Workshop participants reported that the ESSA four-tier model under-delivers evidence about for whom and under what conditions technologies work¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 2 studies · 2 theoretical r2 · q2
Currency · no dated study recorded · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Participants critiqued the four-tier model for not delivering evidence about whether a technology will work in situations like the user's own and for whom and under what conditions it is effective. → critique-1 q2 i? Participants noted more efficacy studies than effectiveness studies reach the top tier, and argued some what-works interventions are narrowly applicable to only five percent of students, citing Ginsburg & Smith (2016). → critique-2

Evidence¶

critique-1¶

Roschelle, J., Ruiz, P., Means, B., Griffiths, R., Lee, K. (2026 April). Towards an Evidence Framework for Emerging Educational Technologies. Digital Promise. https://doi.org/10.51388/20.500.12265/289

q2 · i? · theoretical · r2

Workshop discussion and critique of the four-tier model reported in the brief's Four-Tier Model section. Participants endorsed rigor but asked for defined dimensions of rigor; the quote names the two under-delivered evidence aspects.

"school procurement leaders place a strong priority on interrogating "will it work in a situation like mine?" and evidence about "for whom and under what conditions" a technology-supported intervention is effective — two aspects of evidence often not delivered under the four-tier model."

critique-2¶

Roschelle, J., Ruiz, P., Means, B., Griffiths, R., Lee, K. (2026 April). Towards an Evidence Framework for Emerging Educational Technologies. Digital Promise. https://doi.org/10.51388/20.500.12265/289

q2 · i? · theoretical · r2

The brief reports, citing Ginsburg & Smith (2016), that interventions recognized as what works may apply narrowly; this is a second-hand attribution the article itself presents as an outside argument, not a tested result.

"Some have argued that learning technology interventions recognized as "what works" under the four-tier model are often narrowly applicable to only five percent of students (Ginsburg & Smith, 2016)."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Springboard Summer scholars show larger reading improvements than statistically equivalent non-participating peers, meeting ESSA Tier 2 moderate evidence standards — related
• Workshop engagement reaches an inflection point at the first shareback of newly generated text, after which participant questions about LLMs become more incisive — related