During the pandemic, school districts amassed an enormous amount of digital tools — sometimes out of necessity, sometimes out of urgency. But with pandemic relief funding winding down and pressure mounting to demonstrate educational impact, many districts are now facing a new challenge: cleaning house.
According to LearnPlatform, U.S. school districts used an average of 2,739 edtech tools during the 2023–24 school year. Now, district leaders are reassessing those tools to identify redundancies, reduce costs and prioritize what actually works for students and teachers.
EdSurge contacted three school systems — in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Natick, Massachusetts, and Grapevine, Texas — about their strategic approaches to slimming down their edtech ecosystems.
No matter the approach, these districts agree that edtech strategy must start with a clear instructional vision. That’s the guiding principle behind the EdTech Systems Guide released by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The guide breaks down the edtech purchasing cycle into three processes: edtech selection, implementation and evaluation.
“You can’t start trimming if you don’t know what you have — and why you have it,” says A.J. Coté, assistant director of educational technology for the Massachusetts education department.
From Sprawl to Strategy
When Executive Director, IT Services Eric Hileman joined Oklahoma City Public Schools in 2012, the IT department followed a “lock and block” mentality, limiting access to tech as a form of control. The pendulum later swung too far the other way, and by the time the pandemic hit, the district had 1,800 apps in use, none of them fully vetted.
Hileman and Neal Kellogg, director of digital procurement and data privacy, have since implemented a strategy to rein it all in. They rely on 1EdTech’s TrustEd Apps program, Lightspeed Insight and internal help desk tracking to evaluate tools for privacy, use and impact.
“We discovered a literacy program that cost $37,000 and that no one had used,” says Kellogg.
The district is developing a system that measures effectiveness using data from Northwest Evaluation Association and other sources. The process is part of a five-year plan to build an accountability culture around edtech use. Already, Oklahoma City schools have narrowed their tool inventory down to 250 approved apps, each reviewed for interoperability, privacy and alignment with instructional goals.
Kellogg emphasizes that these aren’t just technical decisions. “I once found $16,000 worth of unopened smart podiums in a cabinet,” he says. “Getting a handle on what we actually have — digital or physical — has been key.”
Equity, Accessibility and AI
At Natick Public Schools in Massachusetts, the pandemic introduced an explosion of edtech tools, many of which offered overlapping features. Today, the focus is on streamlining through an equity lens, says Grace Magley, director of digital and personalized learning.
In 2022, the district created an Equity and Accessibility Committee with representation from departments across the system. The goal: to develop a smarter, more inclusive framework for evaluating edtech tools.
The committee built on the district’s existing criteria — which already included usability, data privacy and alignment with goals — by adding new elements: AI capabilities, language support for English learners and accessibility features for students with disabilities.
“AI is transforming tools and pushing prices up,” says Magley. “We had to rethink how we evaluate everything from automation to vendor values.”
Major tools go through a year-long pilot, with teacher feedback, training and student learning data collected in a standardized worksheet. Still, reducing tools can be painful. Teachers often invest significant time in creating content on a particular platform.
“I understand the challenge,” Magley says, “but we can’t hold on to systems that don’t align with our vision.”
To support the shift, Magley communicates with staff through newsletters and presentations. Her team cut $100,000 in tools last year and expects to double that savings this year — replacing high-cost systems with tools like Magic School AI, which allows staff to build their own tutoring bots at a fraction of the cost.
The Student Voice Matters
For Kyle Berger, chief technology officer at Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District, outside Dallas, Texas, streamlining tech is like cleaning out a garage. “I have 50 screwdrivers, but only use two,” he says. “We’ve got to rethink what’s essential.”
Berger uses Lightspeed Insight and ClassLink Analytics to monitor tool usage, but also puts a premium on student and teacher feedback. His student advisory committee helps identify what’s working in the classroom and what isn’t.
“If students aren’t engaged, it doesn’t matter how much we paid for it,” he says.
One new criterion he’s added is screen time. After hearing concerns from families, he began evaluating tools based on passive versus active screen usage. He’s also exploring how Google Gemini might help correlate usage data with academic performance.
Redundancy is another area of focus. Berger recommends bringing vendors back to the table to showcase updates or features that might reduce the need for additional tools. His goal is to cut edtech spending by 5 percent to 10 percent per year without compromising student outcomes.
“I’m trying to get to a small set of core apps per subject area,” he says. “Something sustainable for both teachers and students.”
Vision First, Tools Second
Beth Rabbitt, chief executive officer of The Learning Accelerator, a nonprofit working to ensure that all students receive an effective and equitable education, emphasizes the importance of elevating student and family voices when evaluating edtech.
“You might find a tool that’s low-cost, easy to maintain and highly valued, or something that’s a top-down priority but doesn’t fit the culture or workflow,” she says.
Gathering those perspectives can reveal blind spots and help districts align tools with actual needs.
Reflection grounded in evidence, equity, and community voice is what many hope defines the next era of educational technology. After years of unchecked growth, the focus now is on fewer tools, smarter systems and better outcomes for all learners.
This post is exclusively published on eduexpertisehub.com
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