1. Overview. 2. Understanding your data. 3. Consent 4. TEST. 5. IT support and Trouble Shooting

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1 1. Overview 1.1 Number of schools participating in the TEAL Trial 1.2 How many schools have done the test 2. Understanding your data 2.1 What are the different codes? 2.2 What are each of these codes used for in the TEAL Trial 3. Consent 4. TEST 3.1 Which documents have been translated? 3.2 Where can I get the English version and the translations from? 3.3 Which languages have the forms been translated into? 3.4 What do I do if the language I require is not in the list? 3.5 Can students do the test without their parent consent? 4.1 The test does not open in my internet Explorer? 4.2 What if some of my students are not on data base for the computer test? 4.3 Some of my students do not have 2 tests? 4.4 How many tests are there? 4.5 Do they have to do the test all at once? 4.6 When can students do the tests? 4.7 How much help can I give the student? 4.8 How long does it take to download the test? 4.9 How long does the test take to complete? 4.10 Do students have to do all the questions? 4.11 Can Students pause the test and finish it at a later stage? 4.12 If a student is away, can another student sit the test in their place? 4.13 Why can't another student sit the test in someone else's place? 4.14 How do I log in to the test? 4.15 Can Students do two tests on same day? 4.16 When will the school receive feedback about the test? 5. IT support and Trouble Shooting 5.1 While taking the test, the page froze. 5.2 Images, graphs and tables of the test are not displayed? 5.3 What if computers or the internet crashes during testing? 5.4 What happens when students click the Back button in the internet browser and log out by mistake? 5.5 Technology Readiness Questionnaire

2 1. Overview 1.1 Number of schools participating in the TEAL Trial Schools by sector Prim students Sec Students Schools DEECD CATH ISV Total How many schools have done the test 2. Understanding your data 2.1 What are the different codes? Test Code 1 Test Code 2 Teal Code Practice Code 2.2 What are each of these codes used for in the TEAL Trial Practice code - Use this code for the students and teachers doing the practice as a log in. TEAL code - This code is used in place of the student s name. Test Code - This is the code used to identify which test the student had been allocated. Some students will have two test codes. For students with only one Test code there will be only one test code.

3 3. Consent 3.1 Which documents have been translated? The plain English Statement which explains what the TEAL trial is about and the parent Consent form which seeks parent/guardian permission for their child to participate in the trial. 3.2 Where can I get the English version and the translations from? The plain English statement and consent forms can be downloaded from the following dropbox link: The steps to follow to download and print the consent forms and plain English statements are: Find the required language, Download it, Add your School logo, And print 3.3 Which languages have the forms been translated into? The documents are available in English and 30 other languages. They are: A: Amharic, Albanian, Arabic, Assyrian C: Chin Haaka, Chinese simplified, Chinese traditional D: Dari E: English F: Farsi, Filipino G: Greek, Gujarati H: Hazaragi, Hindi I: Indonesian K: Karen, Khmer, Korean M: Macedonian P: Pashto, Punjabi R: Russian, S: Serbian, Sinhalese, Somali, Spanish T: Tamil, Turkish U: Urdu V: Vietnamese 3.4 Can we use some of the translated forms for a range of different languages? Yes, for example the Simplified Chinese may be used for Cantonese, Mandarin and Chinese ndf. The Karen and Chin Haaka can be used for the Burmese speakers but you need to check if they identify as being Karen or Chin. The Arabic can be used for a number of African and Middle Eastern speakers but you need to check if they can read Arabic as some only speak it. 3.5 What do I do if the language I require is not in the list? If the language that you require is not available contact VITS interpreter service and organise a telephone interpreter for the language required. Alternatively if your school has a Multicultural

4 Education Aid who speaks that language brief the MEA on the TEAL trial and provide copies of the statement and consent form, ask them to contact the family to explain the trial and gain consent. 3.6 Can students do the test without their parent consent? No, students need to have consent from their parent or guardian to participate in the trial. If the forms have gone home but not been returned then a follow up call using an MEA or interpreter should be arranged. If the test takes place and the student has not been able to do the test because the form was not returned, then the student can do the test anytime until 15 September under teacher supervision. It may be useful to schedule one or two sessions for late consent form returnees. 4. TEST 4.1 The test does not open in my internet Explorer? Check with your IT contact that you are using IE9, or chrome, or firefox for the program to work 4.2 What if some of my students are not on data base for the computer test? If one or more students in the trial are not on the list, please TEAL the relevant information; teal@edumail.vic.gov.au 4.3 Some of my students do not have 2 tests? Not all students will have to sit two tests, only a select few will do two tests. Please check if the student has been allocated a 2 nd test code in your spread sheet. If they have two codes they need to do two tests. 4.4 How many tests are there? All students will need to sit through the practice Test and TRIAL 1. However some students have been selected to complete a 2nd test as well. 4.5 Do they have to do the test all at once? No. Students can actually sit the test at two or more sittings within the testing period. 4.6 When can students do the tests? Students can sit the test anytime between 2 nd March and 25 th March. The last day is the 25 th March How much help can I give the student? Teachers can offer advice on the digital literacy aspect eg telling them where to click to submit answers or how to manipulate the mouse to select the answer but teachers must not assist students with the content and the selection of the correct answer as this will skew the data. We are trying to develop a tool that teachers will use for benchmarking in EAL, we need the students to work independently and respond to the best of their ability. It s the student answers which will validate the items. 4.8 How long does it take to download the test?

5 There is no downloading as it is a link and it not a program, so there is no need to down load anything. 4.9 How long does the test take to complete? Please allocate at least 45 minutes for the test. It is important that the student completes all questions. An extra 15 min can be allocated if required. EG. Teachers have found that it takes between 20 mins and 45 mins to usually to complete the test. An extra 15 min can be allocated if required Do students have to do all the questions? It is recommended that students complete all the questions 4.11 Can Students pause the test and finish it at a later stage? Yes. Students can pause and resume the test at a later time in the day or within the testing period (11/08/14-15/09/14) 4.12 If a student is away, can another student sit the test in their place? No. The teacher can reschedule the test for another time within the allocated testing period. Please do not replace this student with another Why can't another student sit the test in someone else's place? If a student sits the test that hasn t been designated a test code, this will impact on the reliability and validity of the data How do I log in to the test? Can Students do two tests on same day? It is recommended that tests are sat on different days 4.16 When will the school receive feedback about the test? Schools will receive a report in term 4 5. IT support and Trouble Shooting 5.1 While taking the test, the page froze. If the test freezes in the middle of a test you can, try again to logon in a few min, or use a different computer (prefer one that is not using WIFI) Please make a note of any issue or inconsistency that is found. and if it impacts one or more

6 computers. Try and describe the issue in as much detail as possible (in writing) and include information such as browser type, operating system (Mac or Windows), and screen resolution (if available). If the assessment cannot be completed, students should reload the browser (as described above) and sign in again after entering the same test code to resume taking the test. 5.2 Images, graphs and tables of the test are not displayed? In some cases, depending on the network bandwidth allocated during the testing session, the test content may not fully download on each student s machine. If this issue affects only a few students in the classroom, please reload the test by logging the students out and logging them back into the test. The test content should be displayed. If the test content is not displayed for all students, the teachers should contact the technology personnel in the school to confirm that the LinkIt! Test Taker firewalls are properly configured to allow for content to be delivered to the students. 5.3 What if computers or the internet crashes during testing? In the event that you have a system crash during testing, students should be able to reload their browser by clicking the refresh button or the back button. If these options do not work, it may be necessary to quit the browser and re-launch it a second time. After reloading, students may enter the same code that they originally used to resume testing. All of their previous answers should already be saved, provided that they use the same test code to enter the testing environment. 5.4 What happens when students click the Back button in the internet browser and log out by mistake? The LinkIt! Testing is a HTML5 application so clicking the Back button will re-load the testing application. It is important to instruct students not to click the internet browser Back button near the browser toolbar during testing. However, if they do click the button, their work will be automatically saved and they can resume taking the test where they left off by re-entering the same Test Code that the used originally to enter the testing environment. 5.5 Technology Readiness Questionnaire TEAL ONLINE TESTING using the LINKIT! System Purpose: Technology Readiness Check Audience: Teachers and School Technicians The following guidelines include a general overview of the technology infrastructure required to run the TEAL online tests and are designed to assist teachers and school technicians in their effort to support tests administrators and teachers through the online testing process. It is highly recommended that at the initial stages of online testing, technicians be available to provide support to teachers in the computer labs or classes, monitor traffic, and report access issues.

7 Step 1: If you are the TEAL IT Support teacher, please attempt to undertake the steps in section A below first to see if you can connect and sit the online test. If you are having issues with getting access to running the online tests, or you are not sure whether your students computer devices and school network are properly configured, in the first instance you could work through the following sections of the document to address the issue. Alternatively, please contact your school technician or your usual IT Helpdesk channel at your school. Please provide this document to your technician if they haven t already received it. Step 2: If you are the school technician, please work through the document to assess whether the school meets the minimum requirements listed in section B and work through the trouble shooting section in section C if required. If you, and your students or teachers continue to report technical issues while taking an online test, or are not sure whether your network is properly configured and you have questions, please have the teacher contact the TEAL Helpdesk at teal@edumail.vic.gov.au as soon as possible so that the issue can be investigated. A. Demo Test to check for connectivity and compatibility The following test codes can be used to check your school s computer and network settings: 1. Using your browser, go to the LinkIt! Test Taker web address: test.linkit.com 2. Enter any of the following student Test Codes: 2979JIIP 9838ONJI 8518SBOP 9514CQXM 3. Select a student name and click Begin Test B. Minimum Requirements for running the online tests 1. Browsers The latest versions of supported browsers are: Google Chrome 18+ (recommended browser) Mozilla Firefox 3.6+ Microsoft Internet Explorer 9+ Apple Safari Operating Systems and Devices Supported Operating System Windows Supported Devices

8 XP (Service Pack 3), Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8.0 Mac OS X 10.5, 10.6, 10.7, 10.8 Linux Fedora Core 6+ (K12LTSP 4.2+) Ubuntu 9-12 ios Android Google ChromeOS 18+ Desktops and Laptops 10" class ipad tablets ipad 2, 3, and Retina Display (fourth generation) 10" class Android Tablets Google Nexus 10, Motorola Xoom, Motorola Xyboard, Samsung Note 10.1, Samsung Tab 2 (10.1) Chromebooks Windows 8.0 Pro, 8.0 RT Microsoft Surface Tablet 3. Firewalls and proxy exceptions If required, Technology and Network Administrators should white-list the following domains: 1) linkit.com 2) *.linkit.com 3) s3.amazonaws.com 4) google-analytics.com C. Trouble-shooting problems connecting to or running the online tests If you are having difficulties running the online testing application properly, below is a checklist you could use. In most cases, you may need to refer to your school specialist technician or your normal channels for ICT support first for assistance. Potential issues and solutions Who to refer to If you are having problems accessing the login screen of the test at test.linkit.com or logging in to the test, please consider the following: 1. Before starting an online test, close all other software programs on the computer 2. Ensure the browsers meet the minimum browser and operating system version requirements stated above. 3. Confirm that operating systems on the devices are up-to- For further help, refer to your school technician or your normal IT helpdesk channels

9 date with the latest patches and that they are virus and spyware free. Check this with your school technician if unsure. 4. Ensure that software (anti-virus, operating system, etc) updates are scheduled to run before or after online testing periods. Check this with your school technician if unsure. 5. If you can t still connect to the test site, content filters, firewalls, and proxy servers should be configured to allow traffic using the sites and servers listed above. Check this with your school technician. 6. The online test application server may be offline. Contact the TEAL Helpdesk to see if they are having an issue with their online testing website. Contact teal@edumail.vic.gov.au If you are having problems with the display of test questions and images that are missing on screen during the test, please consider this: 7. Disable all pop-up blockers that may prevent content (images, video, audio and special character palettes) from being properly displayed. The steps for this will vary among browsers. For further help, refer to your school technician or your normal IT helpdesk channels If the test session or sessions at the schools are running slowly, please consider the following: 8. Sufficient network bandwidth for each test (along with all other non-test related Internet traffic) should be determined in advance (and preferably monitored) for all concurrent test sessions. 9. If any device(s) that performs traffic shaping, packet prioritization or quality of service are used at the school site, the website addresses listed above should be given a high priority to guarantee the highest level of performance. 10. Consider reducing the number of students sitting the test to see if the performance improves. Refer to your school technician or your normal IT helpdesk channels for this. If the you have been able to log into the test but the session keeps dropping out during the test, consider the following: 11. The online test application server may be dropping out every now and then. Contact the TEAL Helpdesk to see if they are having an issue with their testing site. Contact teal@edumail.vic.gov.au 12. Consider reducing the number of students sitting the test to see if the performance improves. 13. If the problem persists, to help limit network For further help, refer to your school technician or your

10 interruptions during testing, session timeouts on proxy servers and other devices should be set to values greater than the average scheduled testing time. If testing sessions are scheduled for 60 minutes, consider session timeouts of minutes. This will help limit network interruptions during testing. normal IT helpdesk channels School infrastructure (For the school technician) If you are still having difficulties running the online testing application properly or reliably, you may need to verify your network settings. Refer to your school technician for further help. We encourage that checks are run on your network to determine how many students you can reasonably test at the same time before the first major assessment round. To determine whether the infrastructure is capable of handling current requirements and future growth, consider: (1) current number of anticipated concurrent users; (2) current dayto day Internet bandwidth statistics, and (3) desired response time for applications. The performance of the online testing system will depend on a number of factors, including bandwidth, total number of students simultaneously testing, size of test content, secure browser installation, proxy server (if used) and the wireless networking solution (if used). A stable, high-speed (wired or wireless) Internet connection is required for online testing. The response time for each assessment depends on the reliability and speed of your school s Internet network. D. User Support If you are a teacher having issues with getting access to running the online tests or you are not sure whether your devices and network are properly configured, in the first instance, please contact your school technician or your usual IT Helpdesk channel at your school. Please provide this document to your technician. As a teacher, if you and your students or teachers are still having issues while taking the online TEAL test, please contact TEAL Helpdesk at teal@edumail.vic.gov.au as soon as possible so that it can investigate the issue. To help quickly diagnose the issue, please provide as much detail as possible about the issue(s) you encounter to the Helpdesk. Details should include the following: - any error messages that appeared - operating system and browser information - information about your network configuration - the steps that you took before the issue occurred.