Oak National Academy vs OpenSciEd
Oak National Academy
thenational.academyOpenSciEd
openscied.orgSide by side
| Figure | Oak National Academy | OpenSciEd |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 4 |
| Spec score · K-12 Curriculum Platforms | 7.5 (#20) | 8.1 (#11) |
| Accessibility | Oak supports keyboard navigation and screen readers on most of the site, while its accessibility statement lists known issues with some embedded Google files, captions, and other page elements. | OpenSciEd publishes Accessibility Conformance Reports addressing Section 508 and WCAG 2.2 for elementary, middle and high-school materials. |
| Adaptability | Oak describes its materials as flexible starting points that teachers can adapt to their setting and pupils. | Teachers are encouraged to download and customize the fully adaptable lessons for their students’ needs. |
| Founded | 2020 | 2018 |
| Privacy | Oak says it does not sell personal data, limits collection to what it needs, and adds specific protections because many users are children. | The Google Classroom Uploader states that it does not transmit users’ Google data to OpenSciEd and only operates on data authorized within the user’s account. |
Plans
OpenSciEd
- OpenSciEd core curriculumFree
- OpenSciEd curriculum and resourcesFree
- Certified distributor packagesPriced on request
- Packaged curriculum from certified distributorsPriced on request
In their own words
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy provides free curriculum plans and teaching resources for schools, teachers, trusts, and pupils. Its coverage runs through key stages 1–4 across 20 subjects and aligns with the national curriculum and exam boards. Materials include lesson plans, slide decks, quizzes, worksheets, and videos of teachers teaching the content. Oak presents them as adaptable starting points for different settings and pupils. Its AI tools help teachers and education professionals create, adapt, and enhance curriculum-aligned lessons, slides, and quizzes; pupils must not use these generative tools directly. The service is available on the web and through an open curriculum API. Content published after 1 September 2022 is generally available under the Open Government Licence v3.0, subject to exceptions and third-party rights. Earlier lesson videos cannot be downloaded, recorded, or reproduced under the stated licence. Oak says it has no paywalls, package tiers, or hidden costs, and provides child-focused privacy protections and a Help Centre.
OpenSciEd
OpenSciEd creates free science curriculum materials and professional learning resources for educators, with NGSS alignment across elementary, middle and high school. Its lessons center on scientific phenomena and student questioning, investigation and problem-solving; teachers are encouraged to adapt them. Released units can be downloaded as PDFs, Google Drive files, Word documents or PowerPoint files, and some are available in Google Classroom or Canvas versions. Free self-guided learning paths and an on-demand support library provide videos and resources for unit preparation, classroom routines and anticipating student ideas. Registration is required to access the materials and is intended for educators or parents, not K–12 students. Middle school materials use CC BY 4.0; elementary and high school materials use CC-BY-NC licensing, with noncommercial 5R permissions free and perpetual. OpenSciEd High School offers three NGSS courses. The organization describes itself as an independent nonprofit, and the website is listed for web access.