Learn together,
side by side
sideby empowers peer-powered learning at scale to surface and visualize what works in real time.
What we do
sideby partners with organizations to embed continuous peer-driven professional development that improves practice. sideby acts as a transformation system to accelerate innovation in teaching and learning. We have pathways in AI for Deeper Learning and can co-design pathways related to other goals and topics. Learn more about partnering with us or contact us to get started.
sideby also has a free, open community focused on AI for Deeper Learning. Whether you’re teaching, leading, or coaching, you’ll grow your practice alongside others actively testing what works.
For Teachers & Professors: Connect with other classroom educators to make planning, instruction, and feedback more manageable — and more student-centered.
For School & Organizational Leaders: Think through real decisions about communication, scheduling, pilot design, and policy with peers navigating similar constraints.
For Coaches & PD Leads: Refine how you model and implement AI with the educators you support and empower.
How it works
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Match
Learners are strategically matched based on roles and goals to ensure strong alignment from the start. Reflections and past sessions help sideby continually improve the quality matching. AI supports the process, and we oversee it.
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Talk
One-on-one sideby sessions lasts about 20 minutes. We provide specific prompts to guide the discussion. Learners talk through what they’re trying, what’s working, and what’s not — and hear how a colleague is approaching the same challenge.
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Learn
After each session, AI helps reflect your key ideas back to each learner. Insights are captured and organized automatically, so learners can see what stood out and decide what to try next. Learners can apply new strategies in their work, reflect on what happened, and share small wins inside the sideby community.
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Grow
Each conversation builds toward a larger learning journey. Learners follow curated pathways, track progress over time, and earn competency-based badges grounded in educator practice. Organizations gain overall insights into key evidence of everyday learning.
Our story
We met as educators building a school from scratch — sitting side by side at a picnic table, imagining what learning could look like.
Erica led and supported nationally recognized schools grounded in student-centered learning. Mike brought early energy for edtech and went on to teach AI globally through NVIDIA’s Deep Learning Institute and co-found Upduo, later acquired by Arcade.
In 2025, we launched sideby to bring AI-powered, peer-led learning to the people shaping the future of education: educators.
Built by educators, for educators
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Monique Cabellon, Regional Math Coordinator, Puget Sound Education Service District
"Connection and reflection time for teachers is so important, but teachers’ time is scarce. Meeting opportunities need to be high-quality or else they’re doing damage control. Good intentions and good people often aren’t enough either. sideby lets leaders be intentional by gathering members of their incredible teams to grow school systems and sustainable networks that lead to action, empowerment, and growth.”
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Dale Berry, Special Education Teacher, Madison East High School
“I get to talk about what’s really happening in classrooms and how we’re all trying to figure this out in schools. These short conversations on sideby move me forward in how I’m applying AI in my work. I’m sharing, I’m learning, and connecting with educators who are willing to get into the mess as we work out what actually helps students.”
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Peter Liljedahl, PhD, Professors of Mathematics Education, Simon Fraser University Creator of Building Thinking Classrooms
"My favorite form of professional development consists of two teachers on the same journey, having opportunities to talk with each other about their teaching.”
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Scott Friedman, Associate Director, Association of Washington School Principals
As an education leader, I've felt and seen firsthand how isolating education has become. Strange to say that in such a connected society, but with the demands of the job, the pace of change, and the fragmentation of our professional networks, we have lost our professional connections. I'm so glad I found sideby. It has reduced my isolation and connected me with other educational leaders, but it's more than a connection. Collaborating, sharing insights, and discussing what truly matters is motivating. It has become my lifeline to a community of leaders that think deeply and want to take action.”
Trusted by
Chosen by
FAQs
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It’s 100% free for individual educators to join. Most of our badges for our open community are also free. We’re very clear if something is a paid, additional offering. We believe access shouldn't be a barrier.
For organizations that want to partner with sideby, we offer enterprise packages. Organizations can learn more here or contact us for exact pricing.
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sideby connects real humans. Everyone verifies with a short reflection video before joining. No bots, no performative posts, no sitting muted and listening to a speaker. Just quick, guided convos and shared ideas with colleagues.
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Because learning = making mistakes. The eraser reminds us to try, tweak, toss what doesn’t work, and keep going. That’s how educators (and innovation) grow. We also believe we should develop a learning community on sideby to mirror the best classrooms of the world. All learners, young people and adults, deserve the opportunity to grow and make mistakes together.
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Between our founders, we’ve taught and led in K-12 schools, districts, and universities, and facilitated adult learning in a variety of spaces. Mike was still a high school math teacher in 2025. Erica continues to adjunct, coach principal interns, and was a founding principal herself until 2022. We’ve also facilitated adult learning across the country and world through our work at NVIDIA, Edgewood University, and ASU. We want to scale the best professional learning we’ve ever experienced and facilitated. We also continue to listen to our community members and partners to make us and sideby better.
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Our open educator community does currently focus on AI for Deeper Learning. We approach AI with curiosity and a critical lens. It’s a powerful tool, but not a replacement for educators. We believe educators should be shaping how this technology evolves, not sitting on the sidelines while it happens. We believe in engaging critically with the possibilities of this technology in service of deeper learning in education.
Our partners can choose to also focus on AI for Deeper Learning or other topics related to their goals. sideby can be utilized to support learning across innovations and is not solely built to focus on learning in AI.
