Why This Teacher Is Ditching Disconnected Tools for One Platform

As a former Marine turned high school science teacher, Justin Jackson thrives on systems that work. After years of teaching data operations in the military, he discovered a passion for education and stepped into the classroom to teach biology and anatomy to high school students facing real and urgent academic challenges.

Now in his third year of teaching, Justin is not just delivering lessons; he’s building a learning experience where every student has a path to success, and where technology doesn’t complicate learning, but clears the way for it.

“As soon as I stepped into a classroom, I knew this was exactly where I belonged.” -Justin Jackson, High School Science Teacher, Warren Central High School 

Today, Justin is using Pear Deck Learning to do something many teachers wish they had time for: align planning, instruction, assessment, and remediation within a single platform. For his students, this means clear, predictable routines and better access to learning. For Justin, it means more time to support students, not sort through systems.

Inside the classroom: self-paced, mastery-based, student-driven

Justin teaches in a school working to overcome chronic absenteeism, interrupted learning, and academic gaps. That’s why he built a model that gives students structure while honoring their need for flexibility and individualized pacing.

“I never lecture in my classroom,” Justin explains. “Everything I teach is blended, self-paced, and mastery-based. Students engage asynchronously with pre-recorded instructional videos, choose their pace, and must achieve at least 80% proficiency before moving forward.”

To make that work, Justin initially relied on a constellation of disconnected tools: Google Slides for reference, YouTube and Screencast apps for video instruction, and Edpuzzle to embed assessments. But that was a lot of tools that he and his students needed to navigate. 

“I’ve been wanting to bring it all into one platform. I love the idea of keeping everything in the same place.”

From scattered systems to one unified platform

Justin’s instructional model is rooted in consistency, not just for his own planning, but for creating a reliable, predictable experience for his students. That’s what initially drew him to Pear Deck Learning: a single, unified platform where planning, instruction, assessment, and differentiation work together by design.

Instead of juggling a patchwork of tools, Justin is now actively transitioning his classroom into the Pear Deck Learning platform. He's replacing the mix of apps he once relied on with integrated tools that speak the same language:

• Swapping Edpuzzle for Video Quiz in Pear Assessment, where he can embed questions, track engagement, and link to standards
  
  
• Converting static Google Slides to interactive Pear Deck lessons, allowing for real-time checks and deeper student engagement
  
  
• Using Pear Practice to assign personalized reinforcement and enrichment based on student needs
  
  
• Planning with Pear Start, which helps him create full, differentiated lessons aligned to standards, in just a few clicks. 

“The more I dive in, the more I realize how much I can get out of each tool,” Justin says. “I’m learning so much about what they can really do, and how much more I can do for my students because of them.”

What excites him most isn’t just the functionality, it’s the consistency it brings to his classroom. No more bouncing between apps or wondering where to find assignments. Just a single, streamlined system that students can rely on, lesson after lesson.

Pear Start: Copy, paste-free AI for lesson planning

As Justin transitions into the Pear Deck Learning platform, he is exploring ways to support his planning process with Pear Start, a library of time-saving AI tools specifically designed for supporting essential teaching tasks and lesson planning.

Justin was given early access to Pear Start through his role in the Pear Deck Learning Innovation Incubator, a program designed to bring educators into the heart of product development. Since 2022, the Innovation Incubator has partnered with over 200 educators across 35 states, more than half of whom work in Title 1 schools. Now in its seventh cohort, the incubator allows teachers like Justin to try out tools before they launch, provide direct feedback to product teams, and shape what gets built next.

“When I saw that Pear Deck Learning was actively inviting teachers to give feedback, I thought, this is something I want to be a part of.”

Before Pear Start, Justin often turned to Magic School AI to help manage the behind-the-scenes demands of lesson design, especially when teaching new material for the first time. It helped him pace out units, generate rubrics, and brainstorm differentiated options, but always in a separate, disconnected workflow.

For Justin, Pear Start isn’t just a replacement for Magic School. It’s a better, more integrated way to build the kind of learning experiences his students need.

“All of these tools I used Magic School for are now readily available – and in some cases more effective – with Pear Start,” Justin says. “The big difference is Pear Start gives you the option to do all of that within a couple of clicks.”

By consolidating everything into one platform, Justin has streamlined his workflow and eliminated the busywork that used to slow him down. 

“What used to take five or six tabs, some copy-pasting, and a lot of back and forth, I can now do within a single platform, without leaving the workflow.”

Involving every student in the conversation

For Justin, the most powerful part of transitioning to Pear Deck Learning isn’t just about streamlining tools, but about making learning more accessible for every student.

His classroom includes students with a wide range in reading level, prior knowledge, and learning confidence. 

“You have to be able to meet students at their level of accessibility,” Justin says. “That’s a logistical issue if you don’t have tools that can help facilitate it.”

Without one platform, trying to differentiate across multiple tools often felt like an uphill battle. Now, with everything in one place, he can design lessons at varying levels of complexity, embed scaffolded support, and assign follow-up activities, all without reinventing the wheel or switching tools.

With Instant Insights built into the platform, Justin can also see in real time where students are thriving or struggling. Instead of waiting for data to trickle in, he can respond immediately with targeted support, keeping every student engaged and moving forward.

“These tools are so useful because they involve everybody in the conversation.”

From one teacher to another: “Remember why we’re here.”

As the gateway into the full Pear Deck Learning platform, Pear Start is designed to help teachers jump in quickly, save time right away, and build confidence step by step.

“If your hesitation is time, I get it,” Justin says, when asked about encouraging other teachers to try our Pear Deck Learning. “But what if the first time you use it, it already saves you time? You don’t always know the impact you’re making, but every hour I save creating something with these tools could unlock a hundred opportunities for students.” 

For Justin, Pear Deck Learning isn’t just a more efficient system, it’s a platform that aligns with his values as an educator. It helps him meet students where they are, support them with exactly what they need, and do it in a way that’s sustainable for him as a teacher.

“I ask teachers to remember why we got into this: Because we want to reach students. Pear Deck Learning helps us do that. And it actually makes the job easier, not harder.”

Ready to unify your instruction and elevate learning?

Pear Deck Learning is the only platform that supports teachers across every instructional step: from planning to practice, assessment to action. Built with teachers and for teachers, it’s designed for the way you teach and the way students learn.

Learn more about how the Pear Deck Learning platform can support your school.

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