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To maximize student achievement, money should be spent in ways that support a school’s improvement plan.

As the 2026-2027 school year is getting underway, schools are wondering if the edtech they invested in is paying off or if they need to prioritize elsewhere. Here are some metrics that institutes can use to see if H1 spending actually paid off and can be utilized for future tech investment measurements as well.

Performance and Outcome Metrics

The easiest way schools can measure outcomes is through solid preformance metrics but shouldn’t be the only relying on data schools pull from.

• Academic Growth: Standardized test scores, literacy rates, and graduation percentages compared against dollar-per-pupil spending.
• College and Career Readiness: Participation rates and scores in Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), or career and technical education (CTE) programs.
• Intervention ROI: Tracking performance changes in struggling students after investing in specific tutoring or remedial programs.

Short Term Vs. Long Term Investments

Other than tied dollar amounts, schools can evaluate spending by usage to see if the edtech is being used, and if so, if it’s helping.

• Logins & Screen Time: Shows if a tool is being used, not if it is teaching anything. This shows time on tasks, login frequency, and completion rates.
• Tool Adaption: Does the edtech adapt to individual skill gaps and give teachers measurable time back.
• EdTech Research: Continue to do research into the adopted edtech, following educational analysis, case studies, and more straight from the company.
• Controlled Piolet: Create pre-agreed preformance targets for a controlled classroom piolet and see if it affects scores.

What feedback are you getting from users?

Having solid data is a great start, but speaking to the end users on a daily basis is where you’ll discover some of the richest insights. If teachers and students see the edtech solution as a burden or something that provides little to no value in their teaching or learning, it will be incredibly difficult to ensure longevity.

Take the time to ask questions like, “How often do you use the tool?”, “Do you feel like this helps you be more effective in your learning/teaching?” or “How would you make this better?” This feedback can play an important role when making the case for which edtech tools should stay in the year’s budget.

It can take a significant amount of time to accurately gauge whether an edtech product is positively impacting student learning outcomes, but constantly reviewing and adapting, schools can get a handle on what is actually helping their students.

How does your school usually handle evaluating edtech?

Resources:

https://schoolai.com/blog/how-to-tell-if-edtech-is-workinghttps://www.peardeck.com/blog/tips-for-effectively-evaluating-edtech-in-your-school

https://www.peardeck.com/blog/tips-for-effectively-evaluating-edtech-in-your-school

https://www.discoveryeducation.com/blog/educational-leadership/school-budgeting/