Each year, the world of EdTech grows and new companies emerge ahead of the pack. Here are the movers and shakers we’re excited about at the moment: 

1. Alma: This single platform offers hundreds of features from district and school administration to progressive instructional management. With Alma, you can easily make data-driven decisions with understandable analytics for your classes, students, school, and district.
   
   
2. BenchPrep: While many learning tools focus on the process rather than the experience, this comprehensive platform gives learners what they really want. With customized solutions to meet the needs of individual learners, BenchPrep offers a personalized, game-based approach that helps drive deeper engagement and higher success rates.
   
   
3. Boxlight: Creating an innovative classroom is easier than you think with Boxlight, offering products that are designed with students and teachers in mind. The newest Boxlight solutions include the MimioFrame touch board kit, which turns a conventional whiteboard into an interactive touch board in under 15 minutes, and the MimioSpace collaborative system, which allows students to engage with lessons, videos, web pages, and class objectives all at the same time on an interactive, ultra-wide collaborative space.
   
   
4. CK-12: Teachers know that no two students learn in exactly the same way, so how can they ensure that students aren't being left behind if they don't understand the material? CK-12 offers solutions that allow educators to give students a more personalized (and customized) approach so they can learn at their own pace in the way that works best for them.
   
   
5. ClassCharts: Designed by a teacher with 16 years of experience, ClassCharts helps educators effectively and consistently track student behavior in just two easy clicks. This simple, easy-to-use software saves time and reduces work loads with AI-driven seating charts that allows both teachers and students to enjoy the best possible learning experience.
   
   
6. ClassDojo: ClassDojo is all about turning the classroom into a community, creating a positive culture by connecting teachers with their students while also engaging parents. It's free for teachers and works on any device, putting all of the classroom tools in one convenient place.
   
   
7. CodeMonkey: With CodeMonkey, students can learn coding in a fun, educational game environment. Designed as a classroom resource, it includes fully guided lesson plans so students can learn how to develop their own games and apps right in your classroom. The best part? No previous experience in coding is required—and with their Teacher Kit, anyone can easily teach the basics of computer science.
   
   
8. EduSkills: Offering cloud database services, this is a great tool for ELL educators. Serving Pre-K through 12th grade, EduSkills collaborates with schools and districts in order to help educators support the social, emotional, and academic growth of students through data-driven services. With EduSkills, you can generate learning plans, upload and organize pertinent forms, and calculate the bilingual, immigrant, and ELL count.
   
   
9. Flocabulary: The songs, videos, and exercises available on Flocabulary help students build core literacy skills through engagement, mastery, and creativity. And they're fun—students love the educational hop-hop videos, which meet Common Core objectives. Feeling extra creative? Students can also write and perform their own educational raps!
   
   
10. Freckle Education: Freckle's differentiation platform is aligned with Common Core and includes every standard from K–8, as well as an ELA component. It is comprehensive and builds from one skill to the next, and embeds videos from sites like LearnZillion and Kahn Academy that allow students to learn independently.
    
    
11. iCivics: Founded by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, iCivics offers an array of effective digital resources to engage students in meaningful civic learning. These freely accessible resources ensure that every student has the opportunity to receive a high-quality civic education so that the next generation can become thoughtful and active citizens.
    
    
12. Kidaptive: Kidaptive’s adaptive learning platform (ALP) supports millions of learners and parents around the world. This cloud-based assessment and reporting platform offers educators a comprehensive view of each learner's proficiency, allowing them to personalize learning, empower stakeholders, and evaluate the effectiveness of their content.
    
    
13. MobyMax: With MobyMax, educators can help struggling learners catch up to grade level and close learning gaps in a fun, engaging way. It is aligned with Common Core, contains an ELA component, and allows teachers to post on their IWB for whole-class instruction
    
    
14. Nearpod: This classroom presentation software allows interaction with students through their devices. Teachers can embed pictures and videos, and can also use class-wide questions to check for student understanding of the subject matter. And with their library of ready-to-teach, interactive lessons covering K–12 subjects, you can keep your students engaged from day one.
    
    
15. Newsela: On this instructional content platform, students can read up-to-date, high-interest articles right at their level. There's even content and activities created specifically for elementary students, helping boost non-fiction reading practice for grades 2–6.
    
    
16. Osmo: The award-winning Osmo suite of activities includes the “Numbers” and “Tangram” programs, which are great for early math skills—both are engaging and challenging for students.
    
    
17. ParentSquare: Designed to connect parents with schools, this communication platform is incredibly simple—ensuring that even the not-so-tech-savvy parents, teachers, and administrators can use it. ParentSquare focuses on connecting schools with families in order to improve student outcomes and success, build solid relationships, and facilitate communication.
    
    
18. Project Lead The Way (PLTW): This comprehensive science curriculum introduces students to different STEM topics—from engineering to computer science—and is available for the kindergarten level through to the 12th grade. It uses a variety of age-appropriate tech products for a hands-on learning experience.
    
    
19. Schoology: After seeing firsthand how some EdTech solutions failed to deliver on their promise to improve the learning experience, four college students decided to make a change. They built Schoology and aligned their platform with the needs and learning styles of today's educators and students, offering learning and assessment management in one central location.
    
    
20. Wolfram|Alpha: This site is part calculator, part search engine, and part almanac—the “pro” version is well worth the money. Students of all ages will find useful information, along with the ability to sort and filter amazingly specific data sets.

Which EdTech companies are you excited about this year? Be sure to tell us in the comments below. And for more EdTech news and trends, subscribe to the Educator blog today!