Trellis vs Whetstone Education: Comparing Classroom Observation Tools

What Whetstone Education offers

Whetstone Education is an observation and coaching platform that has become particularly popular among charter management organizations and schools committed to frequent classroom walkthroughs. The platform is designed for speed: leaders can quickly document observations using mobile-friendly forms and share feedback with teachers shortly after a visit.

Whetstone's mobile interface is a real strength. The platform is built for leaders who are in and out of classrooms throughout the day and need to capture observations quickly without sitting down at a computer. Observation forms can be customized to match a school's look-fors, and leaders can tag specific indicators or competencies as they observe.

The platform also supports coaching workflows, allowing leaders to track coaching conversations and action steps alongside observation data. Dashboards show observation frequency and trends, helping school leaders and network administrators see patterns across classrooms and schools. For organizations that have built their instructional model around frequent, brief walkthroughs with rapid feedback, Whetstone provides a focused tool that supports that cadence.

What Trellis offers

Trellis addresses a related but distinct challenge: not just capturing observations, but transforming them into high-quality written feedback. Many leaders can get into classrooms often enough, but the time required to write up meaningful, professional feedback creates a bottleneck. Trellis uses AI to close that gap.

Leaders can input observations through multiple channels: typed notes, uploaded documents, or audio recordings. The audio recording option is particularly valuable for leaders who want to stay present during a lesson rather than typing notes on a screen. After capture, Trellis generates feedback drafts aligned to frameworks like Danielson, Marzano, CSTPs, UDL, or custom rubrics. The AI matches the leader's voice and uses a positive-first structure that builds trust.

Trellis is intentionally non-evaluative. It is designed for the informal, growth-focused feedback that happens between formal evaluation cycles. The ToneBoost feature lets leaders adjust the feedback tone based on each teacher's context, from warmly encouraging to constructively direct. Longitudinal growth profiles track each teacher's development across observations, creating a narrative of progress rather than a collection of isolated ratings. Security certifications include SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001, ISO 42001, HIPAA, and FERPA.

Key differences at a glance

While both platforms support classroom observations, Trellis and Whetstone differ in their approach to what happens after an observation is captured.

Where Trellis stands out

• AI-powered feedback generation turns rough observation notes into polished, framework-aligned write-ups without manual drafting
• Audio recording captures the full context of a classroom visit without requiring the leader to type during the observation
• ToneBoost personalizes feedback language for each teacher, supporting differentiated coaching conversations
• Non-evaluative design positions feedback as a growth tool rather than a performance rating, increasing teacher receptivity
• Works across district contexts — not limited to charter networks or specific school models
• Enterprise-grade security with SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001, ISO 42001, HIPAA, and FERPA certifications

Which is right for you?

Both Trellis and Whetstone are built for leaders who believe in the power of frequent feedback. The choice comes down to where your biggest friction point is and what type of school context you operate in.

Choose Whetstone if your school or network has a well-defined walkthrough model and your leaders primarily need a fast, mobile-friendly tool to document observations and track coaching actions. If you are a charter management organization or a school that already does very frequent, brief walkthroughs and your leaders are comfortable writing quick feedback on the spot, Whetstone's streamlined mobile experience and coaching dashboards are a strong fit. The platform's adoption in charter networks means you will likely find peers and best practices within that community.

Choose Trellis if the challenge is not getting into classrooms but getting the feedback written and delivered. If your leaders spend significant time after observations drafting feedback, or if feedback often gets delayed because the write-up process is too time-consuming, Trellis addresses that directly. The AI-powered approach is also valuable for leaders who want their feedback to be consistently aligned to instructional frameworks without manually mapping every note to rubric indicators. Districts and traditional public schools that want to increase observation frequency without requiring a complete overhaul of their walkthrough model will find Trellis flexible enough to adapt to their existing approach.

For schools transitioning from infrequent formal observations to a culture of regular feedback, Trellis's AI assistance can help leaders build confidence in their feedback writing while maintaining quality and consistency.