Top Products Used by Teachers and Students by ‘Teachers Know Best’

Teachers Know Best is a website that provides the EdTech sector information about the state of K-12 resources.

The information is based on the perspectives of the students and teachers. In doing so, they want to help EdTech entrepreneurs build more effective digital products that fulfill the needs of students and teachers in digital learning and as a result improve nation’s education.

Teachers are looking to EdTech for help.!

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation partnered with IDEO a global design and innovation firm to create the vision and design for ‘Teachers Know Best’, a platform to connect EdTech entrepreneurs more directly to the needs of teachers and students. The raw data that underpins the site comes from work with management and consulting firm McKinsey and Company who conducted the survey research and created the 2013 Teachers Know Best report.

Based on the research, Top 10 product preferences of teachers and students are as follows: –

Products that were preferred by TEACHERs were:

1.  Khan Academy: Khan Academy is a non-profit educational organization created in 2006 by educator Salman khan to provide “A free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere”. The organization produces micro lectures in the form of YouTube videos. In addition to micro lectures, the organization’s website features practice exercises and tools for educators. All resources are available for free to anyone around the world. Khan Academy offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. Khan Academy empowers teachers/parents to better understand what their children or students are up to and how best to help them. Millions of students from all over the world, each with their own unique story, learn at their own pace on Khan Academy every single day.
2.  Brain POP: founded by Avraham Kadar in 1999, creates animated, curricular content that engages students, supports teachers, and bolsters achievement – in classrooms, at home, and on mobile devices. Their proven and award-winning educational resources, uniquely suited for 21st century learning, their newest offering, GameUp, highlights top, free educational games and aligns them to academic topics. All of their resources are supported by BrainPOP Educators, free professional community more than 135,000 teachers. Aligned to academic standards and easy to use, BrainPOP sites host more than 11 million visits each month.
3.  Accelerated Reader: Accelerated Reader (AR) is software for primary and secondary schools used for monitoring the practice of reading. Renaissance Learning Incorporation, created it. There are two versions: a desktop version and a web-based version in Renaissance Place, the company’s online portal. Accelerated Reader (AR) quizzes are available on fiction and non-fiction books, textbooks, supplemental materials, and magazines. Most are in the form of reading practice quizzes, although some are curriculum based with multiple subjects. Reports are generated on demand to help students, teachers, and parents monitor student progress. Reports are available regarding student reading, comprehension, amount of reading, diagnostic information, and other variables.
4.  Edmodo: Edmodo is a social learning network enabling teachers and students to connect, collaborate and share content to improve learning outcomes. Founded by Nicolas Borg, Jeff O’Hara & Crystal Hutter on 2 September 2008. Edmodo’s mission is to connect all learners with the people and resources they need to reach their full potential. On Edmodo, teachers are at the center of a dynamic and engaging network that connects them to students, administrators and parents, and surfaces the world’s best resources and formative assessment tools that contribute to better learning outcomes. Edmodo is free for teachers and students and always will be.
5.  YouTube
6.  DiscoveryED Websites: Discovery Education transforms classrooms, empowers teachers and captivates students by leading the way in providing high quality, dynamic, digital content to school districts large and small, rural and suburban and everything in between.

   Discovery Education offers a portfolio of opportunities for districts to meet students where they want to learn in the digital age. With award-winning digital content, interactive lessons, real time assessment, virtual experiences with some of Discovery’s greatest talent, classroom contests & challenges, professional development and more — Discovery is leading the way in transforming classrooms and inspiring learning.

7.  Google Docs: Google Docs is Google’s free web-based word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation application. The online app allows users to  easily share documents and collaboratively work on them in real-time.
8.  Google Search
9.  Academy of Math: Academy of MATH is an intensive, online intervention program for students struggling with math.  This dynamic program uses systematic instruction that begins with simple concepts and moves to more complex skills. Ongoing assessment and progress monitoring provide robust data to inform instruction and show students’ progress.
10. 3D GameLab: GameLab is a gamified content creation and student tracking platform where teachers can design and share quests and badges to create personalized learning for their students. Students “level up” through the curriculum, choose quests they want to play, and earn experience points, badges, and awards. Class is literally turned into a game, providing the opportunity for true mastery learning. Includes monthly professional development on gamification and tech integration strategies. Used in kindergarten through graduate school in over 16+ countries! 

Investors are hungry. Eight times more hungry.!

Products that were preferred by STUDENTs were:

1. Google search
2.  Khan Academy 
3.  Google docs
4.  YouTube
5.  Edmodo
6.  Microsoft Word
7.  Wikipedia
8.  Google Drive
9.  Google Apps for education
10.  PowerPoint

Teachers want more and better resources for every grade level and across every subject area. In fact, only 54% of teachers believe that even the products they use frequently in classrooms make the grade-really serving students’ learning needs. Which products and tools fall into your “Top Product” List and why? Share with us in the comment box.