Our Approach

This tool is created by a group of researchers from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child. Its main purpose is to build a knowledge repository of educational technology (edtech) products for young children, their families and educators in Australia. By edtech, we refer to both apps that can be purchased or downloaded to personal digital devices for children’s learning (domestic edtech) and learning platforms that are sold to educational institutions (institutional edtech). We have included several key areas of information to help reveal the often-hidden aspects about these products and the companies behind them. Before you begin using the database, we strongly encourage you to read the explanatory notes below carefully.

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Explanation of Terminology

PRODUCT INFORMATION

This refers to the purpose or the type of product. Edtech companies normally mention the product category on their website. We have mostly followed the terminology used by the companies, but we have sometimes used more general terms to make it easier to compare. For domestic edtech, we have identified the subjects or skills that the app claims to teach by analysing the product descriptions on the online marketplaces.

 

Do you feel that the product categories give you a sense of what the product is about?Some apps have a range of product categories. Do you think that apps can teach children these many skills?

Most products have no official recommended age range. Companies often stipulate the age range on their website or in the product description. We have included this information in our tool, rather than the age categories (or labels) provided by the online marketplaces (e.g. Apple App Store), as they are often different to the age range provided by the companies.  

 

Do you feel you have a good idea of whether or not a product is suitable for your children or students? 

In our tool we generally use the name of the apps as they appear on company websites or the Apple App Store. If the name of the same app is different elsewhere (e.g., Google Play) we had indicated that in this section. When an app is part of a series (for instance, Monster Math 1, Monster Math 2), we have listed all the apps belonging to the series. 

 

Having a number of similar apps can be a strategy for developers to be more visible on the online marketplaces. Does this make your decision making easier? Would you rather have an app that teaches a number of skills, or a specific app for a specific skill? 

Here we indicate if the edtech product is available for free or if it employs a fixed price or subscription model. Oftentimes edtech products have a limited free version or a free trial period. That is why one product can be both free, as well as having a subscription or fixed price. Payment information changes quickly and can be opaque, so we have chosen not to include any specific prices here.   

 

Do you think apps that are free are good enough? Do you think you will have capacity to actively manage your subscriptions to edtech? 

Many edtech apps provide in-app purchases (items you can buy within the app). On the Apple App Store, subscriptions are also designated as in-app purchases. For this category, however, we have looked at in-app purchases other than subscriptions. This includes additional content, in-game currency, or a payment to get rid of any advertisements.  

 

Do you think it is fair to use in-app purchases in apps that are otherwise free? Is there risk of children accidentally spending money? What do you think the maximum amount for any in-app purchases should be?  

Here we list the regulatory frameworks and laws with which the privacy policy claims the company comply. In Australia, an organisation does not have to be Australian owned or based or have an address in Australia in order to be bound by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). Specific reference to the Privacy Act or the Australian Privacy Principles indicates that the organisation has considered Australian privacy law specifically and may indicate that it takes its legal commitments seriously. It might also indicate that the organisation has received legal advice about Australian law. 

 

Does the privacy policy indicate that the organisation considers itself bound by Australian law? If not, how are you legally protected as a user in Australia? Does the privacy policy state that users in different jurisdictions are treated differently?  

Australian Privacy Principles requires that the privacy policy must contain information about where personal information is stored. If this information is not contained in the privacy policy and the organisation is bound by the Privacy Act, this is technically a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles. 

 

If the data collected by the company is stored outside of Australia, how are your rights protected as a user in Australia?  

While some companies state in their privacy policies whether children’s personal information is collected, others are vague and unclear about this. If the answer to this question is yes, then it is important to consider whether parental consent is required before any children’s personal information is collected.  

 

How is parental consent achieved? Can you, as parents, have access to, edit and erase collected children’s personal information? Does the parent or guardian have the option of revoking any consent they have given? 

A third party is an individual, an organisation or a government other than the organisation itself. In some cases, an organisation might disclose information to a related entity (e.g., a parent company). However, as the related entity is still a separate legal person, it is still a third party.

 

Obviously whenever information is shared with or transferred to a third party, it is then beyond the control of the organisation and further from the control of the individual to whom it relates. The more widely an individual’s personal information is shared, the more risk there is of it falling into the wrong hands or otherwise being misused. 

Australian Privacy Principles states that an organisation must state in its privacy policy if it is likely to disclose information to overseas recipients and that, if it is likely, it should disclose the countries in which those recipients are likely to be located, if practicable. If the recipient to whom personal information is transferred is located overseas, they may or may not be subject to privacy laws that provide as much or greater protection than Australian laws, depending on where they are located.   

If the answer to this question is yes, then it indicates that advertisements from third party providers may appear in the edtech product, be it an app or a platform. If this is the case, it is important to consider whether children, if they are the users of the product, have capacity to tell the difference between interactive content and advertisements.  

 

If the answer to this question is unclear, then it does not mean that third party ads do not exist. It just means that the company does not disclose this information in the privacy policy. 

The kidSAFE Seal Program is an independent safety certification service and seal-of-approval program designed exclusively for children-friendly websites and technologies. However, being ‘certified’ in this program does not mean the product is naturally safe. Research has shown the vague and untransparent nature of certification programs for edtech. Conversely, a product not certified by this program does not mean the product is naturally unsafe to use. 

 

What is the organisation or company running these certification programs? What is their relationship to edtech companies? What are the assessment criteria behind the program? 

COMPANY INFORMATION

This is the official place of business declared by the company. Note that there may be instances where the location reported may not be representative of the company’s actual place of work, this includes place that might be considered a tax haven offering favourable incentives for foreign companies. In most cases, we could not verify this information due to the limitation of other reliable sources of information. 

 

Do you think companies should be more specific in reporting where specific production activities are taking place? Does learning about where the company is located change your perception of the product? 

Here we indicate the current business model the company or organisation falls under: for profit, not for profit, and unclear. In most cases, this is usually dependent on the type of investment or capital it receives. For profit companies usually have shareholders or investors that the company must generate returns for; while not for profit groups secured their funding through grants or government allocations.  

 

Have you considered how the company business model might affect the way a service or product is designed for you? 

Here we indicate the ownership model of the company: private, public, and government. Education Services Australia is the rare exception where an educational technology provider is government owned. The rest of the companies are mostly privately-owned, but we see a growing number of edtech companies or providers that ‘go public’ or are listed on a national stock exchange / market.

This refers to the ways that the company or business secures capital from investors to fund its operations: paying staff, investing in product development, among others. In return, some of the investors may want equity or a share in the company. The types of funding are described below: 

 

  • Pre-seed and Seed funding are typically the earliest stages of investment. Companies will seek quick and substantial investments from successful individuals or angel investors, and even family members to get the business, technology or idea off the ground. Usually, startups will require at least $150K – $5 Million for their ongoing operations. 
  • Series A, B, C Funding takes place once a product has been developed, the company has shown consistent growth and a stable revenue pattern. At this stage, companies want to secure institutional funding or substantial venture capital to scale up the business or expand into new markets.  
  • IPO or Initial Public Offering is when the business is listed on the stock market and is considered the final stage of most businesses. The company now has various funding sources which it could use to expand to new markets, acquire smaller companies, or create new products.  
  • Grants, non-equity assistance, or government financing 
  • Debt financing 

Does learning about the type of funding received change your perception of the company? How much do you think the funding model might have an impact on the product or service the company has designed? 

This refers to the total combined funding received by the company across funding rounds (i.e. seed, series funding, etc.).  

 

How do you feel about the figures presented? How much of the funding do you think goes to research and development of their educational products? 

We have identified some of the firms and organisations that have provided funding for edtech companies.

 

Should companies be more transparent about who invests in their companies? 

Important Notice
While we have made every effort to ensure the information included in this database is accurate and up to date, we acknowledge our limitations in accessing and assessing some information and the fact that the edtech industry changes fast. We primarily obtained our data from three sources: edtech company websites, app marketplaces, and third-party industry repositories. We want to highlight that this tool should NOT be used as an authoritative source of information; rather, it is created to offer ways to better understand the edtech industry.