Key Takeaways:
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A strong foundation enables better matches by helping institutions choose technologies that align with strategy, adapt over time, and meaningfully support learner needs.
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Interoperability and shared standards make innovation sustainable by ensuring tools connect seamlessly while meeting privacy, security, and accessibility expectations.
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TAMS simplifies edtech decision-making by centralizing evaluation, compliance, and visibility so institutions can identify the right-fit tools faster and with greater confidence.
As technology evolves, the way it fits within your learning ecosystem has to evolve too. Tools that felt like the perfect match a few years ago may no longer meet today’s needs; and they’re even less likely to support tomorrow’s. Functionality changes. Organizational priorities shift. Expectations grow.
That’s why modern technology procurement approaches, designed for efficiency, security, and accessibility, can’t be an afterthought. They need to be foundational. Embedded. Trusted. Think of them as the relationship advice your digital ecosystem desperately needs.
In education, technology leaders are constantly playing matchmaker. They’re expected to help schools, departments, districts and institutions break up with or fall in love with innovative tools, especially in the age of AI, while still protecting their community, meeting legal requirements, and being responsible stewards of resources. Educators need space to experiment, try new ideas and find options that meet the various needs of their students, without being slowed down by technical or bureaucratic barriers. At the same time, districts and institutions need assurance that these tools won’t introduce risk, complexity, or hidden costs.
That balance is hard to maintain when systems don’t communicate, expectations aren’t clear, or evaluations take too long. But when digital tools connect seamlessly, share data responsibly, and can be evaluated efficiently, the relationship gets a whole lot healthier.
Because technology should support an organization’s strategy, not complicate it. And with so many shiny new tools competing for attention, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed or pressured by trends. With the right foundation in place, institutional teams can:
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Establish clear expectations for new technologies
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Make procurement decisions that truly align with strategy
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Ensure every tool adds real value to the learner experience
Enter TAMS: The Matchmaking Service Your Ecosystem Deserves
1EdTech interoperability standards, resources and the community, provide that foundation. Together, they act like a trusted matchmaking service, helping institutions connect with tools that are genuinely compatible, not just charming on the outside.
1EdTech’s TrustEd Apps Management Suite (TAMS) brings it all together in one place, so technology leaders can vet tools and application requests more quickly, confirm they meet interoperability standards, validate privacy, security, and accessibility compliance, and—most importantly—focus on instructional impact rather than technical hurdles. No more awkward first dates with tools that just aren’t a good fit.
Interoperability: Chemistry That Lasts
Relying on interoperability standards means institutions can support a wider variety of edtech tools, or even build their own, without taking on unnecessary complexity or cost. Standardized integrations save time, reduce technical debt, and make it easier to say “yes” to new ideas.
Instead of struggling to make connections work, teams can focus on the real question: Does this tool meaningfully support teaching and learning? That’s the difference between a fling and a long-term relationship.
Compatibility Goes Beyond Integration
Of course, chemistry alone isn’t enough. A strong match also requires shared values, and in edtech that means privacy, security, and accessibility.
When institutions can quickly see whether a tool meets these requirements, using rubrics created by the 1EdTech community, it’s much easier to determine what deserves deeper review. These conversations become easier for everyone involved.
This clarity removes friction and increases transparency. Too often, great ideas stall because the effort required to make a tool functional outweighs its potential benefit. Trusted standards help keep good ideas alive.
One Dashboard, No Mixed Signals
TAMS brings everything together in one place, serving as a single source of truth for documentation, compliance certifications, and institutional processes for introducing new tools into a digital ecosystem.
Both IT teams and faculty can easily see how tools measure up, making the evaluation process more transparent and collaborative. The TAMS dashboard offers:
- A simple, intuitive interface for managing applications
- A clear, at-a-glance view of approved tools
- Notes and annotations that support shared decision-making
Instead of evaluating tools in isolation, institutions can compare them side by side and have more informed conversations with stakeholders and providers alike. TAMS clearly signals to technology providers and institutions what it takes to be a good match.
Creating Space for Ideas to Fall in Love
Building a healthy digital ecosystem isn’t about chasing every new tool. It’s about creating the conditions where good ideas can flourish without unnecessary complexity. By leaning on interoperability standards and using tools like the TrustEd Apps Management Suite, institutions gain the clarity and confidence to make thoughtful, strategic choices.
Educators get room to experiment. Students benefit from seamless, well-integrated experiences. Technology teams can focus on meaningful work instead of constant troubleshooting. When systems communicate and decisions are guided by shared standards, innovation stops feeling risky, and starts feeling possible.
This Valentine’s Day, it’s worth asking: are your tools truly compatible or just a passing crush? With the right matchmaking in place, you can build relationships that last
About the Authors
Suzanne Carbonaro is the vice president for postsecondary education and workforce programs at 1EdTech. In this role she serves as liaison across the education sector to enable discussion and collaboration that helps to foster the use of interoperability standards across digital ecosystems, and their external applications. Suzanne spent much of her career in higher education as a leader of curriculum and assessment, instruction and student success, institutional effectiveness and planning, and accreditation.
As the Vice President of K12 Programs at 1EdTech, Dr. Tim Clark assists schools and districts in the adoption of 1EdTech standards and practices to enable interoperable and secure digital learning ecosystems. He also provides strategic leadership for K12 in 1EdTech in collaboration with K-12 institutional and state department of education members of the consortium. Tim holds a Doctor of Education in Leadership for Learning with a concentration in Instructional Technology, and his research and dissertation focused on designing online learning communities for elementary students
