IXL is a completely unnecessary waste of taxpayers money.  Not only is it ineffective at teaching children the concepts presented on the platform, it causes unnecessary stress and self-esteem issues, as well as wasting the scarce free time students have to themselves. Not to mention that the point system in this program is horrific, not focusing on incentive but on punishment of incorrect answers. While yes, it does include an “explanation” at wrong answers, it fails to actually explain WHY you take the steps you must take. Instead, it just shows you the steps taken by someone to solve the problem, and makes feeble attempts at guideline blurbs, which just end up being vague, unhelpful text. All in all, it is extremely stressful and is not worth almost 300 dollars per medium sized class, and only decreases enjoyment of the subject.