Solutionwhere vs IRIS Connect: Which Professional Learning Platform Fits Your District

What Each Platform Does

Solutionwhere is a professional development transcript and compliance system used by U.S. public school districts, intermediate school districts, BOCES, and CCR&R agencies to track state-mandated PD hours for license renewal. IRIS Connect is a video capture and reflection platform designed for teacher coaching in the United Kingdom, allowing educators to record classroom practice and share clips with coaches.

The two platforms serve different functions. Solutionwhere tracks and reports hours for state compliance. IRIS Connect facilitates video-based peer learning. IRIS Connect does not track PD hours, generate transcripts, or integrate with U.S. state reporting requirements. Solutionwhere does not capture video, facilitate coaching conversations, or provide reflection tools.

Districts searching for a compliance tracking system are not comparing these two platforms. IRIS Connect is marketed to schools in England, Wales, and Scotland for instructional improvement. Solutionwhere is built for U.S. state licensing boards.

Solutionwhere: Built for U.S. State Compliance

Solutionwhere maintains a transcript for every employee, recording the course title, date, hours, provider, and approval status required by state licensing boards. The platform manages approved provider rosters and tags courses with state approval numbers, including CTLE provider IDs in New York, SCECH numbers in South Carolina, and LPDC approval in Ohio. District administrators submit aggregate reports to state agencies, export individual transcripts for license renewal, and pull records for audits.

The system supports clock hour, contact hour, and CEU calculations for states with different unit standards. Washington requires clock hours. Illinois uses continuing professional development units. New York calculates CTLE hours. Solutionwhere applies the correct formula for each state and prevents staff from registering for courses that do not meet state approval criteria.

The platform tracks instructor-led workshops, online courses, conference sessions, and college coursework. Expiration tracking sends alerts to staff and administrators when renewal deadlines approach. Registrars export transcripts in the format required by the state licensing board.

IRIS Connect: Video Coaching for UK Schools

IRIS Connect allows teachers to record lessons using a smartphone or tablet app, then upload clips to a private library. Teachers select short segments to share with a coach or peer group for feedback. The platform includes annotation tools, timestamps, and comment threads tied to specific moments in a video.

The system integrates with Microsoft Azure Active Directory for user management. IRIS Connect is used primarily in England, Wales, and Scotland, where video-based professional learning is common in school improvement cycles. Teachers use the platform for self-reflection, peer observation, and coaching conversations.

IRIS Connect does not generate a professional development transcript or track hours toward a license requirement. The platform is designed for qualitative feedback, not for compliance reporting. A district using IRIS Connect for video coaching would still need a separate system to track and report hours for state mandates.

Why a U.S. District Would Use Solutionwhere

Public school districts in states with mandated PD hours need a system that records hours and generates transcripts accepted by the state licensing authority. Regional education service agencies like ISDs in Michigan and AEAs in Iowa use Solutionwhere to track hours for member districts and submit aggregate reports. CCR&R agencies in states with early childhood PD registries use Solutionwhere to track training hours and issue certificates for child care providers.

The platform allows districts to limit course registration to state-approved providers, preventing staff from earning hours that will not count toward license renewal. Curriculum directors and registrars export transcripts in the format required by the state. Solutionwhere enforces data standards at the point of entry, requiring fields like provider approval number, course location, and credit type before a record is saved.

Why a U.S. District Would Not Use IRIS Connect

IRIS Connect does not include features required to comply with U.S. state PD mandates. The platform does not track contact hours, clock hours, or CEUs, and does not generate a transcript format accepted by state licensing boards. Districts that need to report aggregate PD hours to a state agency cannot pull that data from IRIS Connect.

The system does not integrate with state-approved provider lists or tag courses with approval numbers required for license renewal. A curriculum director responsible for submitting transcripts to the state licensing board would not find the necessary tools in a video reflection platform. IRIS Connect does not calculate hours, enforce provider approval status, or generate batch exports for audit purposes.

A district using IRIS Connect for video coaching would still need a separate system to track and report hours for compliance. Registrars would maintain duplicate records, entering hours manually into a second platform or spreadsheet. The lack of integration creates version control problems and increases the risk of transcript errors during an audit.

Where Districts Get This Wrong

District administrators sometimes adopt a coaching platform and assume it will also handle compliance tracking, then discover it does not generate the transcripts required by the state. Some districts use a learning management system for course delivery and a separate spreadsheet to track hours, creating duplicate data entry and version control problems.

Registrars who rely on self-reported hours from staff often find discrepancies during audits, because teachers miscount hours or include non-approved providers. Districts that do not limit course registration to state-approved providers end up with transcripts full of hours the licensing board will not accept.

A compliance system must enforce data standards at the point of entry. The platform should validate provider approval status, calculate hours according to state rules, and generate transcripts in the format required by the licensing board. A video coaching tool does not perform those functions.

How Solutionwhere Tracks Compliance

Solutionwhere maintains an approved provider roster with approval numbers, expiration dates, and state-specific tags, so districts can limit course registration to providers whose hours will count. The platform calculates hours based on state rules, converting between contact hours, clock hours, and CEUs as required. Registrars pull individual transcripts or batch exports in the format required by the state licensing board, with no manual reformatting.

Expiration tracking sends alerts to staff and supervisors when a license renewal deadline is approaching. District administrators submit aggregate reports to state agencies from a single dashboard. Regional agencies like ISDs and BOCES use Solutionwhere to track hours for member districts, issue certificates, and maintain a shared provider catalog.

The platform records the course title, date, hours, provider name, provider approval number, and credit type for every entry. The system prevents duplicate entries, enforces provider approval rules, and flags incomplete records before they reach a transcript. Districts using Solutionwhere meet state audit requirements without manual spreadsheet work or data cleanup.

For the Curriculum Director or Registrar

If your state licensing board requires transcripts with provider approval numbers, hours, and course titles, you need a compliance tracking system. A video coaching platform does not generate those transcripts. A learning management system may deliver courses but does not enforce provider approval rules or calculate hours according to state standards.

Responsible for tracking this across your staff? See how districts manage it in Solutionwhere.