Data Tracking Overview

The Data Tracking module allows a school to view the distribution, spread and growth of students for various standardised tests. This page provides an overview of the module, its features and usage. Click here for more information and to view a video demonstration.

General features

Dropdown selections

The three different AusVELS Result Analysis pages contain a series of dropdown selection fields that control the data that is displayed in the graphs and the listing. The following selections may be made, in combination with each other:

• Dimension: This lists the AusVELS and VELS dimensions that have been used in your database.
• Semester: The semesters found in your database are listed.
• Semester and growth: On the Growth page, not only do you select the semester, you also select the growth period, eg growth over the 6 months up to the chosen semester.

  The available growth period selections are also interactive, in that only those that apply to the selected dimension and end semester are displayed. For example, AusVELS English and Mathematics dimensions began being assessed in Semester 1 2013. Therefore, if you select semester 1 2014, only 6 and 12 month growth periods will be available for selection.

• [Year and Semester] Student group: In the Distribution and Growth pages, you may select Whole School, Year Level, Home Group, Subject or Class. If you choose an option other than Whole School, a further dropdown selection list becomes available, so that a particular year level, home group, subject or class may be selected.
  
  NB: It is the students in the particular year level, home group subject or class who are selected. Then, for these students, their aggregated results for the particular dimension and semester/s are displayed. Selecting a subject or class does display the results achieved in that subject or class, necessarily.

If you are curently working in semester 2 2015, as displayed in the title bar, the graphs will relate to the students, their year levels, subjects, etc, that they were in during semester 2 2015. Then, when you select a semester for a particular graph, the data will be that for the current students at the chosen semester. For example, if you are working in semester 2 2015 and you choose Year 3 students and semester 2 2014, you will be displaying the semester 2 2014 data for those who are in Year 3 in 2015. Therefore, in order to view semester 2 2015 data, you must have set up this semester in Accelerus Light.

To move back to an earlier semester, select a date in that semester via the date picker in the top right of the home page.

Displaying details

You may display and hide data in several ways:

• Making a new selection from the dropdown lists will refresh the graph. Then, click the Load student data button to display all students represented by the selections.
• Click a particular coloured segment of a graph, then click the Load student data button to list just the students represented by that segment.
• Click any area of white space around a graph and then click the Load student data button to redisplay all students.
• Hover over a particular coloured segment to display the number of students represented by the segment of the graph.
• Click the arrow beside the different Growth page graphs to hide a graph, clicking again to redisplay it.

Printing

The steps you use to print the AusVELS Analysis graphs will depend on your browser:

• In Google Chrome, you may right click and select Print or click the menu icon in the top right corner and select Print. This will bring up a preview of the page from which you may print out the pages, using the options provided by the browser.
• In Internet Explorer, right click and select Print or click the cog menu icon in the top right corner and select Print or Print Preview. The former will bring up a Printer dialogue from which you may make your selections. The Print Preview option will bring up another window from which you may print the pages.

Note the following about printing:

• The graphs are automatically resized to fit on the page, and all of the relevant students' details will be displayed/printed, on multiple pages, if necessary.
• Close off the graphs you do not want to print out in the Growth page and only the visible sections will print.

Interpreting the graphs

Distribution graph

This graph displays, for the selections made, the percentage and number of students that are at the expected level of achievement, and the distribution above and below this.

The achievements are divided into seven categories:

• The Below and Above categories .50 of a progression point from the expected level; ie 6 months below or above the expected level of achievement.
• Well above and Well below represent one full progression point above or below the expected level, ie 12 months below or above.
• The students at Significantly below or Significantly above are 18 months below or above the expected level respectively, ie 1.50 progression points.

Spread graph

This graph displays the spread of students across all of the AusVELS progression points. Within the one graph, the whole school may be graphed, with each progression point showing the breakdown of students in each level who have achieved that particular progression point. Alternatively, you may choose to graph just one year level, one home group, or the students enrolled in a particular subject or class.

Growth graphs

The Growth page maps the growth of students between two semesters, with the user choosing the end semester and the growth period, eg 6 months growth, 12 months, etc.

This page is made up of several graphs and tables, all referencing the same data. There is a legend at the bottom of the graphs that applies across all three graphs and tables.

• Student growth graph

  As with the Distribution graph, this uses seven achievement levels, relating to how far above or below a student is from the expected level of achievement. Note the following about this graph:

  • At each end of the graph are the two semesters selected for mapping; at the right is the selected latest semester, and the semester represented by the growth period is shown on the left. Between the two semesters, the movement of students is graphed. As you move up the colour bars at each end, you are moving from students who are significantly below, at the bottom, to those who are significantly above, at the top.
  • Clicking a particular segment of either of the vertical end bars will highlight the movements of the students from the past to later semester. For example, some students will have moved from Above to Well above, some may stay at Above, others move down to Below, and so forth.
  • Clicking a movement stream will highlight the stream and the start and end semester segments.
  • Hovering over each strand of the growth chart will give specific details, eg 17 students from Well above to Significantly above.
  • The Growth table below the Student growth graph will reflect the selections made in the Student growth graph.
• Growth table

  This table represents a numeric summary of the Student growth graph. In the first and last columns of the table, the numbers of students in each category of achievement is displayed, as well as those students whose growth could not be mapped as they did not have results for both semesters.

  When you click a segment of the Growth chart, the relevant sections of the table are highlighted, so that you may view the breakdown of the students.

  Between the two semester columns at each end of the growth period are columns representing the number of students who:

  • Left the school since the first of the two semesters.
  • Were assigned a progression point in the first semester but received an NA score in the second and, therefore, their growth cannot be mapped, ie the To NA column.
  • Were 2 points or 12 months below the expected level, or more, ie B2.
  • Were 1 point or 6 months below the expected level, ie B1.
  • Were at the expected level, ie E column.
  • Were 1 point or 6 months above the expected level, ie A1.
  • Were 2 points or 12 months above the expected level, or more, ie A2.
  • Were assigned an NA score in the first semester but received a progression point score in the second, ie the From NA column.
  • Joined the school since the first of the two semesters.
• Growth breakdown graph

  This graph displays the number of students and the relative proportion achieving at the different levels, for the selections made in the various dropdown lists at the top of the page.