When you recently logged into your favorite assessment tool and saw a clear absence of the familiar orange of Edulastic, and a great deal of the new Pear green, you are not dreaming. At the end of 2023 the popular platform finally threw off its old skin.
But what was the reason why did edulastic change to pear assessment It was not because of mid-life crisis or even arbitrary design decision. It was a clever step to bring a fractured world of classroom solutions together.
Short Answer (For the Busy Teacher)
The Quick Repair: Edulastic was renamed Pear Assessment so as to be a pillar of Pear Deck Learning. Rebranded after it was purchased by GoGuardian, the rebranding assists in the development of a single suite of applications, such as Pear Deck, Pear Practice, and Pear Assessment, aimed at offering a smooth experience to teachers and learners.
The History: Pear Assessment Evolution: Edulastic to Pear Assessment.
Any kind of change within the so-called EdTech world typically foreshadows one of two outcomes, a complete collapse or gigantic growth. To our good fortune it is the latter. This is where the real story of the why and how of this transformation lies.
1. Addition to the Pear Deck Learning Suite.
Years before, GoGuardian (parent company) had been gathering effective educational tools such as Infinity Stones. They used Edulastic to make assessments, Pear Deck to make active learning, and Giant Steps (since changed to Pear Practice) to make gamified learning.
The company rebranded Edulastic to Pear Assessment thereby establishing a one-stop-shop identity. Now schools can invest in Pear Deck Learning as a complete learning ecosystem without having to switch between three different brands.
2. Optimizing User Experience.
Being honest is truly a nightmare: having to take care of twelve different logins and twelve different platforms. The Pear Assessment relocation was the first step in a bigger plan to:
- Synchronize Data: Pear Assessment can now easily inform Pear Deck instructional decisions.
- Single Sign-On: Makes the dance of logging in easier to students and teachers.
- Uniform UI: When you are familiar with one type of product, you will probably feel at home with the rest of the products of that kind.
3. Going Beyond Just Testing.
The name Edulastic was a portmanteau of Education and Elastic meaning flexibility. Although excellent, the new name Pear Assessment makes it quite clear what it is in a larger pedagogical cycle:
- Pear Deck: Learn and teach.
- Pear Assessment: Evaluate and assess.
- Pear Practice: Reinforce and master.
What Really changed (and what did not)?
In case you fear that your favorite features have been removed as well as the previous logo, relax and take a breath. The “DNA” of the platform remains the same, but with some 2026-era upgrades.
| Feature | Then (Edulastic) | Now (Pear Assessment) |
|---|---|---|
| Item Bank | 50,000 or more Questions | Enhanced by AI-powered generators |
| Reporting | Standard dashboards | Data Studio (Integrated 360° views) |
| Security | Safe Exam Browser | Enhanced “Pear” security lockdowns |
| Interfaces | Orange/white | Green/pear and streamlined |
Is the “New” Pear Assessment Better?
Although the change of name was primarily related to branding and ecosystem reasoning, the change also introduced certain hard-hitting changes that turn the platform into a stronger version of its former.
- AI-Powered Rubrics: Pear Assessment can now be used to assist in grading open-ended responses with AI and save teachers hours of manual labor.
- Video Quizzes: Now you can create formative assessment using YouTube video right within the platform- a feature that was in its early days during the Edulastic era.
- Improved Accessibility: New Microsoft Immersive Reader integrations and audio response types enable it to be far more accessible to various learners.
The Verdict
The Pear Assessment was a strategic decision to make the lives of educators easier. GoGuardian has enabled districts to monitor the progress of students during the initial lesson to the final exam by stuffing a potent assessment tool beneath the “Pear” umbrella.
Change is not often an easy thing but in this case, the Pear is most certainly ripe to pick.
Are you looking to integrate Pear Assessment with your existing LMS, or are you more interested in how to use the new AI grading features?