Preparing for Fall Data Importation

As summer season kicks into high gear, ATI staff preparations for the new school year are well under way. In the area of data importation, the focus during school year transition is on new classes, rosters, and accommodating all staff changes a district may undertake between school years. 

For districts new to Galileo, the best way to create your class lists and rosters is through Galileo Data Import (GDI). The GDI process involves three basic steps:

1. Districts provide an export from their Student Information System (SIS) that lists all classes, teachers, and students within the district. 
2. ATI staff import this data to a test database and perform a thorough quality assurance review – any problems are resolved with the district before the data is imported (step 3) into the live Galileo database.
3. ATI staff import the district-provided information directly into Galileo K-12 Online.

Detailed instructions for GDI can be found in the Tech Support section of Galileo K-12 (and Pre-K) Online. Importation instructions are updated for each school year. As you prepare your data for importation, please remember the following important points:

1. Be sure to include all the required information in your import.
2. Optional information is not required in the Galileo database, but failure to include this information may adversely affect future report filtering. Note: Any omitted optional data can be imported at any time throughout the school year, either as part of GDI or as a separate process – contact ATI for more information.
3. If TeacherID or StudentID fields change within your SIS, please notify ATI prior to providing any import files to ensure proper transition within the Galileo database. Large-scale ID changes may require extra processing time so please notify ATI as far in advance as possible so we can help you plan accordingly.
4. Due to new class structures and teacher assignments, the quality assurance process is typically longest during the first upload of the year. Getting uploads underway as soon as data is available will help ensure adequate processing time before your first assessments of the year.
5. Providing “shell” data with class structures and teachers as soon as they are entered into your SIS this summer will provide opportunity to perform thorough review of class alignment, course codes, and teacher assignments. This will speed the processing of files containing student enrollment in the fall.
6. Participation in Instructional Effectiveness (IE) initiatives with ATI may require roster for all responsible teachers to be imported. 
7. Participation in No-Evaluation Importation (NEI), the process of preparing for frequent updates to rosters and data within Galileo K-12 Online, requires three successive no-change imports at the beginning of each school year. 

ATI also hosted a recent Learning on Demand session:  Data Importation for Existing Users-The New School Year (31 minutes).  The recording can be found in the Galileo Forum. To access the Galileo Forum, click on the Forum link in Galileo K-12 Online. Once you log in to the forum, access the “Resource Library” category and then proceed to the “Learning On-Demand Recordings” sub-forum. Click the link for “Data Management” and you’ll find the recording.

If you have any questions about GDI, please refer to the Galileo Data Importation instructions at http://www.ati-online.com/pdfs/ImportInstructionsK-12.pdf or contact us at GalileoDataImport@ati-online.com.