Monday, December 31, 2018

Make Data-Informed Decisions with Easy-to-Use Student Growth and Achievement Reporting

Student growth and improvement is on every educator's mind. A question one might ask is - "how much academic progress has a student made between two points in time?" The Galileo Student Growth and Achievement (SGA) report offers easy-to-use growth and achievement reporting to help track and improve student learning.

Student growth is measured by the difference between the student's Developmental Level score at time one and time two. Time one is represented by an initial assessment, such as a pretest. Time two is represented by a second assessment, such as a benchmark or a post-test.

In this Galileo report, you can select the grade level and subject, test one and test two, which will then generate and display the results as a scatter plot with performance quadrants and a cut score. Plus, if selected, the report can be generated into a list-format listing individual students.

The information in each quadrant has unique significance because educators can use this to create tailored instruction and intervention groups to help organize and monitor students for differentiated instruction.

What other special features does the SGA report have? First, it's available to class-, school-, and district-level users, meaning that it has different levels of reports for each user level. For example, a district administrator can run SGA reports for their entire district, and even filter reports by student information and demographics. Second, the SGA data is dynamic meaning you can run it on any two benchmark assessments that have parameters. Third, the data will provide a growth categorization; for example, Expected Growth Exceeded, Maintained, or Not Maintained, which helps provide you a frame of reference of how your students are performing.

With it's simple yet powerful display, the Student Growth and Achievement report gives you instant access to critical information necessary for instructional planning and academic success.

Look out for the next Galileo Tours video highlighting the main tools and features of the SGA report.

Monday, December 17, 2018

School Turn-Around Takes Hard Work and the Right Research-Based Tools

Something done successfully, typically by effort, courage, or skill is the definition of achievement. Achievement is a process, a process that involves many aspects and typically not completed in one step. One might say it takes a village to nurture and raise a child. We know it takes many to teach and enlighten a child. The cornerstone of educating encompasses many people dedicated with a single goal, improving student achievement.
As part of the Navajo Nation in northeastern Arizona, Red Mesa Unified School District (RMUSD) was in need of finding a combination of leadership, impactful training, research-based tools, and instructional improvement technology to help guide their academic plan. In 2017-18 RMUSD contracted with the Center for Student Achievement to provide school improvement and turn-around services to all teachers and school leaders. As part of the services employed by the District was the implementation of the Galileo K-12 Online instructional improvement and effectiveness system by Assessment Technology Incorporated. With Galileo, the district had reliable and valid data to assist in decision making at the student, class, school, and district levels. After one full year of support, math scores for all grades increased by nearly 30 percentage points and the 2018 AzMERIT math passing rate for the Junior High was 33 percent higher than previous years.
Test Builder
Case-study results are from RMJH’s Galileo benchmark assessments designed to track student progress and to predict how students might do on AzMERIT.
Galileo assessments were administered during the 2017-18 school year using a pre-test/post-test design, including several benchmark assessments throughout the year. The case-study results are from RMJH’s Galileo benchmark assessments designed to track student progress and to predict how students might do on AzMERIT (Arizona’s standards-based assessment).
How did RMUSD turn their schools around? Read the full article that details the importance of high-quality professional development, coaching, and data driven instructional planning in making a successful educational turn-around. The turn-around was not completed in one step. It was a series of steps and actions that took skill, further professional development, reliable/valid data, and a focused effort on the part of all participants.

Monday, December 3, 2018

Galileo Offers Outstanding Cost-Effective Value and Provides Powerful Data Essential in Educator Decision-Making


Galileo K-12 Online, a research-based and standards aligned Instructional Improvement and Effectiveness System, provides three complete functionalities in one integrated application. Integrating a comprehensive assessment system along with a Digital Curriculum Platform and Instructional Effectiveness technology all in one application supports ease of information access and use while at the same time saving money and staff time. Use of Galileo facilitates advancements in teaching strategies including the integration of curriculum and formative assessment and the implementation of instructional effectiveness initiatives across multiple content areas. Each functionality yields crucial data needed in educational decision making. This integrated application is backed by both responsive support and customized professional development. 

About Assessment Technology Incorporated (ATI), the creator of Galileo:  
Nationally, ATI is a leading educational technology corporation and the first to integrate assessment, curriculum, and instructional effectiveness into a single system. The mission of the company is to create, distribute, and support technology to promote learning. ATI has several decades of experience in conducting research assisting educational programs to use assessment information in educational management, instructional improvement, and instructional effectiveness. A fundamental premise behind ATI’s work is that technology is crucial in promoting learning in the digital age. That is, technology supporting instruction and supporting the gathering of readily-available reliable data for decision making is crucial in promoting learning. ATI’s continuous state-of-the art research program influences the character and offerings of Galileo, a complete, standards-aligned, research- based, user-friendly instructional improvement and effectiveness system. 
For more information about ATI and Galileo contact us or check out our resourceful videos.

Monday, November 19, 2018

ExceleRate Illinois Names Galileo Pre-K Online as Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum


ExceleRate Illinois recently determined that Galileo Pre-K Online Curriculum is aligned with the Illinois Early Learning Guidelines for Children Birth to Age Three Years and the Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards for Preschool (3 years old to Kindergarten Enrollment Age). With this recognition, programs can benefit from Galileo Pre-K Online Curriculum and be assured of its compliance with Standard 1B, Curriculum for centers and Standard 1D, Curriculum for family child care. 

Galileo Curriculum, from ATI, is a complete standards- and evidence-based early childhood curriculum with an empirically based scope and sequence grounded in developmental theory. The curriculum is linked directly to Galileo's reliable and valid assessment tools with instructional content reflecting the most current research. The unique, easy-to-use web-based Galileo interface also provides access to advanced reporting tools enabling programs to maximize local decision-making while supporting high-quality, consistent teaching. Programs implementing the Galileo Pre-K Curriculum can: 

·         utilize 32 weeks of pre-made model lesson plans reflecting empirically based scope and sequence consisting of activities linked to the developmental goals in Galileo G3 Scales and the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework
·         access over 1,000 ready-to-use activities that are searchable by learning goal and are ideal for providing individualized or large group instruction
·         receive concrete guidance for teachers on how to prepare and use the Galileo Pre-K Curriculum, including recommendations for setting up interest centers that promote learning
·         incorporate activities reflecting children's developmental needs guided by individual "readiness level" during lesson planning
·         communicate with families via the Galileo Pre-K Parent Center and assist families in engaging children with home activities and reports in English and Spanish (and tools to translate them into other languages)


Galileo comes with support from ATI to ensure you have all the help you need to successfully implement the curriculum. Contact our knowledgeable ATI Field Services Coordinators at GalileoInfo@ati-onlne.com or call at 1.877.358.7611 for a guided overview of Galileo Pre-K Online.

Monday, November 5, 2018

Experience the Ways the Galileo Comprehensive Assessment System Promotes Student Learning—Complimentary Trial Available Now

Contact us to start today.
Assessment is a critical part of effective instruction. Research has shown that educators who implement reliable and valid assessments to guide instructional decisions will promote student learning. That’s why ATI’s Galileo K-12 comprehensive assessment system is designed to help inform educational decisions promoting student learning in K-12 math, ELA, science, and other subjects. 

See it in action and contact us for a Free Trial! 

What makes the comprehensive assessment system exceptional?
Let’s begin with its broad array of standards-based, curriculum and pacing guide aligned customized assessments built to client specifications every year. ATI’s in-house Educational Management Services and Research teams, based on your assessment requests, do the assessment construction work for you. The resulting tests will not have accidental duplications across the academic year, will be free of item enemies, will address the Depth of Knowledge levels you specify, and will contain, if you so desire, technology enhanced items.

An additional option provided through the system is a wide variety of high-quality, pre-built assessments. These include benchmark, formative, pretest and posttest, placement, summative, computer adaptive, end-of-course, college prep assessments, plus more.  

ATI’s Secure and Community Item Banks offer 19 item types including constructed response and technology-enhanced items. Each of these item types is designed to engage students in complex thinking to help ensure college and career readiness. Educators can also access more assessment and item choices through the integrated Inspect® and Certica item banks, including Certica’s Navigate Item Bank™.

ATI understands that educators also need to be able to create their own items and assessments quickly and easily. To facilitate this, our intuitive and powerful Test Builder and Item Builder interfaces make creating your own assessments and items a snap. 

Taking a look under the hood—Item Response Theory 
Options are great, but to understand what really makes the Galileo comprehensive assessment system so special, we need to take a look under the hood. Powered by ATI research, Galileo takes advantage of Item Response Theory (IRT), and other state-of-the-art statistical analyses to go beyond systems that only report raw scores and percent correct. ATI uses IRT to measure the Developmental Level (DL) of each student. The DL score indicates what students have already mastered and what they are ready to learn next.

Galileo assessments place DL scores and measures of test difficulty on a common scale ensuring that DL score changes reflect growth, not variations in test difficulty. DL scores can then be used to effectively forecast student performance on statewide assessments. Galileo’s innovative Dashboards graphically illustrate this critical information to help educators apply their efforts where needed most—making instruction even more effective.

Try the comprehensive assessment system through a complimentary trial 
Contact us to start your complimentary trial of the Galileo comprehensive assessment system. With high-powered data, easy to use tools, and robust item banks, the Galileo comprehensive assessment system is designed to promote success for all students. This is the assessment system you've been searching for. Own your assessment-process and let research work for you, with the Galileo K-12 comprehensive assessment system.   
 
To learn more about other Galileo services and features, visit us at




Monday, October 22, 2018

Unlimited Assessment Creation for All Types of Assessments

Galileo’s innovative Assessment Planner, Test Builder, and Item Builder tools make it possible for teachers and administrators to create and edit interim assessments, as well as build their own items aligned to meet the rigor of state standards. Today we are going to focus on the capabilities of the Galileo Test Builder features. 

Galileo Test Builder makes it easy for teachers and teaching teams to create multiple types of assessments. Test Builder is an intuitive, point-and-click interface for creating common formative assessments at the school and class level and in multiple subject areas using items including technology enhanced items. Designed to be optimized for desktops, laptops, and tablets, teachers can create an assessment by simply selecting the standards of interest in ELA, math, or/and science, automatically search the item banks, and pick the questions that best fit their needs. There are over 80,000 items in the ATI Community Item Bank to select from and districts have the additional option to access the Inspect® and Navigate™ item banks. Additionally, the Galileo Test Builder interface includes state-of-the-art Item Builder tools. This makes it possible to create items and to align these items to state standards in any grade and subject. Assessment items may be accompanied by images, text, and links to a variety of media (e.g., videos, images, texts, attached files) and associated with metadata (e.g. DOK). 

Test Builder includes a search item function that makes building formative assessments easy.

Galileo offers flexible test administration with the ability to publish the newly created formative assessment either online and/or offline. Users can quickly copy and edit assessments and items. Users can also place assessment and item content into shared libraries. And don’t forget, the Text Editor, Math Editor, and Chemistry Editor tools simplify building new items involving equations.  

Galileo’s technology supports educators desiring to create items and/or assessments for multiple different measurement purposes. Watch for the new Galileo Tour video which digs deeper into the features and functions of Test Builder.  

For further information on how to create Galileo formative (classroom and school-wide) assessments, contact your Field Services Coordinator or access the Help Files via the Galileo application. 




Monday, October 8, 2018

Educators Benefit from ATI's Research and New IRT Item Parameters

Did you know that each year ATI refreshes and maintains stable estimated parameters for items in the ATI Secure and Community Item Banks based on tens of thousands of students? ATI uses item parameters to help build reliable, valid district/charter-wide assessments, and to evaluate item performance to guide item bank revisions.




Test Builder powerful tools support the creation of reliable and valid assessments.

You might ask why yearly refreshment matters. It matters because the quality of item parameter estimates has a direct effect on the quality of the test therefore on the quality of the data from the tests. ATI uses item parameters to build reliable, valid district/charter-wide assessments and to evaluate item performance to guide item bank revisions. Quality of item parameter estimates also impact the accuracy of student ability estimates. Accurate student ability estimates provide the ability to compare performance on a variety of assessments covering the same or different content areas and to measure academic progress across time. 

Galileo puts the power of Item Response Theory (IRT) in the hands of educators. Educators have always been able to view item parameters for district/charter-wide assessments in the Test Review interface and in the Item Parameters Report

Now, educators can also view item parameters along with other metadata in Test Builder and in drill downs from many Galileo reports such as Test Monitoring, Intervention Alert, Item Analysis, and Detailed Benchmark Performance Levels.

Check out these new features to take advantage of valuable IRT parameter information as you are creating tests and evaluating student performance to guide instruction! Learn more by accessing a short video on “What Role Does IRT Play in Assessments?” Contact a Field Services Coordinator to learn more.

Other resources:
Make a Measurable Difference with ATI and IRT Research
What Makes the ATI Item Banks the Preferred Choice by So Many Educators?
Experience the Ways the Galileo Comprehensive Assessment System Promotes Student Learning — Complimentary Trial Available

Monday, September 24, 2018

Access One-Click Reports with the Galileo Performance Benchmark Levels Widget

The Benchmark Performance Levels reporting widget summarizes multiple measures of student performance on district benchmark assessments (e.g., English language arts, math, and other subject areas). Accessible from the Galileo Teacher Dashboard, educators can view critical assessment results from an entire class via a colorful pie-chart and interactive displays of data. For a quick demonstration, check out the Galileo Tours Video.

The colorful pie chart provides a “Big Picture Class Summary” for each assessment including color-coded performance levels (e.g., highly proficient, partially proficient) illustrating the number and percent of students at each level. This reporting widget also provides instant access to number of students assessed, average percent correct, average DL Score, and average percent of standards mastered for the class.

At the click of a button, drill down to an interactive data display of a “Detailed Class Portrait” for each assessment including data for each student as well as comparative data for the class, school, and district. The chart also provides one-click access to the items used to assess each standard including item metadata such as DOK information. Rapid Data Search and Data Sorting capabilities make it easy to analyze the data for individual students as well as trends.


The Benchmark Performance Levels reporting widget allow users to quickly view assessment results

Need to export a report?  No problem.  Using the “Excel Export” button, educators can export Galileo reports to an Excel file making it easy to conduct further analyses or create additional graphical displays such as pivot charts and bar graphs.

With its colorful pie chart and interactive displays of data, easy-to-interpret results, and convenient exporting ability, the Benchmark Performance Levels reporting widget is a powerful tool helping to inform instruction and monitor student progress throughout the year.  

Schedule your personal demonstration today by contacting an ATI Field Services Coordinator or look out for the upcoming video on the Benchmark Performance Levels Widget video in the new Galileo Tours video series on the ATI YouTube page. 

Monday, September 10, 2018

Galileo Customized Benchmark Assessments in 6 Simple Steps


ATI understands the importance of administering the right assessment at the right time. In that regard, our Educational Management Services (EMS) team works closely with educators to design and deliver customized benchmark assessments that are reliable and valid and aligned to local and state standards. 

Customized Benchmark Assessments in 6 Steps
Let’s take a closer look at creating customized benchmark assessments. To maximize the assessment development process, EMS works with educators across the following steps:

Step 1:  Contact the ATI EMS team prior to, or at the start of the year, to begin the assessment planning process. This is when roles and responsibilities are identified with district staff regarding the planning, construction, and review process. 

Step 2: Define the assessment goals using the Galileo Assessment Planner. The planner also supports requests for TE items. 

Step 3: Our EMS team reviews the Assessment Planner to confirm all the information needed to get started is provided.

Step 4: Our EMS team develops the Benchmark draft. During this step, Galileo technology ensures that items are not repeated across assessments throughout the year and balances the number of questions per text. Also, Item Response Theory makes It possible to determine the reliability and difficulty of each assessment in advance.  

Step 5: EMS conducts a guided review of the benchmark draft with your district staff.  This gives you the opportunity to request changes in the draft, such as replacing an item type.   

Step 6: After we’ve made the finishing touches, ATI delivers the final benchmark assessment to your district.

Assessment Planner: Key Technology Driving the Process
In creating customized assessments, ATI has developed a tool for educators within Galileo called the Assessment Planner. The Galileo Assessment Planner is an easy-to-use, point-and-click interface that lets educators participate in the design of customized benchmark assessments. 

Using the Assessment Planner, educators can quickly create an assessment plan that spans multiple grades and subjects; determine the timing and number of assessments within a grade and subject; set the standards to be measured; choose the desired number of items for measuring each standard across each benchmark; and specify the type of items needed.  

Additionally, the Assessment Planner allows educators to provide comments to EMS regarding specific benchmark needs. This could range from a certain item type, like Technology Enhanced items, to certain concepts within a math standard, like addition or subtraction.

During the planning process, EMS provides valuable recommendations for educators to follow. This includes the recommended length and content coverage in the planned assessments, the appropriate number of assessments to be administered throughout the year, and the best timeline for delivering each assessment. With EMS recommendations, educators can lay the foundation for a reliable and valid assessment¬¬ and smooth testing schedule.

Reliable and Valid Assessments Aligned to Local and State Standards
Our unique process in creating customized benchmark assessments maximizes collaboration with your district and helps EMS to build reliable and valid assessments aligned to your local and state standards. Of course, quality requires time so it is important that you allow for a two-week delivery window for pre-made assessments and a six-week window for assessments aligned to district curriculum.

ATI’s customized benchmark assessments provide valuable data about student standards mastery, achievement, and growth throughout the year, all of which help educators to improve instructional effectiveness and student learning.  

Check out the Galileo Help Files for resources including this guide: Assessment Planner and Test, or Contact our EMS team today to learn more about our customized benchmark assessments.

Other Resources of Interest:

Make a Measurable Difference with ATI and IRT Research

Galileo Supports Educators in Building Banks of High-Quality Items

What Makes the ATI Item Banks the Preferred Choice by So Many Educators?


Monday, August 20, 2018

Galileo Supports Educators in Building Banks of High-Quality Items

Galileo includes an Item Bank Builder tool designed to support teachers and other District/charter staff in creating and managing their own high-quality item banks. Using Item Bank Builder, educators can create a variety of item types including classifying, drop down, multiple choice (including expanded multiple choice with partial credit option), open response, selectable text, sequencing and short answer. Integrated review and certification tools support collaboration and vetting of items. Additional tools also support the control of access to each bank, enabling the development of personal, shared, and secure banks of items.

Galileo includes two versions of Item Bank Builder - Basic and Advanced. All users have access to Item Bank Builder- Basic which supports the creation, review, and certification of formative items. Items are organized by standard within a customizable folder system. Items can also be viewed in a Data Grid with sorting and search capabilities. Once items are certified, they are searchable in Test Builder during the creation of formative assessments by users who have been granted read or write access to the item bank that houses the items.

Other Resources of Interest:

Monday, August 13, 2018

ExceleRate Illinois Names Galileo Pre-K Online as Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum

ExceleRate Illinois recently determined that Galileo Pre-K Online Curriculum is aligned with the Illinois Early Learning Guidelines for Children Birth to Age Three Years and the Illinois Early Learning and Development Standards for Preschool (3 years old to Kindergarten Enrollment Age). With this recognition, programs can benefit from Galileo Pre-K Online Curriculum and be assured of its compliance with Standard 1B, Curriculum for centers and Standard 1D, Curriculum for family child care. 

Galileo Curriculum, from ATI, is a complete standards- and evidence-based early childhood curriculum with an empirically based scope and sequence grounded in developmental theory. The curriculum is linked directly to Galileo's reliable and valid assessment tools with instructional content reflecting the most current research. The unique, easy-to-use web-based Galileo interface also provides access to advanced reporting tools enabling programs to maximize local decision-making while supporting high-quality, consistent teaching. Programs implementing the Galileo Pre-K Curriculum can: 

·       utilize 32 weeks of pre-made model lesson plans reflecting empirically based scope and sequence consisting of activities linked to the developmental goals in Galileo G3 Scales and the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework
·       access over 1,000 ready-to-use activities that are searchable by learning goal and are idealfor providing individualized or large group instruction
·        receive concrete guidance for teachers on how to prepare and use the Galileo Pre-K Curriculum, including recommendations for setting up interest centers that promote learning
·        incorporate activities reflecting children's developmental needs guided by individual "readiness level" during lesson planning
·        communicate with families via the Galileo Pre-K Parent Center and assist families in engaging children with home activities and reports in English and Spanish (and tools to translate them into other languages)


Galileo comes with support from ATI to ensure you have all the help you need to successfully implement the curriculum. Contact our knowledgeable ATI Field Services Coordinators at GalileoInfo@ati-onlne.com or call at 1.877.358.7611 for a guided overview of Galileo Pre-K Online.

Monday, August 6, 2018

Ensure that Your District Benchmark Assessments are Ready When Needed!


At or prior to the beginning of each school year, ATI recommends that districts and charters contact their ATI Educational Management Services (EMS) coordinator to begin the assessment planning process. EMS staff will help district/charter personnel to create a comprehensive assessment plan that addresses their goals and that answers questions such as: 
  • How many benchmarks assessments will there be during the year?
  • When will benchmark testing occur?
  • Which subjects and grade levels will be tested?
  • Should technology enhanced items be included on assessments? 

EMS staff will work closely and efficiently with district personnel to ensure that the resulting benchmark assessments are of the highest quality. Of course, quality requires time so it is important for you to allow for a 2 week delivery window for pre-made assessments and a 6 week window for assessments aligned to district curriculumCheck out the Galileo Help Files for resources including this guide, Assessment Planner and the Test Review process. Contact Educational Management Services today.

Monday, July 23, 2018

4 Simple Steps to Maximize Galileo Implementation




As the summer is winding down, it's time to start getting ready for the new school year. We have compiled a short checklist to help you prepare for optimal Galileo implementation. We encourage you to focus on these simple steps now for seamless implementation this fall.
  1. Ensure URLs on the Galileo Whitelist are accessible on network security devices
  2. Confirm that your hardware and software align with Galileo system requirements
  3. Develop your assessment plan and test delivery schedule
  4. Schedule and monitor data uploads using the Data Upload Planner 
We look forward to a wonderful new school year. If you should have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Make a Measurable Difference with ATI and IRT Research


We at ATI are passionate about education. We live, think, and breathe it. So when we create technology to promote learning, we continuously engineer a system for teachers and other educators that is both easy to use and powered by research. It is the research behind Galileo that leads to the valid and reliable data needed to facilitate effective instruction.
Some may simply ask, what is the difference in the data?
There's a big difference, an important difference we want to share.
We have built Item Response Theory (IRT) analyses right into Galileo. As a result, we can provide rapid analyses for thousands of unique assessments including customized assessments, each year. The benefits to clients include customized assessments that, just like pre-built assessments, have the capability to measure achievement and growth, forecast state test performance, and provide categorical growth analyses of student ability based on district and specific student populations. No other system can do this.
So, by using IRT embedded directly into Galileo, we are able to provide the ground-breaking comprehensive assessment system needed to support data- driven, decision making. And we do this together in partnership with all our client districts and charters.
Simply put, Galileo users are making a measurable difference because they have implemented a system that is research-based.
Watch our brief video detailing ATI and IRT research. 

Contact a  Field Services Coordinator to learn more about IRT research and set up a demo of Galileo today.

Monday, June 25, 2018

Order Your Assessments Now and Be Ready for Fall


Did you know that now is an excellent time for districts and charters to make contact with their ATI Educational Management Services (EMS) coordinator to begin the assessment planning process for the upcoming school year? EMS staff will help you create a comprehensive assessment plan that addresses your goals and that answers questions such as: 
  • How many benchmarks assessments will there be during the year?
  • When will benchmark testing occur?
  • Which subjects and grade levels will be tested?
  • Should technology enhanced items be included on assessments? 

The EMS staff will work closely and efficiently with you to ensure that the resulting benchmark assessments are of the highest quality. Of course, quality requires time so it is important for you to allow for a 2 week delivery window for pre-made assessments and a 6 week window for assessments aligned to district curriculum. Check out the Galileo Help Files for resources including this guide: Assessment Planner and Test Review process. Contact Educational Management Services today.


Monday, June 11, 2018

What Makes the ATI Item Banks the Preferred Choice by So Many Educators?


Item banks are a powerful part of a complete K-12 assessment system, but not all item banks are created equal. What makes Galileo K-12 Online and the ATI Secure and Community Item Banks the preferred choice by so many educators? 


Watch our video to learn the benefits of the ATI Secure and Community Item Banks


To begin, the ATI Secure and Community Item Banks are some of the largest, standards-aligned item banks in the nation. They’re filled with a variety of item types, paired with powerful meta-data, and continuously validated through research by ATI experts.

Breadth and Depth for Unlimited Possibilities
Our item banks contain over 156,000 items in K-12 ELA, math, and science. This includes over 17,000 technology-enhanced items. Plus, approximately 800 new items are created each month by ATI’s expert item writers. These vast, ever-expanding item banks are included with the Galileo license at no additional cost and allow for unlimited possibilities in creating your own assessment system to meet your district’s needs throughout the year. 

A Rich Selection of Item Types for Assessment at All Levels
ATI’s banks contain 19 different item-types including selected response, constructed response items, technology-enhanced items, as well as performance-based assessment tasks. With a rich selection of item types, educators can address the full range of complexity needed to prepare students for college and career readiness.

The Power of Metadata and IRT Parameters
The items found in the ATI item banks include powerful item metadata, such as grade level, standard, DOK level, and scoring rules. Plus – difficulty, discrimination, and guessing IRT parameters are included with these items. The significance is that metadata can be viewed with item content within Galileo to support the interpretation of student results and the development of new assessments.

Validation through a Multi-Tiered Review Process
All items developed by ATI undergo a multi-tiered review process. They are then validated by research on responses from thousands of students each year using IRT techniques. This helps ensure that assessments built from our ATI banks are reliable and valid. 



It also ensures that assessments can be placed on a common scale to measure progress over time, can accurately assess student ability and growth, and forecast student performance on the statewide assessment. Tests without IRT parameters provide raw scores that cannot be placed on a continuous or common scale. This means that the assessment of progress and the creation of empirically based learning sequences become compromised.

ATI Partnerships and Access to Additional Item Banks
ATI has partnered with Key Data Systems and Certica to provide access to the Inspect® and Navigate Item Banks™. These partnerships add more than 140,000 items in ELA, math, science, and social studies to Galileo, creating one of the most comprehensive sets of item banks available in the industry. Access to the optional item banks include an additional fee.

A Seamless Fit for Your Educational Goals
As part of the Galileo system, ATI’s robust, standards-aligned item banks are a seamless fit for your K-12 curriculum and assessment needs. With boundless options, powerful metadata, and expert validation, you can assist students at all levels to achieve educational goals. 

Come explore the item banks Galileo has to offer and let’s get started. Better yet, contact a Field Services Coordinator to set up a demo of Galileo today.

Other Resources of Interest:

Experience the Ways the Galileo Comprehensive Assessment System Promotes Student Learning—Complimentary Trial Available Now

How to Implement the Galileo Digital Curriculum Platform

Galileo Offers Flexible and Dynamic Reporting Options

Monday, May 28, 2018

Preparing for 2018-19 Data Importation Before School Starts


As the 2017-18 school year wraps up and we get into summer, it’s important to start preparing for 2018-19. A key part in preparing to use Galileo is executing a successful Galileo Data Import (GDI) well before teachers and students start using Galileo. For new districts it’s particularly important to start the process as early as possible for 2018-19. For districts new to Galileo, here’s a brief overview of the GDI process:
  1. District personnel export data from thier Student Information System (SIS) including students, classes, teachers, and enrollment records. This file is formatted according to the GDI instructions and uploaded to ATI.
  2. ATI staff import your data into a QA Galileo environment and perform a thorough quality assurance review.  Any detected problems are resolved with the district before the data is imported into the production version of Galileo (step 3).
  3. Once the file passes QA, ATI staff import it into to the production Galileo environment.
  4.  Districts should use the Upload Planner to manage their data uploads, especially before and during the beginning of the school year. On the Upload Planner, you can enter the number of expected student, teacher, and class records in the file (estimates are fine). This helps the quality assurance process. The Upload Planner can also be used to communicate with ATI and receive GDI status updates. You can enter the email addresses you want automatically notified on the upload planner when the upload status changes or comments are entered. You can also contact ATI Technical Support for assistance using the Upload Planner.
  5. Files can be submitted two ways: 1) Using the Upload Planner – a manual process. 2) Upload to secure FTP, which can be automated. For reasons of security (the protection of district data), ATI does not accept GDI files sent via email.
Detailed instructions for GDI can be found on the Tech Support page once logged into Galileo K-12 or Galileo Pre-K.  Importation instructions are kept updated for ease-of-use. Please review the GDI Instructions prior to your first upload of each school year. The K-12 GDI instructions are available here: http://www.ati-online.com/pdfs/ImportInstructionsK-12.pdf.

As you prepare your data for importation, please be mindful of the following:
  • Be sure to include values for all required fields in the file you upload. Refer to the GDI instructions for required fields and data length requirements for each field.
  • Failure to include values for required fields may result in a file being returned to district personnel for correction. For example, excluding teacher email prevents staff users from utilizing the “Forgot password” feature the first time they sign-in to Galileo. Users that don’t have an email will be prompted to enter one after their first successful login. Providing standard district email addresses in the GDI file is recommended. It’s also strongly recommended that K-12 districts use email addresses for teacher usernames to ensure uniqueness. If students have district assigned email addresses, we also recommend using email for student usernames. This is the best way to ensure a district gets all the usernames specified in their GDI file. Using a generic format such as first initial and last name will result in many usernames being modified by GDI for uniqueness. For example, if “jjones” is specified for a teacher username, GDI will likely have to append characters to ensure uniqueness (e.g. “jjones3”). Last, failure to include certain optional fields may adversely affect future report filtering or other Galileo functionality.
  • Important: If ID fields such as StudentID, TeacherID, CourseCode, SectionID/ClassID change within your SIS, or you migrate to a new SIS, it’s strongly recommend you contact ATI GDI staff as soon as possible to ensure proper migration to the new IDs. Large-scale ID changes typically require extra processing time so please notify ATI as far in advance as possible, so we can help you plan accordingly and prevent problems that can occur from changing IDs (such as mass duplication of student, teacher, or class records). This also allows time for quality assurance to detect any problems, and for district personnel to correct and resubmit a file if needed.
  • The QA process is typically longest during your first upload of the year. Getting uploads underway as soon as data is available will help ensure adequate processing time before teachers and students start using Galileo.
  • Uploading data as soon as it’s available in your SIS is recommended, even if enrollment records are not complete (i.e. for the first day of school). Sending an initial file will allow QA to proceed so any issues can be identified and remedied well before students and teachers start using Galileo. Enrollment can simply be updated with subsequent GDI uploads.
  • If you use the Instructional Effectiveness (IE) Galileo K-12 module, you should upload data for all responsible teachers. 
  • Participation in No-Evaluation Importation (NEI), the process of preparing for frequent uploads (as often as nightly), requires three successive no-change imports at the beginning of each school year. 

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

By Luke Ferris, Director of Information Technology