Building EdTech Products: Lessons from Both Sides of the Classroom

The EdTech Promise vs. Reality

EdTech promises transformation, but reality often falls short.

What's promised:

The Teacher's Perspective

As a teacher, I used many EdTech products. Here's what I learned:

What teachers actually need:

The Student's Perspective

Teaching Physics taught me how students actually engage with learning technology.

What students need:

Building for Real Classrooms

Real classrooms are messier than demos suggest.

Reality factors:

Metrics That Matter

In EdTech, easy-to-measure metrics often miss what matters.

Vanity metrics:

The Content Challenge

Content is the core of EdTech, but often treated as an afterthought.

Content truths:

My Product Principles for EdTech

Based on my journey, here are principles I apply:

1. Start with learning outcomes

Define what success looks like for learners, then work backward to features.

2. Test with real users in real contexts

Lab conditions hide problems that emerge in actual classrooms.

3. Design for teachers as allies

Teachers can be your distribution channel or your biggest obstacle.

4. Build for offline reality

Connectivity assumptions often fail in schools.

5. Measure what matters

Easy metrics often mislead; invest in measuring real outcomes.

The Opportunity

EdTech is still early. The products that will win are those built by people who understand learning, not just technology.

My teaching background isn't a detour from EdTech product management; it's the foundation for doing it right.