Better instructional decisions depend on having the right information at the right time. When curriculum and assessment data are integrated within your daily workflow, it becomes easier to act on that information in ways that improve the teaching and learning experience.
A recent third party study examined how HMH Performance Suite supports that work—and what it may mean for student learning.
We're excited to share findings from the first Performance Suite efficacy study comparing a group of 7th and 8th grade students from two similar middle schools. The 7th and 8th grade students in the school implementing Performance Suite with HMH Into Literature experienced increases of student proficiency rates on state English language arts assessments by 12%—more than double the 5% increase for the matched students at the comparison school. This study is part of HMH’s long-standing commitment to independent, third-party studies of our solutions to make sure they’re truly working in the classroom.
What makes these results particularly compelling? Gains occurred across all student populations, with evidence-backed benefits for learners who need support most.
What the data reveals
The study, conducted by Beam Consulting LLC, tracked student progress from spring 2024 through spring 2025. Here's what the evidence shows:
Strong gains across grade levels: Both 7th and 8th grade students demonstrated impressive growth. 7th graders increased proficiency by 15% (compared to 10% at the comparison school), and 8th graders by 8% (compared to just 1% at the comparison school).
Improved outcomes for all learners: Female students increased proficiency by 12%, male students by 10%, and economically disadvantaged students by 11%—all substantially outpacing the comparison school's results. Hispanic students achieved a remarkable 23% increase in proficiency—far exceeding the 7% increase for Hispanic students at the other school. Students with disabilities increased proficiency by 12%, while the comparison school saw a 3% decrease for this group.
Teachers shared how Performance Suite improved their daily instructional practices. These conversations are essential for understanding how the solution performs in real classroom conditions, where the complexities of teaching and learning can’t be fully captured by quantitative measures alone.
What teachers are saying
The quantitative data tells one story, but educator experiences reveal the real difference. Through comprehensive interviews, teachers shared how Performance Suite improved their daily instructional practices. These conversations are essential for understanding how the solution performs in real classroom conditions, where the complexities of teaching and learning can’t be fully captured by quantitative measures alone:
Strategic planning replaces resource scrambling: Before Performance Suite, a teacher might describe planning as searching for resources and texts. Now, they can focus on teaching with the Planning Assistant. It provides real-time feedback from the last lesson, identifies what students know, and what skills are needed to achieve proficiency. It then provides a variety of classroom resources aligned to the skill and standard that the teacher can use to help the student make progress.
Adaptable, ready-to-teach lessons: Teachers valued the structured lesson framework while maintaining flexibility to personalize delivery. The digital lessons follow the lesson structure from the HMH core curriculum which provides teachers with the flexibility to either deliver the lesson digitally, or by print, keeping teachers at the center of the instruction.
Data that informs decisions: The Student Summary Report consolidates NWEA MAP Growth results with HMH core curriculum program assessments into one comprehensive report. Teachers and leaders review this report to understand at an individual student level how that student is performing at the class, school and district level. The report also brings in the key data from MAP Growth allowing educators to monitor ongoing progress towards achieving end of year growth. As teachers noted, this data helped them ensure students were genuinely learning and improving over time, rather than simply being coached to pass a specific test.
Responsive support that builds on strengths: Every teacher had access to a dedicated professional development coach and every district was aligned to an implementation manager for support during the entire implementation of Performance Suite. Teachers praised their dedicated coach for being knowledgeable, informative, and having a collaborative approach focused on building upon existing strengths. The school administrator described the coaching as beneficial for the teachers and highlighted the tremendous support their coach provided.
How Performance Suite works
Performance Suite operates as a unified instructional system that supports educators throughout the complete teaching cycle—from assessment through planning to instruction. Here's how it drives measurable student growth:
Dynamic planning support: The Planning Assistant provides real-time insights and the most accurate resource recommendations for teachers based on the last lesson taught. It brings together student performance information from multiple sources and provides standards-aligned instructional resources at the skill level that teachers can immediately implement—saving time and hundreds of hours searching for the right resource to remediate or reteach.
Interactive, ready-to-teach lessons: Essential digital lessons are delivered right from Ed®, the HMH learning platform, and provide teachers with tools to engage every student. Teachers can easily see how students are doing in their lessons, so they can plan ahead and group students in ways that support everyone’s growth. They can use interactive tools like “Quick Checks” for immediate formative assessment, annotation tools for student engagement, and vocabulary routines that encourage authentic word application.
Student Summary Report: The Student Summary Report integrates MAP Growth, and all HMH core program assessment results, into one comprehensive report dashboard to monitor progress and proficiency. It not only provides key MAP Growth data, but a single link to the repository of all MAP Growth reports for teachers to reference.
Accessible coaching support: Through Coachly, HMH's on-demand instructional coaching service, educators gain access to a professional development coach whenever they need assistance with implementation, teaching practices, or program questions. Leaders will gain access to an implementation coach to ensure alignment to best practices that are already underway within the district.
What this means for your district
This study offers encouraging early evidence of the positive role Performance Suite may play in supporting student learning. While the findings are initial and continued research is important, the results suggest that integrating curriculum, assessment, and student data can help inform instructional decisions.
Performance Suite is built to bring these elements together.
- The Planning Assistant synthesizes student performance data, provides insights, and recommends up-to-date instructional resources to support students learning needs.
- Quick Checks give teachers timely insight into student understanding, supporting responsive grouping and in-the-moment adjustments.
- The Student Summary Report helps teachers and leaders monitor progress and performance and makes it easy to plan instruction based on standards.
It keeps the teacher at the center of instruction and gives every educator an alternative, yet familiar way to deliver differentiated Tier 1 instruction to all.
What sets Performance Suite apart
Unlike standalone AI tools that function in isolation, Performance Suite delivers differentiated Tier 1 instruction within a single platform. Performance Suite is powered by Pulse, a technology proprietary to HMH that was developed by a team of psychometricians and machine learning engineers. Because of Pulse, all features of Performance Suite function within a single cohesive system, and educators can plan, teach, assess, and refine instruction without navigating multiple disconnected platforms.
Performance Suite operates from within your high-quality instructional materials and assessment data, drawing on what students have already mastered and what they need to learn next to deliver connected, context-aware guidance tailored to your classroom. These insights are used to assist in planning (Planning Assistant), teaching (Essential Digital lessons), and progress monitoring (Student Summary Report), closing the gap between assessment and learning.
To sum up, Performance Suite gives educators the tools they need to support every student’s learning and growth, all while keeping student information safe. By bringing together curriculum, assessments, and data, it helps teachers personalize instruction and see real progress.
The recent third-party study reinforces Performance Suite’s role as a trusted partner for districts, demonstrating measurable achievement gains. With its dependable and innovative features, Performance Suite is helping districts realize meaningful improvements in student outcomes.
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Explore how HMH Performance Suite's seamless integration of curriculum and assessment allows teachers to determine students' next steps with confidence.
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