Educators Carefully Watch Pearson As It Moves To Sell K 12 Curriculum

Millions of U.S. students use Pearson’s curriculum products in their classrooms, but soon those print and digital resources will no longer fall under the education publishing giant’s business umbrella. The London-based company announced recently it will sell off its K-12 U.S. print and digital curriculum business to focus on assessments and virtual schools, leaving educators wondering what that means for day-to-day instruction. Pearson officials said in a press briefing Feb. 23 that the company was already talking with potential buyers.

U.S. curriculum products and services were not big moneymakers among Pearson’s portfolio. Company officials called them a “lower margin” part of the global enterprise, representing 9 percent of the company’s revenues but returning profits of about 2 percent last year. Pearson generated 61 percent of its U.S. sales in prekindergarten through 12th grade and higher education. Pearson’s reputation has taken some hits in recent years, as the company has become embroiled in a series of scandals and lawsuits and has been the target of complaints from educators and parents.

This sale may add to the company’s public relations woes, said Alan Singer, a professor of teaching, learning and technology at Hofstra University who has studied the company. “Whoever Pearson spins (its curriculum business) off to will service these things,” Singer said. “But Pearson has made promises to districts. It’s sold products and now it’s going to abandon them.” COLUMBUS, Ohio and HOBOKEN, N.J. (June 4, 2025) – Global education leaders McGraw Hill and Pearson (FTSE: PSON.L) announced today an agreement to begin integrating Pearson’s leading assessment capabilities directly into McGraw Hill's K-12 curriculum solutions.

The integration strengthens McGraw Hill’s personalization ecosystem, supporting educators' growing need for streamlined, data-driven teaching tools while enhancing personalized learning experiences for students. The integration of Pearson's PRoPL (Pearson Review of Progress & Learning) will embed a high-quality interim assessment solution directly into McGraw Hill’s core curriculum offerings—used by millions of students and educators across the country—adding... This connected experience will also provide a more complete view of student progress toward yearly academic goals across the school system, while saving teachers valuable classroom time. “This collaboration combines McGraw Hill’s high-quality, modern curriculum with Pearson’s innovative digital assessments to unlock more value for students, teachers and administrators,” said Sean Ryan, President of McGraw Hill’s School Group. “By creating an elegant linkage between assessment and instruction that delivers reliable insights to inform classroom practices and district decision making, we’re giving educators the opportunity to focus on what matters most – student... McGraw Hill will initially roll out its integration of Pearson’s interim assessment solution in California for the 2025-26 school year, combining PRoPL with California Reveal Math, McGraw Hill's award-winning K-8 mathematics curriculum.

The companies plan to expand the integration to additional subjects, grade levels, and states in subsequent years. “The future of education is data-driven, and this collaboration is paving the way. By combining Pearson's assessments with McGraw Hill's core curriculum, we're creating an integrated system where academic data flows naturally into teaching decisions, helping every student receive the right support at the right time,” said... The educational publishing landscape underwent a major shift in October 2019 when Pearson's K-12 division transitioned into Savvas Learning Company. For elementary school teachers, administrators, and families navigating curriculum decisions, this change marked a significant step toward modernizing educational resources and digital learning platforms. Let's dive into what this transformation means for schools, students, and families.

In late 2019, Pearson's K-12 courseware business was spun off and rebranded as Savvas Learning Company through a strategic acquisition by Nexus Capital Management. According to Pearson's official announcement, this transformation wasn't just a change in name—it represented a strategic shift emphasizing innovative educational technology for elementary and secondary schools while allowing Pearson to focus on its higher... For many schools across the United States, this transition was impactful. Educators who relied on popular Pearson programs such as enVisionMATH, myWorld Interactive Social Studies, and Scott Foresman Reading Street continued with these resources, now under the Savvas Learning umbrella. Teachers initially faced questions regarding continuity and support, but they found the core curriculum remained consistent, with enhanced integration of digital features becoming the focus. As an educational consultant who worked directly with three districts during this transition period, I observed that the most successful implementations occurred when schools proactively communicated the changes to their teaching staff months in...

One elementary principal I worked with in Ohio noted that while the content remained familiar, the new digital interface required her teachers to invest approximately 10-15 hours in professional development to maximize the platform's... Savvas Learning prioritized improving its online environments to better cater to K-6 students. Featuring simple navigation tools, larger buttons, clear visual cues, and streamlined menu structures, the new digital interfaces were intuitively designed for younger learners to access independently. Education publishing giant Pearson has announced the sale of its US K-12 courseware business to private equity firm Nexus Capital Management for $250 million as it shifts its focus from textbooks to digital. According to a statement, Nexus will pay an initial $25 million and a further $225 million by way of a vendor note due in the next three to five years for the business, which... “We will now be better placed to focus on the areas in which we can best help students to be successful”

Following the repayment of the vendor note, Pearson will be entitled to 20% of all future cash flows to shareholders as well as net proceeds if the division is sold and the market improves. Pearson’s chief executive John Fallon said school publishing in the US has been an important part of Pearson for many years, but that the sale frees up the company to focus on a digital-first... Educators Carefully Watch Pearson as It Moves to Sell Curriculum Business Education companies McGraw Hill and Pearson have partnered to integrate the latter's assessment capabilities into McGraw Hill's K-12 curriculum solutions. Pearson's PRoPL (Pearson Review of Progress & Learning) will be accessible within McGraw Hill's core curriculum offerings, providing data-driven insights on student progress and the ability to create learning paths tailored to student needs,... Aligned with each state's unique standards, Pearson's assessments are designed to be completed in 30 minutes.

Integrating them into the McGraw Hill online environment will help reduce administrative burden, the companies said, saving valuable classroom time and enabling teachers to focus on student learning. In addition, the assessments provide "timely, predictive insights that make personalization practical, scalable, and impactful," according to the companies. The integration will roll out beginning in California for the 2025-26 school year, combining PRoPL with McGraw Hill's California Reveal Math solution, and will expand to additional subjects, grade levels, and states in the... "This collaboration combines McGraw Hill's high-quality, modern curriculum with Pearson's innovative digital assessments to unlock more value for students, teachers and administrators," said Sean Ryan, President of McGraw Hill's School Group, in a statement. "By creating an elegant linkage between assessment and instruction that delivers reliable insights to inform classroom practices and district decision-making, we're giving educators the opportunity to focus on what matters most — student growth."... By combining Pearson's assessments with McGraw Hill's core curriculum, we're creating an integrated system where academic data flows naturally into teaching decisions, helping every student receive the right support at the right time," commented...

For more information, visit the McGraw Hill site. According to Gartner's 2025 Magic Quadrant for Desktop as a Service, while secure remote access remains a key driver of DaaS adoption, a growing number of deployments now focus on broader efficiency goals.

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