Overview
Adult Ed students are scheduled based on their initial pre-test which determines their functioning level and the appropriate course. The purpose of this article is to cover how to determine the functioning level and what needs to be entered on the student's schedule for WDIS reporting.
Course Selection
To determine the course the student should be scheduled into, first find the student's initial pre-test scores and open the WDIS Handbook (see link here), select the current year, and scroll down to the WDIS District Appendices and click on R: Adult General Education Programs & Associated Gains (PDF).
This chart provides the test score ranges for each program and course as well as the corresponding functioning level which determines which course you will place the student in on the Student's Schedule.
Below is an example, this student earned a 310 on the TABE Math test which falls in the ABE Level 1. ABE Level 1-4 are scheduled into ABE courses whereas Level 5 & 6 are scheduled into GED courses. So when you enter the schedule you will put the student into ABE Math course.
When determining initial placement for GED Prep social studies or science, placement should be based on the reading assessment. In certain instances, a student may be placed in the GED Comprehensive course number if the student scores at or above a NRS ABE Level of 5 or higher on an eligible test subject area (Reading and/or Mathematics). Students continue to receive instruction at their appropriate test score level to ensure eventual success on the GED series of tests.
Scheduling Students
Once you know which course to enter, you can add the course under Scheduling > Student Schedule using the Add a Section button to select the appropriate course to add to the student's schedule. The enrolled date on the student’s schedule should be the first date of attendance.
You will also need to adjust the Daily Hours if needed depending on how many hours the student is scheduled to be in each class for. The total of all the daily hours the student has on their current schedule should not exceed the total instructional time the student receives during the day.
In many small districts, the students in ABE/GED are all scheduled together at the same time, so often times the total hours of instruction for the day is evenly distributed amongst the classes the student is scheduled into for reporting purposes.
The following additional fields may need to be entered as well:
- Education Services, State and Federal Inmates
- Voc Gen Ed, Disability
- Financial Assistance Received
- IET Program Number
The following fields can be set at the section level and also adjusted at the student schedule level if needed:
- Adult Fee Status
- AGE Institutional Setting
- AGE Online Course Delivery Indicator
Automatic Linking Tests to Schedules
Each night, Focus automatically runs a job in Setup > Scheduled Jobs called WDIS Automated Processes (Assign LCPs). This job will assign a unique FLTESTID to each Adult Ed test history record and calculate the AEFL score type. The job will also automatically update the schedule fields Adult Educational Functioning Level Subject Area, Pre-Test ID (1-3), and Post-Test ID (1-3) depending on the year and survey indicated in the Scheduled Job setup. For schedules within the specified survey period, the job will update the AEFL information on the schedule. For schedules outside of the specified survey period, the job will clear the AEFL information on the schedule to meet state reporting requirements.
Note: the schedule should not have Exclude from LCP Job checked if you want the automated process to run, and in order for this job to work there must be valid test history records entered.
Below shows the student's schedule and their corresponding linked test history records after this job has run.
Common Issues with Test and Schedule Links
The Assign LCPs will assign a unique FLTESTID to each Adult Ed test history record and calculate the AEFL score type. The job will also automatically update the schedule fields Adult Educational Functioning Level Subject Area, Pre-Test ID, and Post-Test ID (1-3) accordingly. However, it is important to note that there are certain criteria Focus uses for making these links.
Note: This job is set to run for a specific survey and school year. You can manually change the job's timeframe in Setup > Scheduled Jobs to run as needed. Also, it will only run for schedules that do not have an end date.
Example 1: Missing Test Form or Test Level
Test Form and Test Level are required for FOCUS to process the test history record.
Example 2: Missing Subject Test to Match to Subject Scheduled
In order for this job to work there must be valid test history records entered. For example, a student is scheduled in ABE Math starting June 3rd. There is a test history record entered for TABE on June 6th but there is no Math score. For this reason there is no pre-test to link to the Math class on the schedule so the schedule fields will not get automatically assigned. This will result in errors when sending to DOE.
Example 3: Test/Schedule in Prior Year or Dropped
This job is set to run for a specific survey and school year. You can manually change the job's timeframe in Setup > Scheduled Jobs to run as needed, but it will only run automatically for schedules that do not have an end date. In these cases, you will either need to temporarily remove the end date or manually correct the pre and post test information on the schedule based on the students' Test History.
Example 4: Test Out of Range for Program
The job cannot assign an AEFL for students whose test scores are out of range for the program they are enrolled in. For example, looking at Appendix R below, if a student scores a 217 on CASAS GOALS 2 and is enrolled in the GED program. This is score is out of range for the GED program because a student must pre-test at 225 or higher on this test to be enrolled in GED.
Example 5: Test or Schedule Information Change After Default Year Changed
This job is set to run for a specific survey and school year. You can manually change the job's timeframe in Setup > Scheduled Jobs to run as needed. Also, it will only run for schedules that do not have an end date. Change the setting as needed and manually run this job.
Go to Setup > Scheduled Jobs and find the Assign LCPs job. Click Edit on that line.
Scroll down to the School Year and Survey and change it to the school year want to run the job for then click Save.
Then on the scheduled jobs screen click Run to manually run the job. After the job finishes running click Edit again and change the school year back to your desired settings.