Dr. Rachel Schechter is a leader on the front line of cutting-edge research and was recently honored as a finalist for The Edtech Trendsetter Award. Over 20 years ago, Rachel conducted user research for the first season of the worldwide phenomenon Dora the Explorer. Dr. Schechter continued to blaze research trails as the Director of Research, creating the patented embedded assessment and reporting system for Lexia Reading Core5. At the largest publishing company in the United States, she was Vice President of Learning Sciences leading a vision to connect dozens of products for millions of children nationwide. Dr. Schechter partnered with the International Society for Technology education to create Learning Sciences-based procurement guidelines for all EdTech purchases around the world.

Her educational background followed her research interests: a BA in Psychology from The University of Massachusetts, a Master's in Education (EdM) in Arts-in-Education from Harvard University, and a Doctorate of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in child development from Tufts University.

At Learning Experience Design (LXD) Research, Dr. Schechter partners with edtech companies around the globe to conduct rapid-cycle evaluations that not only provides the efficacy research needed under the Every Student Succeeds Act law but also informs the interactive improvement of products used by tens of millions of children worldwide. Simultaneously, LXD Research’s guidance boosts the capacity for education leaders to buy research-proven products and gives the sales teams leverage to assure the investment will accelerate learning for students of all abilities. Dr. Rachel Schechter is shaping the national discourse about what “research-based” and “evidence-proven” really mean.

According to national test scores, pandemic school breaks have resulted in our nation’s largest decrease in reading achievement in over 20 years. Poor reading ability in third grade is detrimental to overall future academic progress. It’s critical now more than ever to ensure we’re aiding our children with evidence-based practices and tools for literacy effectiveness.

While companies claim their products are research-based, they may not include evidence that proves viable long-term effectiveness. It’s sometimes difficult for leaders to cut through the marketing “noise” and figure out what will work for our students.

Dr. Schechter’s keynotes offer solutions to leaders, educating them on how to identify true evidence-based research products, so they choose products they know will work.

Dr. Schechter’s keynotes offer solutions to leaders, educating them on how to identify true evidence-based research products, so they choose products they know will work.

Familiarizing leaders with the knowledge words, requirements, and claims related to evidence-based educational programs is a powerful step in accelerating literacy.

Dr. Schechter’s keynotes are designed to equip leaders with the necessary tools to ensure we make sure that our students are using evidence-based products that help them learn.

With the ultimate goal of:
Creating learning acceleration to make up for lost time post-Covid,
Closing the literacy gap in kindergarten to change the trajectory of literacy throughout the student’s life, and
remediating our nation’s current literacy concerns by helping leaders choose products that work.