Measuring the Invisible to transform the visible.

All your school's ESG work in one place.

• 1.What are the 28 invisibles and why do they matter?

  The 28 invisibles are indicators of people's all-round development and of school life that the education system doesn't measure systematically.

  They shape readiness for life: they decide whether a student leaves school ready for the real world or just able to pass an exam.

  They have a proven impact: something only makes the list of invisibles if it directly affects personal development or the school's sustainability.

  They're interconnected (the “web”): when one moves, it pulls the others along. Give students a real voice and their sense of belonging improves too.

  They can be measured and managed: they exist; the system had simply decided to ignore them.

  Breakdown: 14 social (people), 6 environmental (surroundings), 6 governance (decisions) and 2 maturity (sustaining change).

• 2.How is ESGrade different from other school evaluation tools?

  Most tools measure academic performance. ESGrade measures what they miss: people's all-round development and the school's sustainability as an institution.

  It complements the report card with the 28 invisibles that the education system leaves out.

  It asks all 4 groups (leadership team, teachers, students and families) the same questions and compares their answers.

  After the diagnostic, it recommends an action plan tailored to the school.

  It also tracks the process during the year: weekly check-ins, minutes from the CAVJ student council, student narratives and participation logs.

  It uses the language of sustainability (ESG), which education authorities and foundations already know.

• 3.How do you measure coherence between stated and practised values?

  Through the invisible “Institutional coherence”, quantified by the coherence index. It is worked out by cross-checking what the community says: the 4 groups answer separate questionnaires on the same aspects.

  ESGrade compares those answers automatically. If the leadership team rates teacher wellbeing highly and teachers report critical burnout, that gap, measured in points, is the evidence that coherence is missing.

  To reach level L4 (Consolidated), a school has to run an annual audit with the whole community and turn the gaps into concrete action plans. It also has to show “Lived Values” through structured service-learning projects with measurable impact.

• 4.What is the coherence index?

  It's the indicator that measures the distance between how the different groups in a school see the same issue. It helps you find the school's blind spots.

  When the 4 groups score the same aspects, ESGrade calculates the gap between their answers. The smaller the gap, the higher the coherence.

  Example: if the leadership team scores teacher wellbeing 72/100 but teachers score it 38/100, the gap is 34 points. That shows leadership has a blind spot: they think the staff is fine when they're actually burned out.

  It doesn't give a grade or say “good” or “bad”. It just shows what some people see and what others see.

• 5.How does ESGrade relate to the SDGs and the European CSRD/ESRS framework?

  ESGrade uses two international frameworks as reference points: the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the European CSRD/ESRS framework.

  SDGs: each pilot is linked to specific SDGs. Wellbeing and Healthy Living to SDGs 3 and 4, Talent and Vocation to SDGs 8 and 10, and Participatory Governance to SDGs 13, 16 and 17. That lets education authorities report impact in a language shared internationally.

  European CSRD/ESRS framework: the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) requires companies to report on their ESG impact. ESGrade applies similar logic to schools and relates its indicators to ESRS topics: S1 (teachers), S4 (students and families), E1 (environmental footprint) and G1 (transparency and participation).

  Educational indicators inspired by and referenced to ESRS topics through ESGrade's own correspondence methodology. ESGrade is a proprietary educational methodology. The ESRS references shown are direct, analogical or contextual thematic correspondences and do not constitute ESRS datapoints, regulatory double materiality, a sustainability statement, an audit, or CSRD/ESRS conformity.

• 6.How does ESGrade measure the model's impact?

  Through a 5-phase cycle that runs across one school year and compares the school in June with its September baseline.

  Phase 1 · The Mirror (Sep–Oct): an initial diagnostic with 4 separate questionnaires, one per group. The leadership team answers 55 questions, teachers 30, students 26 and families 20: 131 in total, which build the Institutional Sustainability Map.

  Phase 2 · Materiality (Oct–Nov): ESGrade works out which areas are most relevant and most urgent, using a traffic light: red (< 40), orange (40–60) and green (> 60).

  Phase 3 · The Map (Nov–Dec): the platform recommends a tailored action plan with pilots, a timeline, leads and indicators.

  Phase 4 · Implementation (Jan–May): tracking runs on real-time data such as participation logs, narratives, energy check-ins, minutes and competence profiles.

  Phase 5 · The Evidence (May–Jun): a follow-up diagnostic that compares each invisible with its baseline. That difference is the evidence of impact.

  Results are checked in two ways: through the coherence index and by requiring verifiable evidence (protocols, minutes, before-and-after data).

• 7.How does ESGrade decide which pilot each school should activate?

  From the school's own data, in 4 steps: a traffic light for the invisibles, a materiality analysis, pilot prescription and AI adaptation.

  Step 1 · Traffic-light map: from the 131 questions, ESGrade classifies each of the 28 invisibles as critical (red), developing (orange) or consolidated (green).

  Step 2 · Materiality analysis: it cross-checks the data to see which areas carry the most relevance and impact for that particular school.

  Step 3 · Pilot prescription: each of the 28 invisibles is tied to a specific pilot. When an invisible scores low, the system knows which pilot to recommend.

  Step 4 · AI adaptation: the AI drafts a tailored action plan with actions, leads and indicators, based on the school's context and resources.

• 8.What if one of the 4 groups can't take part?

  ESGrade is built for all 4 groups, but it still works if one is missing: it spreads the missing group's weight across the others and keeps their relative proportions.

  The system remains functional and rigorous, although the coherence index loses one of its perspectives. The report says so explicitly, so you can read the results with due care and plan to bring that group in next cycle.

• 9.How can my school join ESGrade?

  In 5 steps, from first contact to a September start.

  Step 1 · First contact: the school writes to esgrade@esgrade.org or requests a demo on the website, and the Certificado ESG team sends presentation materials.

  Step 2 · Exploratory call: a 45-minute online session to get to know the school, answer questions and see whether the programme is a good fit.

  Step 3 · Fit check: we review three requirements together. All 4 groups need to be able to take part, there has to be a core team of 3–5 people and the commitment has to come from the whole school rather than depend on one teacher's personal project.

  Step 4 · Agreement and facilitator: the collaboration agreement is signed and a Certificado ESG facilitator is assigned to work with the school all year.

  Step 5 · Kick-off: the school starts in September, with Phase 1 of the cycle. Applications are open all year round.

• 10.How much does it cost to take part?

  There's no fixed catalogue price: funding depends on the type of school and its size, and the team prepares a specific proposal after the first conversation.

  Public and state-funded private schools: co-funded with the relevant education authority. Certificado ESG supports the school in its talks with the regional education department, so participation fits within existing plans (innovation, training or sustainability).

  Private schools: an annual subscription based on student numbers and the scope of the programme.

  Partner foundations: in some cases, funding calls or grants fully or partly cover participation for schools with fewer resources.

  The fee covers the full cycle: platform access, teacher training, the facilitator's support, issuing the Certificado de Impacto ESG-Edu and technical support. There are no hidden costs or paid add-ons.

• 11.Is there a trial period before committing?

  Yes. Before signing, a school can take three steps with no financial commitment, and Phase 1 itself works as a trial.

  Guided platform demo: a 30-minute session using data from a fictional school, so you can see the whole flow first-hand, from the questionnaire to the Sustainability Map.

  Information session: a monthly online meeting open to interested leadership teams, where the Certificado ESG team answers questions live.

  Talking to schools in the programme: Certificado ESG puts your leadership team in touch with schools already taking part, so they can hear about it unfiltered.

  Phase 1 (The Mirror) is a real trial with the school's own data: if, after seeing the Sustainability Map, the school decides not to go ahead with the pilots, the agreement ends with no contractual penalty and the school keeps its diagnostic.

• 12.What support does a school get during the year?

  Each school gets three coordinated layers of support: an assigned facilitator, platform technical support and a community of practice.

  Assigned Certificado ESG facilitator: works with the core team from September to June, with scheduled sessions in every phase of the cycle (kick-off, materiality, map design, intervention tracking and the evidence close-out).

  Platform technical support: a direct email and chat channel, with replies within 24–48 working hours. It includes written guides, short videos and the ESGrade Agent chat inside the platform.

  Community of practice: a network of participating schools with termly online meetings to share good practice, one in-person gathering a year and a shared library of materials, templates and case studies.

  All support is included in the fee: there are no premium packages or separately billed services.

• 13.What happens to our data if we stop using ESGrade?

  The school can export all of it, and ESGrade deletes identifiable data within 90 days of leaving.

  Full export: the school can download all Sustainability Map data, the Evidence Log and the reports produced, in standard formats (CSV and JSON-LD), with or without the facilitator's help.

  Students' Portfolio Vital: it goes with each student thanks to Open Badges 3.0 and Europass integration, so they keep their credentials even if the school leaves the platform.

  Deletion of identifiable data: within 90 days of leaving, ESGrade deletes all identifiable data about the school and individuals. Only aggregated, anonymised data is kept for statistical or research purposes, and only if this was agreed in writing.

  No exit penalty: the collaboration agreement has no lock-in beyond the current school year. The decision to continue is made each year, after reviewing the evidence produced.

• 14.What role does AI play in ESGrade?

  AI acts as a co-pilot: it organises the information so that people make the decisions.

  Portfolio Vital: it supports each student by asking questions, giving feedback on their progress and spotting cognitive patterns.

  Sentinel AI (early warnings): it cross-checks data to spot risk patterns and warn teachers before they turn into problems.

  Data dashboards: they track learning and wellbeing in real time.

  Less paperwork: it simplifies admin tasks so the time saved goes to supporting people.

  Action plans: it analyses the diagnostic and drafts a tailored plan for each school.

  All within an ethical constitution: AI does not diagnose or replace the teacher, and it does not judge students either. It collects and presents data, and a person always makes the decision.

• 15.How does AI reduce teachers' admin burden?

  In three ways: it collects evidence automatically, shows learning on real-time dashboards and simplifies day-to-day logging.

  Automatic evidence: the platform documents students' work and development and generates the evidence itself. Nobody has to write reports by hand, because ESGrade captures process data while students are at school.

  Real-time dashboards: they show learning as it happens, instead of long reports.

  Quick logging: recording a regulation break takes 15 seconds, and a student Energy Check-in takes 1 minute. Termly competence assessments use predefined progress lines.

• 16.How is the AI trained to adapt each pilot to each school?

  At two levels: first it is trained to design each pilot in detail, then to adapt it to each school's diagnostic.

  Level 1 · Pilot design: the AI is trained to set out in full detail how each pilot is implemented (classroom content and materials, teacher training plans, indicators and timelines).

  Level 2 · Adapting to each school: day to day, the AI analyses the diagnostic results, adjusts the intervention to the school's context (resources, urgent needs, school culture) and draws up a plan with concrete actions, leads and indicators.

  So two schools running the same pilot end up with different implementations.

• 17.What ethical safeguards apply to using AI with minors?

  AI use follows an ethical constitution with non-negotiable limits: it does not diagnose or judge anyone, and it does not replace the professional.

  No clinical judgements: AI makes no clinical or psychological assessments. It collects process data and presents it to the teacher, who decides.

  In support of professionals: AI works for the teacher, tutor and counsellor without taking their place.

  No labels: AI does not grade, rank or label anyone. It presents data and patterns, and a person interprets them.

  Data ownership: students (or their families) own the data they generate. The most sensitive data gets extra protection.

  Legal compliance: GDPR, Spain's LOPDGDD and UNESCO guidance on AI in education.

  Algorithmic transparency: the school and families know what data the AI collects, what it is used for and who has access. No black boxes.

• 18.What resources does a school need to take part?

  The usual resources of any school: you don't need to hire staff or install anything. You need a core team of 3–5 people and time for the diagnostic and for 4–6 training days a year.

  People: a core team of 3–5 (a member of the leadership team, 2–3 committed teachers and a coordinator). Nobody new is hired: existing roles are shared out differently. The Certificado ESG facilitator works with the team all year.

  Technology: ESGrade is a web platform, so any device with a browser will do. There's no software to install and no special hardware to buy.

  Time: the initial diagnostic takes 10–30 minutes per group. Pilots fit into the existing school timetable, and teacher training takes 4–6 days a year during school hours.

• 19.How can a school use the results in its annual report?

  ESGrade automatically produces four documents you can add to your annual report.

  Comparative Sustainability Map: shows how the school changed across the ESG dimensions between September and June, invisible by invisible.

  Certificado de Impacto ESG-Edu: a formal document, backed by verifiable evidence, that certifies the school's work. It can go to the education authority, the school's owners, families or any assessment body.

  Evidence Log: a detailed record of breaks taken, check-ins completed, minutes from the CAVJ student council, proposals adopted, badges issued and competence profiles produced.

  Coherence index: shows how the gap between what the different groups perceive has changed. If it has narrowed, that is evidence that the school has become more transparent.

• 20.How does ESGrade fit with Spain's LOMLOE education law?

  ESGrade overlaps with the LOMLOE on competence-based assessment, values education, student participation, education for sustainable development and emotional wellbeing.

  Competence-based assessment: Layer 5 of the Portfolio Vital records the 8 UNESCO competences with progress lines and triple assessment, alongside the competence assessment the law requires.

  Values education: the pilots work on civic and ethical values in a structured, measurable way.

  Student participation: the CAVJ student council makes student participation real and documented, with a mandatory response protocol.

  Education for sustainable development: ESGrade puts this principle into practice with verifiable data, indicators and evidence.

  Emotional wellbeing: the Wellbeing and Healthy Living pilot and Layer 6 of the Portfolio Vital track and support wellbeing systematically.

• 21.What technical standards does ESGrade use?

  Open Badges 3.0, Europass and JSON-LD for credentials; GDPR and the LOPDGDD for data protection; and CSRD/ESRS and UNESCO as reference frameworks.

  Open Badges 3.0 (1EdTech): verifiable digital badges in the Portfolio Vital.

  Europass (European Commission): compatibility with the EU credentials platform.

  JSON-LD (W3C): export format for badges and credentials.

  GDPR (EU): personal data protection, consent, portability.

  LOPDGDD (Spain, LO 3/2018): protection of minors' data.

  CSRD/ESRS (EU): indicators referenced to ESRS topics through ESGrade's own correspondence methodology; this does not certify regulatory conformity.

  UNESCO ESD (Education for Sustainable Development): the 8 sustainability competences, used as the framework for Layer 5.

• 22.Can the model be rolled out regionally or nationally?

  Yes. ESGrade is designed to grow in stages from a pilot group of schools to a whole region.

  On the technical side: a web platform with nothing to install locally. Questionnaires are answered online, and the dashboards build themselves from the data as it comes in.

  How it's organised: a 3-level pyramid, with school facilitators (3–5 schools each), regional mentors who coordinate the facilitators in an area and Certificado ESG experts who design, train and supervise.

  For the authorities: education departments get a combined, anonymised dashboard to base education policy decisions on data.

  Phased rollout: a pilot group of 10–15 schools in year one, 50–80 in year two and region-wide from year three.

• 23.What evidence does ESGrade produce to justify the investment?

  Evidence at three levels: the school, its students and the system as a whole, with data you can compare from one year to the next.

  School: the comparative Sustainability Map (before and after), the Certificado de Impacto ESG-Edu with verifiable evidence and the detailed Evidence Log. All of it can be quantified.

  Students: the Portfolio Vital records all-round development across 7 layers and shows how the investment turns into each student's development.

  System: the education department's combined dashboard shows trends and how all participating schools change over time. It can answer questions such as “How many schools improved teacher wellbeing this year?” or “How has the coherence index changed on average?”.

  Compared with other innovation programmes, ESGrade leaves comparable, verifiable data from one year to the next, so you can measure the return on the investment in educational impact.