Industry Innovation in Action Cohort
These cohorts are designed for early-stage partners to engage deeply in learning with experts from Digital Promise, while also gaining critical insights from potential users.
Cohort
Key Ideas
- Early-stage developers often have promising ideas but lack the time, funding, and expertise to test them with the educators who will use them.
- ScaleReady was designed to broaden access to Digital Promise networks and researchers to improve the future of product research and development (R&D).
- ScaleReady gives developers an accessible entry point to partnerships with educators, learning scientists, and other education stakeholders.
- Submit your application by Dec. 1 for the first Collaborative Research Sprint, forming in January 2027.
Established edtech companies might employ research and development teams that refine their tools, researchers who assess student outcomes, and customer success teams who build relationships with districts. But innovation and the promise of better student outcomes don’t come only from established companies. Promising ideas may begin with independent developers, learning scientists, and educators who deeply understand the challenges and opportunities in building better products for all learners. However, these early-stage developers are often limited by funding, time, and the challenge of wearing many hats as entrepreneurs.
Digital Promise’s Research-Practice-Industry Partnerships (RPIPs) have proven to be a powerful opportunity for edtech companies that want to improve their products in collaboration with educators and learning scientists. The model is built on four pillars that keep research and development in a virtuous cycle benefiting educators, researchers, and product developers alike:
- Professional learning
- Collaborative research design
- Feedback loops
- Product and practice improvement
For an early-stage company focused on immediate results, however, even a 12-month commitment may still be too slow or too costly.
What is ScaleReady?
ScaleReady is Digital Promise’s new program for developers of early-stage edtech products. The program offers a shorter, more accessible way to work with educators, learning scientists, and other critical stakeholders in the education ecosystem.
Better tools take all sides working together. Developers need the expertise of educators and a foundation in the learning sciences. Researchers and educators, in turn, gain a direct way to shape products before they reach classrooms. ScaleReady is designed to make that exchange easier for everyone involved.
Developers can apply for the first Collaborative Research Sprint, forming in January 2027. Applications are due by Tuesday, Dec. 1. To learn more and apply, email the ScaleReady team.
To learn more about ScaleReady, visit digitalpromise.org/scaleready.
ScaleReady Services
3 Results
Newest
Collaborative Research Sprints
These short -term research sprints deliver educator-informed, personalized feedback on one key feature–ideal for partners seeking low-lift user research.
Consultation
Research-Practice-Industry Partnerships (RPIP)
These comprehensive, customized partnership combining educator learning, collaborative design, and iterative feedback to improve both product and implementation.
Custom Package
- Topics: Evidence-Based EdTech
- Learning Environments: K-12
- Audiences: EdTech Developers , Educators , Learners , School and System Leaders
- Offerings: Co-design , EdTech Strategy and Standards , Partnerships , Practice and Professional Learning , Research and Development
- Programs: ScaleReady