Dive Brief:

• The Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology (OET) has released new guidance aimed at bringing educators and ed tech entrepreneurs onto the same page.
• The guide, written by educators and researchers for developers, startups, and entrepreneurs, aims to bring attention to the real, persistent problems that actually need solutions.
• The free guide, titled "Ed Tech Developer's Guide: A Primer for Developers, Startups and Entrepreneurs," delves into what schools need most and what digital tools educators and administrators would like to see created.

Dive Insight:

According to eSchool News, the problems educators need digital solutions for deal with many of the following topics: mastery of academic skills, fostering and measuring of non-cognitive skills, embedding of formative assessments, engaging families, supporting college and career exploration, providing job-embedded professional development, improving educator productivity, increasing access for all students, and closing achievement gaps.

What's cool about this guidance is it's a win-win for all. Educators and administrators get a say in suggesting the tools that will ideally be coming to their classrooms, and entrepreneurs and startups get free insight into the minds of educators.

One common issue with the ed tech surge is that there appears to be a lack of communication between developers and schools. The guidance makes sure to stress that, despite the helpful tips it provides, it's very important that the ed tech world maintains communication with schools even when they're not pitching an idea.