Guiding Principles

Grounded in Research, Evolving with Emerging Trends

Tulna is anchored in learning science research and emphasizes design features shown to improve learning outcomes, such as scaffolding, meaningful interactivity, and learner engagement. At the same time, the framework remains forward-looking — regularly updated to incorporate emerging policy and industry like AI-powered features, digital safety, and parent engagement.

Modular Design, Adaptable across Geographies

Tulna’s modular framework can be customised to align with local curricula, policy priorities, and implementation needs across different states and countries. This adaptability supports adoption in varied contexts while preserving consistency and rigour in evaluation standards.

Flexible Design Approach, Common Standards

Tulna defines clear objectives for each evaluation criterion, while giving product companies the flexibility to decide how best to achieve these goals. For instance, learner engagement might be fostered through gamification, leaderboards, streaks, or other innovative features. This balanced approach encourages innovation and differentiation, yet ensures all products are assessed against consistent, research-aligned standards for learning effectiveness.

Transparent, and Reliable Evaluation

Tulna’s evaluation framework and in-depth evaluation reports are freely available on the website as a public good. Evaluations follow a structured sampling process, apply objective scoring rubrics, and include inter-rater reliability checks. This transparency and rigor ensure reliable evaluation and builds trust among key decisions makers - governments, buyers, investors, and product companies.

Contextualized and Locally Relevant

Tulna is contextualised for the diverse realities of India and other low-resource settings. It includes parameters such as offline access, bilingual content, and intuitive to use even for non-digitally savvy users. This ensures evaluations remain meaningful and grounded in real-world conditions.

Beyond Rating, Holistic Profiling

Tulna goes beyond single-point ratings to provide a detailed characterization of each product’s strengths and weaknesses across key evaluation criteria. This nuanced, criteria-level profiling supports more informed decision-making and offers targeted guidance for continuous product improvement.