‘Fitbit’ for Monitoring Student Voice

During COVID-19, school districts are struggling to engage students, particularly the most vulnerable learners, in virtual classrooms. Traditional forms of teacher professional development haven’t adapted to this radically changed environment.

In the Anaheim Union High School District, we’re pursuing a novel approach to teacher learning that we believe addresses the student engagement challenge with lasting impact even after the pandemic.

Our district’s teachers use a “Fitbit”-style feedback system, called TeachFX, that uses voice-activated artificial intelligence to measure student engagement directly, by analyzing discourse patterns in the classroom. The data are organized into personalized feedback on the teacher’s instructional practice that she or he can access on demand.