How New Learning Platforms Can Bust EdTech Myths

The best education enterprise software should constantly improve, even during a pandemic. For Marcy Daniel, Chief Product Officer at PowerSchool, that means better teacher agency, stronger data protections, and greater parent inclusion. On this episode of EdTech Today, Marcy details the latest launch particulars of  PowerSchool Unified Classroom 2021 and lays out the potential for better experiences for teachers, students, and families alike.

“We believe that teachers need all the help and support possible and thanks to evolving technology, and our vision to unify the systems teachers, students, and parents use every day, we can help them get the time and data they need to personalize learning to support every child’s needs,” said Marcy Daniel, PowerSchool Chief Product Officer. “With the launch of Unified Classroom 2021, our vision has become a reality and we are committed to ensuring educators and students are better supported with the tools they need to increase the focus on Whole Child instruction and improve outcomes for every student.”

PowerSchool Unified Classroom 2021 brings together award-winning solutions including Unified Classroom™ Schoology LearningUnified Classroom™ Performance Matters, and Unified Classroom™ Special Programs – all of which can be used with PowerSchool’s market-leading student information system, PowerSchool SIS, for even greater levels of efficiency. Unlike other educational technology providers, only PowerSchool Unified Classroom 2021 offers a solution that meets the needs of K-12 education organizations by:

  1. Delivering a unified user experience and connecting assessment data, special programs information to support students with unique learning needs, social-emotional learning (SEL) survey results, and demographic data with the leading K-12 education-focused learning management system (LMS), which provides teachers time back and a simpler, more complete approach to understanding and addressing the needs of the Whole Child.​
  2. Simplifying data management by providing integrated attendance collection, student alerts including medical alerts and special programs status, traditional and standards-grade pass back, and the ability to have class rosters flow throughout an organization’s PowerSchool ecosystem, so all data becomes more centralized, secure, accurate, and accessible for users based on roles and permissions. ​
  3. Simplifying and reinforcing accountability throughout a school or district by providing alerts, early-warning notifications, and compliance reporting for all students and staff in a single solution.

“We rolled out common assessments in Unified Classroom Performance Matters this year because we needed the data more than ever to monitor loss and impact,” said Dr. Zachary Conrad, Executive Director, Data and Technology, at Lawrence Public Schools USD 497. “We had data in multiple locations and needed to see our common assessment data next to all the other data points to make better decisions for our students. Not only is this seamlessly integrated with Schoology Learning and our PowerSchool SIS, but easy for the students to take assessments and for teachers to use the data.”

“The Unified Classroom Schoology Learning and Unified Classroom Performance Matters assessment integration has helped our teachers keep their content and assessments in one place for students, while still being able to use the many reporting features in Performance Matters,” said Jana Griffith, School Improvement & Accountability Specialist, Loudoun County Public Schools, Virginia. “It particularly helps students stay organized and minimize confusion about where to find tests and assignments because everything is in Schoology Learning.”

Learn more about PowerSchool Unified Classroom 2021 at  https://www.powerschool.com/solutions/unified-classroom/.

Listen to Previous Episodes of EdTech Today!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

The Tech-Enabled Hospital of the Future: Implications for Care Delivery
The Tech-Enabled Hospital of the Future: Implications for Care Delivery
March 12, 2026

Gone are the days when a hospital was simply a place where patients received care. Today’s hospitals are rapidly evolving into highly connected ecosystems powered by advanced technology, networked devices, and real-time data. The modern hospital is no longer confined to physical walls—it’s a dynamic digital environment where data flows seamlessly, AI supports clinical decisions,…

Read More
career
Stop Chasing Titles, Build a Career That Matters: A CAO’s Advice on Long-Term Success
March 11, 2026

Career advice in finance and accounting often centers around promotions, titles, and compensation. But in an era where professionals frequently change jobs every few years—the average American worker now stays in a role for less than four years—industries are facing growing talent shortages and reevaluating what long-term career success looks like. The question many…

Read More
Career success
A CEO’s Blueprint for Career Success: Leading with Love to Drive Performance and Culture
March 10, 2026

Leadership right now feels heavier than it did just a few years ago. Teams are stretched, expectations are high, and many employees are quietly disengaged. In fact, Gallup’s 2025 U.S. data shows that only about 31% of employees are actively engaged at work, leaving the majority feeling disconnected or indifferent. For CEOs and senior…

Read More
employer-sponsored apprenticeships
The Degree That Pays You Back: How Employer-Sponsored Apprenticeships Are Rewriting Higher Ed
March 9, 2026

Higher education is under pressure. Over the past few years, public confidence in the value of a four-year degree has declined significantly, with fewer Americans expressing a strong belief that traditional higher education delivers a worthwhile return on investment. At the same time, employers consistently report that graduates lack job-ready skills—particularly the “durable skills”…

Read More