As AI floods the K-12 ecosystem, holding onto true instructional quality
is becoming increasingly difficult. At the Studio, we've been working to keep human judgment and pedagogical rigor at the core of adoption decisions,
while also exploring how AI-integrated solutions can enhance the
evaluation and implementation of instructional materials.
In this newsletter, you'll find:
The second installment of our article series about our research into how districts across the U.S. are navigating AI use in unique policy contexts
A new article in collaboration with EdTech Insiders on how AI is reshaping K-12 EdTech procurement
Recently published research and news on how AI is complicating definitions of quality in the classroom
Our Latest Articles
Filling a Local Policy Void: Inside One District’s Human-First AI Strategy | EdSignals Studio
As AI sweeps the education industry, teachers without a district-wide AI policy in place are relying on their judgment and experience to guide classroom use.
In the second article of our three-part series on how schools are navigating AI in the classroom, teachers in one California school district are leading policy and drawing a line around human value.
How AI is Reshaping K-12 EdTech Procurement | Edsignals Studio x EdTech Insiders
EdTech procurement has always been challenging for districts: only 40% of EdTech purchasers agree that adoption is an easy, frictionless process.
In this article written in collaboration with EdTech Insiders, we explore how districts are factoring AI into their existing procurement journey and offer a roadmap for navigating product exploration, evaluation, and implementation in this shifting EdTech environment.
Featured Publications
Evidence experimentation in AI evaluation in education | Code Acts in Education
Government agencies and AI companies are now pushing rapid evaluation in real classrooms, with OpenAI, for example, building its own measurement suite to study the effects of its tools in schools. What counts as valid evidence for policy and practice is now up for grabs, and vendor-run tests risk displacing independent evaluation.
AI in K-12 Instructional Materials: What We're Seeing | EdReports
Drawing on a scan of 10 curriculum and edtech providers, EdReports' new brief sets a baseline for how AI is entering core materials. The brief deliberately avoids giving a single definition of "high-quality AI," treating it as an early step toward understanding what AI changes about curriculum quality.
States urge schools to use AI, but leave teachers on their own to stop cheating | Chalkbeat
About three in four states have published guidance on AI in schools, but these documents give more space to AI literacy and teacher efficiency than to concrete steps against cheating. There is still no agreed definition of cheating, so teachers are left to draw that line themselves.
Can AI Serve Multilingual Learners? It can help…with expert MLL oversight | English Learners Success Forum
Many edtech products now include AI-generated content or use AI in parts of product development. The English Learners Success Forum argues that the research on how multilingual learners develop stays the same even when the medium changes.
Recent Happenings
Cohort Learning Session
This September, we brought together partner organizations to discuss emerging patterns across the ecosystem and identify meaningful opportunities for collaboration in a live Studio-led workshop. The session focused on how our partners' digital tools can collectively help districts adopt high-quality curricula.
By creating community in this landscape, the Studio aims to ensure existing resources work together instead of adding more noise for districts to navigate. In this session, our partners emphasized the importance of:
timing adoption information and services to match key decision windows,
offering ongoing support well past the initial launch of their digital tools and resources,
staying nimble around funding changes,
building MLL supports directly into core classroom workflows,
and continuously tracking the impact of their digital tools through built-in feedback loops.
Is your organization interested in getting involved in this work? Reach out to Project Lead Maraki Kebede at maraki@edsignals.org.
Upcoming Events
Workshop Series
Virtual + AIMS Convening
We’re hosting an interactive workshop series on designing, marketing, and scaling digital tools/resources to support adoption decisions:
Nov 5: Marketing & Communication (Virtual)
Nov 17: Design 101 for HQIM tools (Virtual)
Dec 1: Scaling (AIMS Convening, December 1, 2026, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM in Houston, TX)
Conferences
EdTech Week
The EdSignals Studio will be attending EdTech Week in New York City from October 14-15. Interested in connecting? Email Project Lead Maraki Kebede at maraki@edsignals.org