TL;DR: SparkAI tracks what your child learns and compares it to school standards or your own goals. It automatically finds "gaps" in their knowledge and suggests the best lessons to help them stay on track.
Every parent wants to feel confident that their child isn’t "missing anything" in their education. LearnSpark makes this easy with Gap Analysis. This feature acts like a smart assistant that constantly compares your child's progress against the educational goals you have set.
Whether you are following national rules or your own unique path, SparkAI helps you stay on track without the stress of manual record-keeping. This ensures your LearnSpark experience is tailored perfectly to your student's needs. Let’s look at how it works!
What is a Learning Gap?
A gap happens when there is a specific skill or topic in your chosen curriculum that your student hasn't mastered yet. For example, if your child is great at addition but hasn't started subtraction, SparkAI will flag "Subtraction" as a gap.
SparkAI looks at your student's Mastery Profile. This profile is a digital map of everything your child knows. It includes lessons they finished on the platform and activities you logged from real life using the Quick-log feature.
💡 Good to know: Gaps aren't "bad grades." They are simply a roadmap of what to learn next to make sure your child has a complete and balanced learning journey!
How to Set Your Standards
Before SparkAI can find gaps, it needs to know what "path" you are following. You can pick from a student's profile or upload your own plan.
Choose standard goals: Go to a Student Profile and set their Curriculum Type (like US Common Core or UK National Curriculum).
Use a custom plan: If you have your own documents, go to Settings and select the Custom Curriculums card to upload them.
Let SparkAI work: Once your goals are set, SparkAI performs "Skills Decomposition." It breaks big subjects into tiny skills to see exactly what is missing automatically.
⚠️ Heads up: Keeping your Mastery Profile and gap analysis up to date uses SparkAI credits. If you run low, you can buy top-up packs of 150 credits in your billing settings.
Understanding Your Progress
To see how your student is doing, click on the Performance tab. You will see Standards Progress bars that show your child's Operating Level compared to the Expected Level for their age.
As you finish lessons or log museum trips, the progress bar fills up. SparkAI highlights the specific skills you need to touch on next to close the distance between where your child is and where they are expected to be.
Filling the Gaps with SparkAI
The best part of Gap Analysis is that you don't have to spend hours planning how to fix missing links. SparkAI helps in three ways:
Next Best Lessons: When you generate new lessons, SparkAI prioritizes topics that satisfy missing standards first.
Project Milestones: When creating a Project, SparkAI suggests milestones that specifically cover your child's biggest learning gaps.
Activity Logging: If a gap shows up for something your child already knows, use the Log Activity button on your dashboard to record their real-world experience and update their profile instantly!
Frequently Asked Questions
How often does SparkAI check for gaps?
SparkAI updates the mastery profile and gap analysis constantly as you complete lessons and provide feedback. It happens in the background so your plan is always fresh.
Where do I find my Custom Curriculums?
On desktop, click Settings in the sidebar and look for the Custom Curriculums card. On mobile, open the menu, tap Settings, and then Custom Curriculums. If you don't see it, just ask us to enable it for you!
Does gap analysis use my credits?
Yes. SparkAI credits are used for all functional tasks, including gap analysis, skills decomposition, and updating student mastery profiles.
What if I don't want to follow the suggested lessons?
That is perfectly fine! You are the teacher. SparkAI provides the roadmap, but you always have the final say on what your child learns and when.
Can I see gaps for multiple students at once?
Gaps are tracked individually on each student's Performance tab. This ensures that every child gets a personalized learning journey based on their own unique skills.