Digital Format Field Test Instructions Diploma Examination and Achievement Testing Programs Examination 1
Copyright 2013, the Crown in Right of Alberta, as represented by the Minister of Education, Alberta Education, Assessment Sector, 44 Capital Boulevard, 10044 108 Street NW, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 5E6, and its licensors. All rights reserved. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 2014
Digital Format Field Test Administration Instructions Contents Student Login Process Practice Run... 1 Student Login Process for Secure Field Tests... 4 Secure Field Tests Teacher Login... 11 Validation Comments... 13 Field Test Declaration Form and Receiving Scores... 14 Data Recovery... 17 Data Booklets... 18 Scrap Paper... 18 Quest A+ Test Monitor... 19 Contact... 20 Digital Format Field Test Instructions 2014
Digital Format Field Test Administration Instructions Student Login Process Practice Run Students who are familiar with login procedures and Quest A+ navigation are far less likely to experience problems or delays with a digital field test. Therefore, it is highly recommended that prior to a digital field test teachers conduct a practice run with students. A practice run can be accomplished by having students follow the instructions located here: https://questaplus.alberta.ca/help/testlockedbrowser.html. Detailed instructions with screenshots exist below Please note that this process requires that the secure Quest A+ Locked Browser is installed beforehand. The software is located here: https://questaplus.alberta.ca/help/requirements.html To conduct the practice run the following steps can be taken: a) Direct students to https://questaplus.alberta.ca b) Click on the green Secure Exams button. c) Enter the Exam PIN 9999099 d) Students enter their Birth Date and Alberta Student Number. If this does not work, check to ensure that they are being entered correctly. If errors persist, your school s office can check the students information against what is being displayed in PASI. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 4 2014
e) Students can now click on Download. Downloading the test will take a few seconds. f) Enter the start code. For the practice run, the start code is left blank. During a secure test, students will enter a start code supplied by the Assessment Sector. Clicking Start will commence the test. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 5 2014
Student Login Process for Secure Field Tests a) Direct students to https://questaplus.alberta.ca b) Click on the blue Secure Exams button. c) In the first field, students will enter the Exam PIN. The Exam PIN is case-sensitive. Click Verify Exam PIN. d) After the Exam PIN has been verified, the cover and instruction pages for the test appear on the screen. The teacher will then review the test instructions with the class. By clicking on the next button at the bottom of the screen, the students can navigate through the cover and instruction pages. Clicking on the very last instruction page triggers the Quest A+ Locked Browser. Any programs that are running that are considered potential cheating tools will be asked to close. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 6 2014
e) On the next screen, (see below) students enter their birthdate and their Alberta Student Number. To enter the birthdate, students can either click on the calendar to the right of the birth date field or type in the information in the MM/DD/YYYY format. If the information is not accurate, the student can go back and change the search information. A common error is an incorrect birthdate. If a student can still not be found, then speak to administrative staff at your school to check the student s current information on PASIprep. f) Click the Search button. This function performs a search for the student based on the information provided in the previous step. g) The Search button returns back to the user their legal first name and last name. If the information is accurate, the student clicks the checkbox next to Yes, this is me. If the information is not accurate, the student can go back and change the search information. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 7 2014
1. If the student information is not found in the database, the student cannot continue with the exam. Double check that the information was entered correctly, and if so speak with administrative staff at your school to check the student s information on PASIprep. h) Students can now click on Download. Downloading the test will take a few seconds i) Once every student has successfully downloaded the test, the teacher supervisor can inform students of the start code. The start code is the test supervisor s control over when the test begins. Only distribute the start code once every student is ready to commence writing the field test. Providing the start code to students is the equivalent of telling students, during a paper test, to turn over your test and begin. Students can then enter the start code for this particular test in field 8 and click Start. Please note that the start code is case sensitive. It is at this point in time that a student s time begins to count down. If several students click start at different times, Quest A+ will end their exams at different times. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 8 2014
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j) All associated resources for the field test (e.g. Data booklets, readings, other sources, etc.) are automatically displayed in a split-screen format in Quest A+. The diagram below shows the various components of an assessment with associated resources. 1. At any time, the user can click the hide resources button found at the top left corner of the screen. To re-enable the resource, the user can click show resources. 2. The user can navigate through the resource pages by using the page navigation buttons found at the top-left corner of the resource. The user can either click the buttons, or type the desired page number. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 10 2014
3. To zoom in or out, the user can use the zoom control function. There are independent zoom controls for both the resource and question components. 4. To control the size of either the resource or question component windows, the bar in the middle of the page can be dragged up or down. k) Students can navigate through the items by clicking the Next or Back buttons. They can also navigate by directly clicking the question number. Students can check the Review box in the lower left corner if they would like to mark a question for later review. A question mark will appear to the left of questions that have been marked for review. If students would like to see how much time remains to complete the test, they can click the Time is Hidden button in the bottom left corner. To conceal the time remaining, they can click the Time Left button. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 11 2014
l) If a student clicks End Test, a final confirmation window will appear. The information in the window indicates unanswered questions and questions that are flagged for review. At this point, the student can either click Yes, I m done to submit the test or No, I want to go back! to go back to the test and make changes. After clicking Yes, I m done and submitting the test, students will not be able to regain access to the secure online field test by themselves. If a student needs to regain access to the field test he/she will need the Supervisor s help. For more information see the section below entitled Data Recovery. Once a student clicks Yes, I m done, a window will appear indicating that the student s responses were uploaded successfully. Students should click OK and then close their browsers. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 12 2014
Secure Field Tests Teacher Login Once all students have successfully logged in to the digital field test, the supervising teacher can also log in. Once teachers have logged in, they will be able to view the key and provide comments about the design and development of the field test. Teachers will have a 24 hour window from the field test start time in which to peruse the field test and make comments. Please ensure that the Locked Browser has been installed - https://questaplus.alberta.ca/help/requirements.html To login as a teacher: 1. Go to Quest A+. 2. Enter the Exam PIN for the field test. 3. Click the cover and read through the instruction pages of the field test. 4. On the demographic page, click on the little Teacher? button (See image below). 5. Enter for the Supervisor PIN. 6. Field tests are secure before, during and after administration. Teachers will need to attest to the security of the field test by completing the digital Field Test Declaration form before perusing and validating the field test. (see image below) When signing in as a teacher to peruse the field test, teachers should set the additional time accommodation before starting the exam. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 13 2014
7. On the last page, click Download. (see image below) 8. Enter the Start Code for the exam 9. Now the teacher is able to peruse the field test. 10. At the bottom left corner of the screen, look for the Show Key button. Click on it. It will toggle whether or not the key is displayed. (see images below) Digital Format Field Test Instructions 14 2014
Validation Comments Validation comments can be entered at the end of the field test. The last item in the field test is a comment field that uses the Quest A+ Written Response Component. Teachers are asked to consider the following points when commenting on specific questions and the overall field test: appropriateness of the questions adequacy of writing time limits test length text readability artwork/graphics clarity and appropriateness question difficulty Digital Format Field Test Instructions 15 2014
Field Test Declaration Form and Receiving Scores Following the digital field test administration, teachers are required to submit a Field Test Supervision Declaration form. This is a digital form that is accessed through Quest A+. Go to https://questaplus.alberta.ca Click on Teacher Tools Enter the Exam PIN and Supervisor PIN for the test instance and then click Verify. The next screen displays the Subject, Teacher Name, School Code, and Assessment Date. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 16 2014
Click Supervisor Declaration If the field test was administered without incident or irregularities and without violation of the exam rules, click the radio button that pertains to this statement. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 17 2014
If any irregularities or violations occurred before, during, or after the field test administration, click the radio button that pertains to this statement and describe the incident in the box below. Enter your name in the box at the bottom of the form and click submit declaration. Once the declaration has been received, the request scores button is enabled. If the field tests have been scored, click the button and the system will email the teacher contact for the field test instance. If the field test instance has NOT been scored yet, the system will inform the user that no scores are available. Checking back later in the day and clicking the button again will once again query the system. Most digital field test instances will be scored within 24 hours of administration. Keep in mind that Supervisors will still be able to peruse the Field Test after the Supervisor Declaration has been submitted. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 18 2014
Data Recovery In the instance of power or computer failure, a student can go to another workstation and continue the test exactly where he/she left off. In this event: a) The student logs into another computer b) The student points the browser to Quest A+ and inputs the exam pin. c) The student completes the demographic information d) A search is conducted in our database to see if the student has started the test but has not yet finished. If the student has not yet finished, the test can be continued by completing the following screen: e) The supervisor will need to enter the name of the supervisor, the Supervisor PIN, and a comment about the event. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 19 2014
Data Booklets Paper data booklets will not be mailed to schools that participate in digital field testing. Instead, the teacher-supervisor can do one of three things: a) If available, supply the students with a clean, unmarked data booklet that is suitable for testing purposes. b) Print out a paper data booklet from the Alberta Education website. http://education.alberta.ca/admin/testing/diplomaexams.aspx c) Have students access the digital data booklet that is included within the Quest A+ secure digital field test. If options a) or b) are used for data booklets, teachers must have these materials prepared well in advance of the digital field test instance. After the digital field test, any marked paper data sheets or scrap paper must be destroyed. Scrap Paper In the event that students need to use scrap paper to complete the field test, Alberta Education approved scrap paper is available. The scrap paper is accessed and downloaded from the Teachers Resources section on the home page of the Field Test Request System. Go http://public.education.alberta.ca/fieldtestscheduler On the Home Page, click on the button Field Test Scrap Paper under the heading Teacher Resources. A dialog box will open, and the options Open, Save or Cancel can be chosen to access the scrap paper. As field test questions are secured before, during, and after administration, teachers are expected to gather all used scrap paper from students at the end of the field test administration, and securely shred all used scrap paper. Scrap paper is not to be placed in recycling receptacles! Digital Format Field Test Instructions 20 2014
Quest A+ Test Monitor The Quest A+ Test Monitor allows the supervising teacher to view all of the students logged in to the test administration. The test monitoring system displays: All of the students logged into the test The time of the last response by each student The amount of responses for each student If the studen1t is active or finished How many students are logged into the field test How many students are finished the test The test monitoring system can help test supervisors determine any problems with the test administration. For example, if a student is logged into a test and is responding to questions, the test monitor should show progress. However, if the test monitor is NOT showing progress for the student, a problem may exist. In this circumstance, calling for technical assistance is important. To access the test monitoring system: Enter a valid Exam PIN. An Exam PIN is only valid during the test administration. Click Verify Exam PIN At the top left corner of the Exam cover page, click on the Monitor button Digital Format Field Test Instructions 21 2014
Enter the Supervisor PIN for the test and click ok. In a few seconds, the Quest A+ Monitor will appear. The test supervisor will be able to see all of the students in the test, the time of the last response, the number of responses, and whether the student is finished or not. In the snapshot below, the mouse was placed over the first bar under the # of responses column. It revealed that the student has responded to 17 out of 20 questions. The monitor also shows that 17 students are logged into the test and 0 have finished. Contact For other queries or questions regarding field testing, please send an e-mail message addressed to field.test@gov.ab.ca. Digital Format Field Test Instructions 22 2014