
“If a child under 18 years of age has provided us with personal data their parent or guardian may contact our data protection officer.”
Can parents view their child's data?
The policy says only that a parent or guardian may contact the data protection officer and does not say parents can view their child's data.
Can parents modify their child's data?
The policy does not say parents can change their child's data.
Can parents delete their child's account?
The policy says children's data will be deleted once the company learns of it and that parents may contact the data protection officer, but it does not explicitly give parents a right to request deletion.
Is there a dedicated Children's Privacy section?
“We do not knowingly collect or use personal data from children under 18 years of age. Accounts on our platform are designed for adult educators. Student accounts are not required.”
Does it reference COPPA compliance?
The policy does not mention COPPA.
Does it reference FERPA compliance?
The policy does not mention FERPA.
Is parental consent required for child accounts?
The policy says it does not knowingly collect children's data and does not describe any parental consent process.
Data Portability2/5
Can users access their personal data?
“If you would like to know if we have collected your personal data, how we have used your personal data, if we have disclosed your personal data and to who we disclosed your personal data, if you would like your data to be deleted or modified in any way, or if you would like to exercise any of your other rights under the GDPR, please contact our data protection officer here:”
Can users download/export their data?
“Under the GDPR, you have the following rights: 1. Right to be informed; 2. Right of access; 3. Right to rectification; 4. Right to erasure; 5. Right to restrict processing; 6. Right to data portability; and 7. Right to object.”
Is there a self-service data access tool?
The policy handles access requests by contacting the data protection officer and describes no self-service access tool.
Is a specific data format mentioned for export?
The policy does not name any export format.
Is there an API for data access?
The policy does not mention an API for data access.
Data Minimization2/6
Is data collection itemized?
“When you visit and use our Site, we may automatically collect and store the following information: 1. IP address; 2. Location; 3. Hardware and software details; 4. Clicked links; and 5. Content viewed.”
Can the app be used without a real name?
The policy does not say the product can be used without giving a real name.
Can the app be used without an email?
The policy does not say the product can be used without an email address.
Does it state collection is limited to what is necessary?
“We only collect data that helps us achieve the purpose set out in this Privacy Policy. We will not collect any additional data beyond the data listed below without notifying you first.”
Is IP address anonymized or truncated?
The policy says it collects IP addresses and does not say they are anonymized or truncated.
Is location tracking explicitly excluded?
The policy says it collects location automatically.
Third-Party Protection2/7
Does it explicitly state no selling of data?
“We will not sell or share your data with other third parties, except in the following cases:”
Are third-party providers named?
The policy does not name any third-party providers.
Are providers contractually restricted?
The policy mentions confidentiality agreements for employees only, not contract limits on outside providers.
No-targeted-advertising commitment?
The policy does not address targeted advertising.
Is AI/ML data sharing addressed?
The policy does not address sharing data for AI or machine learning.
Child-specific sharing restriction?
The policy has no sharing limits specific to children beyond saying it deletes children's data it learns of.
Cookies/tracking limited or opt-out?
“We do not track the users of our Site over time and across third party websites and therefore do not respond to browser-initiated DNT signals.”
Deletion & Retention1/5
Can users delete their account?
“If you would like to know if we have collected your personal data, how we have used your personal data, if we have disclosed your personal data and to who we disclosed your personal data, if you would like your data to be deleted or modified in any way, or if you would like to exercise any of your other rights under the GDPR, please contact our data protection officer here:”
Self-service deletion mechanism?
The policy handles deletion by contacting the data protection officer and describes no self-service deletion.
Specific data retention timeline?
The policy says data is kept until the purpose of collection is achieved and gives no specific timeline.
Auto-deletion of inactive accounts?
The policy does not address automatic deletion of inactive accounts.
Post-deletion handling described?
The policy does not describe how data is handled after deletion.
Advertising0/4
Advertising model explicitly disclosed?
The policy does not address advertising, other than opting out of marketing emails.
Free from third-party advertisements?
The policy does not address third-party advertising.
Children excluded from ad targeting?
The policy does not address ad targeting of children.
Ad-free option available?
The policy does not address advertising or an ad-free option.
What This Means
The policy review did not meet our data transparency standard. The checks above show the documented findings and unknowns. A missing statement does not establish how the app handles data in practice.
About this evaluation: Based on automated analysis of Privacy Policy and Privacy policy using the Common Sense Privacy Program framework. Quoted text is copied from the policy; unquoted notes are our summary. Results describe the policy disclosures we assessed; unknown checks are excluded from scores. Privacy policies can change. This review reflects the version we analyzed and does not determine legal compliance.
Sources and review method
TLS combines product information and editorial analysis to explain how Forward Education works, its tradeoffs, and the questions to ask before choosing it. Product features, an instructional rationale and evidence of learning outcomes are different kinds of information.
Formal Learning Standard assessment: not yet completed. Data Transparency findings are reported separately and do not establish learning effectiveness. Read our methodology.
Frequently Asked Questions About Forward Education
Is Forward Education free?
No. Forward Education requires the purchase of physical climate action kits and access to their proprietary learning system. Pricing is not publicly listed on their website, and educators must contact the vendor directly for a custom quote. This lack of transparent pricing requires schools to engage in a sales process before understanding the budget impact. It also effectively prevents parents from easily purchasing the materials for independent home use.
Is Forward Education good for elementary students?
Yes, when facilitated by a teacher. The system supports learners of all ages by utilizing block-based coding, which significantly reduces the working memory demands of typing syntax. This allows younger students to focus entirely on computational logic and basic engineering principles. Because the lessons are built around tangible building blocks, elementary students can physically interact with the results of their code, making abstract computer science concepts much more concrete and accessible.
What does Forward Education teach?
Forward Education teaches applied computer science, engineering, and climate science. Students learn foundational programming logic, hardware wiring, and sensor integration while exploring major environmental issues. Through project-based learning modules, students apply these technical skills to model real-world solutions, such as renewable energy grids and sustainable agriculture systems. The curriculum forces students to utilize scientific reasoning alongside mathematical problem-solving to make their physical hardware function correctly.
Has Forward Education been evaluated by The Learning Standard?
No. Forward Education is currently pending evaluation by The Learning Standard team. While its project-based approach and use of physical manipulatives align well with established learning science principles, we have not yet tested its specific lesson sequencing. We must evaluate its instructional efficacy and worked examples against our official methodology before issuing a definitive rating on how reliably it drives measurable student learning outcomes in the classroom.
How does Forward Education compare to standard coding apps?
Unlike screen-only apps like Code.org, Forward Education pairs software with physical hardware kits. This requires students to build physical models that respond directly to their code. Utilizing multimodal learning reinforces computational concepts much better than relying solely on digital simulations. Students experience immediate physical feedback when a program runs, which triggers productive struggle and spatial reasoning in a way that purely digital drag-and-drop interfaces cannot replicate.
Has The Learning Standard evaluated Forward Education?
TLS has not yet completed a Learning Standard evaluation of how well Forward Education teaches. Its privacy policy has been reviewed for Data Transparency and does not yet document the basic protections (Level 1).
Is Forward Education COPPA compliant?
A COPPA reference was not found in the reviewed privacy policy. This does not determine whether the app complies with COPPA. Policy review note: The policy does not mention COPPA.
Is Forward Education FERPA compliant?
A FERPA reference was not found in the reviewed privacy policy. This does not determine whether the app complies with FERPA. Policy review note: The policy does not mention FERPA.
Does Forward Education have a children's privacy policy?
The reviewed policy includes a dedicated children's privacy section. Policy review note: The policy has a section headed "Children".
Does Forward Education sell student data?
The reviewed policy states that the app does not sell data. This is a policy statement; actual data practices were not verified. Policy review note: The policy states the company will not sell user data.
Can you delete your data from Forward Education?
The reviewed privacy policy describes account deletion. We have not tested the deletion process. Policy review note: Users can ask the data protection officer to delete their data.
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