Counteract the Summer Slide - Become a More Proficient Galileo User

We are all familiar with the concept of summer slide in terms of regression of student skills during summer break. In fact, the U.S. Department of Education has a series of blog posts* regarding this topic as well as student resource suggestions such as NGA Kids** (National Gallery of Art) or a summer reading list offered from Study.com***. In this blog, we are going to turn the tables and look at it in the perspective of an educator. We will apply the concept of summer slide to educators and what can be done over the summer to become a more proficiency user of Galileo K-12 technology.

As summer time begins and you start planning, ask yourself some questions before you get started: How much time will you dedicate to this? What resources will you need? Do you have appropriate access or will you need specialized access? Are there continuing education credits available? 

Once you have set some goals, do little research to figure out what resources are available and how to begin exploring them in Galileo. A few resources that might help in your journey to becoming a more proficient user follows:  

• ATI Professional Development Help Files: This will likely be your best resource as a user. The Galileo interface includes a direct link to Help Files (knowledge base) with step-by-step instructions that guide users through a variety of tasks, as well as links to pre-recorded video tutorials, quick reference guides, and user manuals.
• Learning on Demand:  Learning on Demand sessions are webinars that guide educators in becoming proficient users of Galileo K-12 technology with the goal of enhancing student learning. The sessions are scheduled throughout the year, and a library of recorded sessions are available on a variety of topics to listen to at your convenience. The sessions can be found in the Help Files. Continuing professional development credit is offered for those who register and participate in the live session. 
• ATI YouTube page: Galileo Tours and Did You Know videos series offer insight into the tools and capabilities of Galileo K-12. The videos dig deeper into the technology in a step-by-step format.
• ATI Support web page: Technical support documentation offers guidelines to ensure a successful year of implementing Galileo. We highly recommend you frequent the System Requirements/Security page to ensure that your online testing plans are in sync with the system requirements and security recommendations. 
• ATI web page: The ATI website offers materials that give a general overview and highlight specific features available in Galileo. Check out the Resources/Publications page where videos, FAQs, research briefs, and white papers can be found offering an in depth understanding the possibilities found in Galileo K-12. 

As you start to explore these resources and dig deeper into the knowledge base materials, we trust that they will ultimately better equip you to help your students and fulfill your educational goals. But don’t forget to enjoy your respite from the classroom. 

* Amatucci, D. (2014, March 4). Stopping the Summer Slide [Blog post]. https://blog.ed.gov/2014/03/stopping-the-summer-slide/
** National Gallery of Art (2018). National Kids Art Zone. https://www.nga.gov/education/kids.html
*** Johnson, A. (2017, July). Why is Summer Reading so Important for Kid’s Success [Blog post]? https://study.com/blog/why-is-summer-reading-so-important-for-kids-success.html 

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.

Other Resources of Interest:
Customized Galileo Launchpads Drive Efficiency
Multiple Online Testing Tools for Students
Galileo Offers Flexible and Dynamic Reporting Options

K-12 Online Help Files

Galileo K-12 Online help is within reach. When working in Galileo K-12, just click the User Options/Help menu and select Help. With a click of the mouse or a finger tap on a tablet you have a wealth of information to help you use Galileo effectively and efficiently.  

Whenever Galileo K-12 is enhanced, the online help files will have the most up-to-date directions. From the online help files you can quickly access links to FAQs such as:

How do I…

• analyze data?
• view a roster?
• administer a test?
• create a test?

If you prefer, you can use the Search tool to immediately access a topic. Just type the desired search words in the Search box on the right side of the page or click the magnify glass icon on the left side then press enter. The results will show you everywhere the word(s) appear in the help files.

Many industries have their jargon and abbreviations. Education is no different. ATI has included a Glossary to help you understand key words and concepts referenced throughout the application. Click the book icon located in the upper left corner and locate the term along with the definition.

Once you have accessed the desired topic, you can follow the directions, print out the directions, open quick reference guides and view videos. 

Keeping it Simple with Galileo Assessments

It’s summer again, and that means many districts are in the thick of planning for next year’s assessments and maybe looking closer at all that Galileo has to offer, too. And since Galileo is constantly being refreshed, revitalized, and rejuvenated with updates, upgrades, and even new features, there’s a lot to explore, including technology enhanced (TE) items, digital curricula, and of course all the usual enhancements to learning that have made Galileo the stalwart resource that it has been for many years. Summer is a great time for teachers and administrators to get better acquainted with the various reports and test creation platforms that are so helpful to teachers who are guiding student learning. As an ATI Educational Management Services Coordinator, I often hear from school districts who are clearly not getting the most out of what Galileo can do. A great way to peruse the untapped possibilities is to meander through the help files in Galileo, where there is a wealth of useful and easy-to-find information about a myriad of relevant topics—reports, digital curriculum, scheduling, scoring, printing, the Dashboard, student records, data setup, user accounts, etc., etc.—virtually everything except how to tie your shoes, and yes, including assessment planning.  

As one who works exclusively with districts that design their own assessments using the Galileo tools, benchmark assessment planning is the focus of my time at this point in the year. Fortunately, assessment planning doesn’t require participation of a rocket scientist. My advice is to keep a couple basic principles in mind:  keep it simple, and let the system work for you. If there is not a strong reason to get fancy with your testing, then don’t! You’ll be spinning your wheels just to end up at the same place you would be if you let the ship fly on autopilot. What do I mean? Well, ATI has a series of ready-to use comprehensive assessments and a whole system built around them to provide reliable growth and achievement data that teachers can use to quickly see and target areas of student weakness. A good standard approach is a pretest, 1 to 3 mid-year benchmarks, and a posttest. And while certainly it is true that we don’t want to over-burden and discourage students with comprehensive tests that repeatedly test them on areas where they have not yet received instruction, ATI’s comprehensive pre- and posttests can be combined with quarterly or other periodic curriculum-aligned assessments designed by the district to effectively glean both the information on annual performance that administrators want to see, and the information on student progress that teachers need to support their vital and central role in the educational process. 

In Galileo’s Assessment Planner, the districts that choose to design their own tests can select the standards desired for each curriculum-aligned test and the number of items needed for each standard. We do the rest! Whenever questions come up, ATI’s trained and experienced staff is here to offer guidance and support. Keep in mind, the Test Review phase of test construction is your opportunity to tweak the particular items on a test, not a license to turn it inside out. Why? Because the drafts we deliver have been carefully balanced and designed to provide the best, most reliable data that can be provided within the confines of the particular blueprint; too many changes to the test carry the possibility of unknowingly upsetting that balance and causing that reliability to drift. So, keep it simple, enjoy your summer, and let Galileo work for you.   

Contributed by
Ben Tucker,  Educational Management System Coordinator

Galileo Help is Always at Hand

The Galileo Help interface gives users up-to-date information on frequently asked questions about Galileo. When logged into Galileo, users can easily access the interface by clicking the "Help" link in the gold menu bar at the top of any screen. 

Help files may be easily accessed by all users from any page in Galileo. Click here to enlarge image.

Once inside the Help utility, users can search for topics by selecting the Contents link or the Search link. Through the Contents link, users may drill down through categories such as Dashboard, Setup, and Assessment to find a topic. Through the Search link, users may search for topics by keyword. Help files often include step-by-step instructions on using the selected feature, links to quick reference guides, printable handouts, and recorded Learning on Demand sessions detailing the different features in Galileo. Plus, the Help files include a glossary which provides a list of terms commonly used in the Help files along with their definition.

The Help interface provides links to a number of useful resources related to Galileo features. Click here to enlarge image.

In addition to the Help interface, ATI also provides many professional development (PD) and instructional resource options for all levels of Galileo users. These include small group webinars, on-site and online PD sessions, access to the online Professional Development Forum, and more.

Learn more about training opportunities that can further your Galileo knowledge.