Frequently asked questions
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Render is the education technology innovation studio within the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a philanthropy. Our teams of designers, engineers, and researchers work directly with teachers and school leaders early and often in the product development process, incorporating the unique insights you hold around learning to co-build more impactful tools.
Render is for current K–12 teachers and school leaders eager to help develop new ways to positively impact the education experience for both students and teachers through edtech innovation.
Practicing educators hold first-hand insights around learning that others don’t. Co-building with these educators is key to developing edtech products that are rooted in real challenges in the classroom, and that provide actionable, effective solutions. By incorporating educator input in a tool, we can refine features to best serve teachers’ and students’ needs.
Tools under development become available for use in schools as full products if feedback shows they are effective in addressing a challenge in education. That said, even when a tool has launched, Render continually improves the product by co-building updated features with educators.
Not every tool we’re building will ultimately be offered as a product to schools — and that’s okay. What we learn in the process of co-building a product applies not only to the specific tool in development, but to all the tools that we’re building, or might build in the future. So even if a tool we are building together doesn’t launch, what we learn along the way provides valuable insight into future products we might develop to support students and teachers.
The Along tool is an example of how CZI works with educators and partners to co-build new tools grounded in, and responsive to, real teacher and student needs. Along is a teacher-student connection builder that gives educators an easy and meaningful way to check in with each student — and know them on a deeper level. Since Along’s launch in 2021, we have continued to update the tool and add features based on feedback and ideas from educators.
Along illustrates the good that can happen when learning scientists, educators, students and community partners join us in product development to co-build new tools that address challenges faced by teachers and students in the classroom. Research transforms from theoretical to practical, and technology tools are shaped by the lived experiences of teachers and students. This collaborative approach remains the model for Render’s co-building of new tools.
You can read more about other tools Render is in the process of co-building with educators in Our Work.
Some ways that Render works with educators are as follows:
Most importantly, you can expect an engaging and rewarding experience!
It truly depends!
A time commitment could be as short as a 10-minute survey, or as long as a several-months long pilot where an educator may be asked to use a tool several times a week in their classroom and provide input.
Teachers can participate in co-design, live feedback, or asynchronous feedback without consent from their school leaders. Teachers only need consent from their school leaders if they wish to participate in ongoing pilots that use student data.
We follow industry standards for participant incentives, which may vary depending on the length and depth of the co-building opportunity. For questions on a specific engagement, please reach out to our research operations team for more information at tarmstrong@chanzuckerberg.com
Because Render is part of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative philanthropy, we are able to explore solutions over the long-term.
AI-fueled edtech tools can help teachers better support their students by providing differentiated instruction to meet individual student needs, supporting curriculum implementation quality, and increasing communications with families — among other uses.
Given the rapid adoption of generative AI in education, Render is thoughtfully exploring how to incorporate the technology into the products we co-build with educators. With each tool Render develops, we consider if and how gen AI can be harnessed in a way that is appropriate for students, trustworthy, and provides a unique value for teachers.
In addition to the co-building, privacy, and racial equity commitments that shape all of Render’s work, our gen AI explorations are guided by certain key beliefs. They include:
Your students’ safety is important to Render. We’ve established robust physical, technical, and administrative safeguards designed to protect the data in Render. These safeguards prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, or improper use of information. We’re constantly evaluating our policies and practices to improve the security of our network and systems. For more information about our data protection practices, please see our Security Overview.
CZI was among the first signatories of the Student Privacy Pledge, which commits us to use student personal information only for educational and school purposes. Render does not and will never advertise to students, sell student data, or share it with third-party marketers.
Our core values include an unwavering commitment to privacy, rigorous data security, and creating a safe, educational environment.
Privacy: We only collect essential information, maintain transparency, and adhere to strict data protection standards.
Security: We implement advanced security measures to protect user data and provide resources to help users safeguard their information.
Safety: We ensure a safe space according to our community Guidelines and by providing tools for users to manage interactions. For more information, please visit our Trust and Safety Center. We dedicate ourselves to upholding these principles, providing a safe, secure, and respectful experience for all users.
Gradient Learning and CZI have a strong partnership that pairs the expertise of both organizations — including instructional design, engineering, learning science, and insights into student development. Working together, we help more educators have access to the tools and support they need to bring these practices to life for students.
On behalf of CZI, Render will continue to actively co-build new tools with educators at Gradient Learning partner schools.
Render seeks partners with expertise and enthusiasm around supporting student success by co-building impactful education tools with educators.
We work with research organizations, curriculum developers, edtech companies, professional learning organizations, technical assistance providers, schools and school districts, professional associations, CZI grantees, universities, and more.
2024 Partners:ANet
Gradient Learning
Leanlab Education
Pasadena Independent School District
Search Institute
The Learning Accelerator
Educators might interact with partners through their own existing relationships with partner organizations; they may work alongside a partner if they participate in a co-building experience; or they may optionally choose to participate in a relevant training provided by a partner.
Our partners may license their content to the teams building tools, participate in co-building, advise our teams, recruit educators, or provide professional learning for Render members.
If you have a question about anything that isn’t covered here, please reach out to the Render Support Team by submitting a ticket.
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