Every certification is the product of a proprietary, evidence-driven review framework built specifically for schools, districts, and families. We evaluate what matters for children — privacy, moderation, age appropriateness, governance, and educational fit — using a structured internal methodology, and re-verify our findings on an ongoing basis. Certain internal review criteria remain confidential to preserve scoring integrity.
The Framework
SafeGradeAI uses a proprietary multi-factor evaluation framework. Each certified product is reviewed against five public dimensions. Relative weighting reflects what most affects safety, suitability, and institutional risk when AI is used by minors — exact weightings and internal escalation thresholds are intentionally not disclosed to preserve framework integrity.
Weighting · Primary
How a tool collects, retains, shares, and uses data generated by minors and educational accounts.
What we review
The specific review criteria, probe sets, and evidence checkpoints inside this dimension are proprietary and intentionally withheld to preserve scoring integrity. Certified vendors receive the full checklist under NDA during intake.
Weighting · Primary
How effectively the system prevents harmful outputs and resists adversarial attempts to bypass safeguards.
What we review
The specific review criteria, probe sets, and evidence checkpoints inside this dimension are proprietary and intentionally withheld to preserve scoring integrity. Certified vendors receive the full checklist under NDA during intake.
Weighting · Substantial
Whether the experience is developmentally suitable for the audience the vendor claims to serve.
What we review
The specific review criteria, probe sets, and evidence checkpoints inside this dimension are proprietary and intentionally withheld to preserve scoring integrity. Certified vendors receive the full checklist under NDA during intake.
Weighting · Material
How clearly the vendor publishes, maintains, and stands behind its safety and data commitments.
What we review
The specific review criteria, probe sets, and evidence checkpoints inside this dimension are proprietary and intentionally withheld to preserve scoring integrity. Certified vendors receive the full checklist under NDA during intake.
Weighting · Material
How well the tool fits classroom workflows, district procurement requirements, and policy frameworks.
What we review
The specific review criteria, probe sets, and evidence checkpoints inside this dimension are proprietary and intentionally withheld to preserve scoring integrity. Certified vendors receive the full checklist under NDA during intake.
Scoring System
Overall scores are calculated from the five weighted dimensions and mapped to one of four bands. Bands determine which audiences a tool is appropriate for and what level of oversight we recommend.
Strong privacy protections and robust safety safeguards.
Suitable for unsupervised use within the stated age range. Vendor demonstrates mature privacy controls, layered moderation, transparent governance, and education-ready deployment options.
Suitable with parental or institutional supervision.
Acceptable when paired with classroom supervision, a managed account, or active parental oversight. Some controls are present but not uniformly enforced across surfaces.
May require additional oversight or classroom controls.
Use only inside a managed environment with explicit institutional controls. Significant gaps in moderation, transparency, or age handling reduce suitability for unsupervised minors.
Significant moderation, privacy, or governance concerns.
Not appropriate for use by minors in our review. Concerns may include reported safety incidents, unbounded persona behavior, opaque data practices, or absent governance commitments.
Overall scores are generated through a structured internal review methodology that combines the five public dimensions with proprietary risk, escalation, and reassessment criteria. Exact dimension weights, escalation thresholds, and red-flag triggers are intentionally not disclosed to preserve framework integrity and reduce manipulation risk.
Tier assignments refresh whenever monitoring evidence, vendor policy changes, or reassessment review warrant a change.
Review Process
Every certification follows the same procedural framework. Reviewers, timelines, and evidence requirements are defined in advance so the outcome is reproducible from the case file.
The vendor submits a structured intake covering product surface area, intended audience, data flows, and existing safety documentation. Intake is scoped before any review hours are spent.
Reviewer actions, probe sets, and evidence checkpoints for this stage are proprietary. Full stage playbooks are shared with certified vendors under NDA.
Ongoing Monitoring
AI products change quickly. SafeGradeAI treats every certification as a living record with continuous monitoring, scheduled re-evaluation, and the authority to act between cycles.
Certified products are tracked continuously. Privacy policies, DPAs, and child-safety statements are diffed automatically.
Every certified product is fully re-reviewed against the current methodology version on a 12-month cycle.
Material policy changes are surfaced on the verification page within 10 business days, with reviewer notes attached.
Certifications can be paused, downgraded, or revoked between cycles when incidents, policy changes, or test results warrant it.
Badge Standards
Each SafeGradeAI badge represents a specific, verifiable claim. These standards protect the meaning of the certification for the schools, districts, and families that rely on it.
Verification
Every certified product is displayed on a permanent public verification page that shows the current tier, the last review date, and the methodology version it was scored against. Anyone can confirm a badge in two clicks.
Revocation
A SafeGradeAI badge is a commitment maintained between reviews. The Standards Committee can take action at any time, with the rationale published on the verification page.
When a certification is paused or revoked, the vendor is notified the same business day and the public verification page is updated within 24 hours. Display of the badge by the vendor must end immediately and remain off until reinstatement.
Use the framework
Browse certified tools, learn what each badge means, or submit a product for independent evaluation under the current methodology.
Methodology metadata
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