Product certifications lift some of the responsibility of verifying product quality from education leaders’ shoulders to help streamline the decision making process.
Education leaders consistently say that it is difficult to trust product claims and to compare the quality of edtech products without consistent quality indicators. While products make claims about their qualities and features, without an unbiased third-party to verify, how can the information be trusted?
Shareable and Visible
Products earn our certifications as Open Badges, which can be displayed on product websites and in marketing materials. Certification status is also displayed on edtech inventory platforms like the EdSurge Product Index and LearnPlatform.
Competency-Based
Product certifications articulate discrete criteria, prioritized by educators and administrators. Edtech applicants provide specific evidence to demonstrate that the tool meets the criteria.
Research-Driven
Each product certification development process engages educators and administrators in defining the criteria and undergoes multiple rounds of testing with products to ensure a meaningful signal to consumers and a streamlined process for product applicants.
On-Demand
Products can start and continue their product certification journeys on their own time, without deadlines. Applications remain open permanently.
Achieve3000 has always been committed to ensuring product development is informed by a strong research base; working through the application process provided us a lens through which we could further examine and define our process. Receiving the certification affirms that our practices are in line with our principles.
Steve Tardrew, Vice President of Assessment and Research, Achieve3000
As a learner-centered organization, we are thrilled to be recognized for our research-informed approach that puts learning at the center of our design and decision-making process. The certification experience provided us with an opportunity to reflect on our journey and to broadly share our commitments to learners.
Devin Vodicka, EdD, Chief Executive Officer, Altitude Learning
Amplify creates research-backed, evidence-based programs that inspire all students to think deeply, creatively, and for themselves. Digital Promise product certifications in Research-based Design and Learner Variability show Amplify’s commitment to intentional research methodology for Amplify Reading, our supplemental reading program.
Jenna Marks PhD, Senior Learning Scientist, Amplify Reading
BrainQuake was born out of mathematics-learning research at Stanford University, and from the start we were determined that the products we released would not only be based on solid research, but also subjected to research validation, including studies conducted by independent university researchers and published in peer-reviewed journals. We built our company on the belief that only products that have a strong, verifiable base in solid scientific research will truly serve the needs of education, and in the long run those products are the ones that will come out on top and endure. Seeking Digital Promise certification appealed to us because it provided a trusted authority to validate our research-based claims.
Keith Devlin, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist, BrainQuake Inc.
EnGen (formerly Voxy EnGen) was thrilled to apply for and receive Digital Promise’s Product Certification. While we know (and often explain) that our product is designed with a rigorous research basis and that it has empirically-established theoretical underpinnings, having this certification offers third-party evidence. We chose to pursue a Product Certification for an additional third-party validation of our library of data. It is also a clear way to communicate with clients and prospects that they are choosing an English upskilling platform that will deliver outcomes quickly and effectively. The application was fairly straightforward as we already had most of the necessary documents and materials–it was just a matter of pulling them together and organizing them. We’d recommend this process to any organization looking for an objective evaluation of its research basis.
Katharine B. Nielson, PhD, Founder & Chief Education Officer, EnGen
Our Digital Promise certification underscores to both current and potential partners our commitment to research-based best practices, all in support of whole child learning outcomes and connecting students to the learning experiences they need to achieve those outcomes. We are excited about the external validation it provides, and are honored to be listed alongside other high-impact organizations and products.
Andrew Goldin, Executive Director, Gradient Learning / Summit Learning Program
As a growing company, our certifications have really helped us communicate the value of our product to our customers. It’s one thing to claim that your design is research-based, or that it supports diverse learners, but it’s another thing entirely to show that those claims have been vetted by an organization that’s as trusted and respected as Digital Promise.
Mitch Slater, Co-Founder, CEO Levered Learning
We chose to pursue a Product Certification to highlight the robust research basis of Mosaic by ACT: Adaptive Academic Learning. As learning researchers, we want to be able to communicate to customers how products can support student learning by incorporating techniques supported by learning science. AAL does just this, and the Product Certification allows us to showcase this strong, research-based design.
Dana Murano, Research Scientist II, ACT
Digital Promise’s Research-Based Design and Learner Variability Product certifications along with efficacy results provide educators unbiased evidence that Age of Learning’s My Math Academy is a high-quality program that effectively delivers learning outcomes for all learners.
Sunil Gunderia, Chief Innovation Officer, My Math Academy
Research-based design is central to product development at Quizlet. We translate rigorous learning science research into study tools that are engaging and effective for students around the globe. The Digital Promise certification helps teachers and learners have trust in Quizlet without having to evaluate the science on their own.
Anna Khazenzon, PhD, Senior Data Scientist and Learning Scientist, Quizlet
The Digital Promise Product Certification gave our game ProblemScape great credibility with parents and teachers. Being backed by such a reputable source allows us to display to our customers that we are not sugarcoating when we say our product is backed by current education research.
Vidya Raman, CEO, RoundEd Learning
It is critically important for all of our educational programs to be grounded in strong evidence-based instructional practices to support each and every student in their path to academic success. Receiving a Digital Promise Research-Based Design Certification helps educators feel confident in their knowledge that Scholastic personalized learning programs were designed based on rigorous, research-based learning sciences.
Michael Haggen, SVP, GM, Scholastic Education Solutions
At Speak Agent, our core values are the 3E’s of equity, efficacy, and engagement. Simply put, the Product Certifications are a way to show that we are serious about living these values.
Ben Grimley, CEO & Co-Founder, Speak Agent
A research-based certification is not something that is awarded easily from Digital Promise. However, going through the rigorous assessment process needed to earn the title of Certified Product means that educators can feel confident they are using the best in class at their schools.
Yovhane Metcalfe, Ph.D., Chief Academic Officer, StrongMind
Questions? Reach out to us at productcertifications@digitalpromise.org.
Product Certifications