Author Archives: Anna L. Noble

How big tech sees big profits in social-emotional learning at school

Digital products that monitor students’ online behavior raise concerns about how companies use that data for profit.

In June 2021, as students and teachers were finishing up a difficult school year, Priscilla Chan, wife of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, made a live virtual appearance on the “Today” show, announcing that the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), along with its “partner” Gradient Learning, was launching Along, a new digital tool to help students and teachers create meaningful connections in the aftermath of the pandemic. Continue reading