LEANLAB SCHOOL NETWORK
Tap into the power of technology to help you meet your schools' goals
We match innovative schools with aligned edtech companies to conduct product development and evaluation research.
What is the Leanlab School Network?
Our School Network program is a way for your district to try out emerging edtech products. We work with you to identify key challenges, search globally for an emerging edtech tool that meets your district’s needs, then work with our in-house research team to collaboratively design a pilot study.
Reasons to join
Grant
Funding
Your expertise is valuable. We provide grant funding to support teacher stipends and school needs
Learning Community
Access free learning experiences focused on innovation and collaborate with other schools.
Teacher Empowerment
Empower your teachers by providing them leadership opportunities and professional development.
Data-driven
decision Making
Make evidence-based decisions to inform whether you should purchase or implement products at scale
How does it work?
APPLICATION
A school administrator starts by completing the application. This form helps us establish what your school priorities are and how we can help you achieve your goals.
FIND SOLUTIONS
After you tell us about your biggest challenges, we’ll use those learnings to search the globe and find a technology solutions that may work in your context.
MATCH
We’ll then present you with a curated list of education technology solutions that you will interview to determine who would best fit your needs.
RESEARCH DESIGN
Work with the Leanlab research team and your partner company to co-design a research question and to establish methods and logistics to execute the pilot.
LAUNCH PILOT
Implement the pilot in your school where you will inform enhancements to the product based on your user experience and aligned to your school community’s needs.
Read a case study!
Learn more about how the program works by reading and watching a case study from Academy for Integrated Arts and Makers Empire.
Need more info?
Schedule a short call to learn more about the program.
"Not only does Leanlab provide a meaningful opportunity for teachers and students to work alongside entrepreneurs that have a vested interest in improving outcomes for students, we’ve been able to apply what we learned in the program to throughout our school.”
Kirsten Brown, Principal at Crossroads Academy
FAQs
How long is the research period?
The research implementation period is dependent on the type of research. Studies can last anywhere from six weeks to one semester.
How many teachers and or classrooms are needed for research?
The number of teachers, classrooms, students, and/or parents needed to participate in the pilot study will vary depending on the methodology established together.
How many hours do school staff and/or teachers need to commit to the pilot study?
Time required is highly dependent on the type of research and the study design. We can help you find the right type of study to implement in your district based on your school's capacity.
How is the grant funding distributed?
Total grant money is dependend on the study size and the involvement we'll need from your school. We provided direct stipends to teachers for smaller studies and school grants up to $10K that for larger studies. Grant money is given on an unrestricted basis.
What do schools have to do to receive the grant?
Upon selection, Leanlab Network Schools will sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Leanlab that signals their intent to follow the steps and commit to the engagement requirements of the pilot process. This MOU will be co-created by Leanlab and your school and outline specific study requirements. Some studies will require a data-sharing agreement.
Tell me more about Codesign and the theory that underlies Leanlab’s research philosophy.
Leanlab engages pilot teams in a codesign research process. Unlike traditional research methods that are designed by an external research team who chooses the problem and interventions to study, co-design brings those that are most impacted by education solutions - teachers, students, and parents - to the innovation and research process. All stakeholders work together to identify the problem, establish a research question, choose a solution to test, and decide on the data collection methods, tools, and study participants. During the pilot process, product users give feedback and suggest modifications to the product’s designer, designers improve the products based on the feedback, thereby creating more effective and usable products that truly meet the demands of school communities. We believe codesign distributes power in the innovation process and develops capacity for sustaining change.