School districts are changing how they evaluate classroom software. Facing shrinking budgets, education leaders are moving away from simple login statistics to focus on actual student progress.
What Happened
According to a recent proposal by K-12 software provider PowerSchool, the company is pitching a SXSW EDU 2027 panel titled "Is it a Unicorn? Measuring Tech ROI with Student Outcomes." The presentation features industry experts including Dr. Julie Evans and Dr. Michele W. Collier. The panel plans to show school districts how to measure whether expensive software investments improve academic performance, rather than just counting purchased licenses. Schools face heavy pressure to justify every dollar spent on classroom technology.
The Bigger Picture
Federal pandemic relief funds, known as ESSER, expired after the March 30, 2026 late liquidation deadline. This funding cliff forces schools back to pre-pandemic budgets, so IT leaders must audit and consolidate their digital tools. During these audits, districts often discover they run two to four times more instructional apps than official records show. Many of these are free-tier sign-ups by individual teachers.
To address this, some districts are trying outcome-based contracting. Under these agreements, vendor payments depend directly on proven academic progress, like gains in math or literacy. But measuring success requires more than buying tools. Research shows classroom hardware often outpaces the actual training and capability of teachers to use it. Districts need to build technology maturity through better data governance, privacy, and staff training instead of just buying more devices.
What This Means for Families
For parents, the consequences of unmonitored classroom software are practical. When schools buy software that fails to deliver, students suffer from fragmented learning. Studies show that educational software only works when implemented thoughtfully. For example, AI math tutors are most effective when they force students to slow down and correct their mistakes.
A bloated list of classroom apps also increases data privacy risks. The FTC previously ordered a major edtech provider to secure millions of student records, proving that unchecked digital tools can expose sensitive student information. When school districts perform audits, they protect both tax dollars and student data. If students do not master core concepts early, families face paying $1,000 and $3,000 per remedial college course later.
What You Can Do
- Ask your school's administration if they have a formal process to assess their EdTech and AI governance and how they protect student privacy.
- Ask whether your child’s school measures specific academic benchmarks and usage data to decide which learning platforms to keep or cancel.
- Push for comprehensive teacher training and professional development so teachers can use classroom tools effectively.