Students & Families Adult Education Adult & Community Learning Services
Adult and Community Learning Services

SMARTT Updates

By Donna Cornellier
dcornellier@doe.mass.edu
April 11, 2008

• Latest SMARTT Revision ---Class Section
  The class section in SMARTT has been rewritten so that all class screens now follow the same architecture and user interface as the other sections in SMARTT. The functionality remains the same with enhanced user interface features and a few minor additions to some of the screens. The screens now follow the tab format as used in most of the other sections in SMARTT. Thanks to all those who tested the new screens and provided great feedback for our development team. Listed below are some of the changes you will see:

  Basic Information: We added a field called "Description" requested by users which provides a space for a brief descriptor which will then appear on the class list screen under the "Comment" section.

  Daily Schedule: Users can now edit the time of day in case start/end times changed. This change should be reviewed with the Program Specialist. For example, if the class times changed from 9:00 - 11:00 to 10:00 - 12:00, users can note that in this screen. The total hours per day must remain the same. If there are other changes, the program plan needs to be amended.

  Attendance: Filters are added at the top to select the type of attendance as well as the status.

  1. Type - students or in class assistants.
     The default is set to students, but if the program is funded for a volunteer component and uses in class assistance, you can set the filter to in class assistants to enter attendance for the volunteers.
  2. Status - all, current, or exited
     The default is set to current students. You can set the filter to "all" or "exited" to view the attendance or enter attendance for exited students.

  Delete Class Enrollments and Attendance: A "Certification" section has been added. Users need to confirm (check the checkbox) that "The deletion request is accurate and does not need to be corrected" before proceeding with the deletion.

  Instructors: The instructor section now appears in its own screen which is separate from the basic information and class schedule screens. It can be accessed on the left menu once a class is selected.

  Monthly Form: The monthly form can now be exported to Word or Excel.

• GED Data Matching
  The last GED data match with Oklahoma Scoring Service was completed on 4/4/08. One hundred eleven (111) records were matched for students who attended classes in FY08. Ninety (90) students set the goal which is eighty one percent (81%). Twenty one (21) students or 19% did not set the goal and will not be included in the Federal Report. Remember that we cannot include in the Federal Report the achievement of any goal, if that goal was not set. It is important to meet with students on a regular basis to make sure goals are set, new goals are identified, and the dates set are entered into the system.

• ABE Program Design Regional Trainings
  The ABE Program Design Refresher training has been revised this year to focus on policy and to better explain the purpose of the various program planning screens. Program directors (and anyone else responsible for completing the Program Planning module in SMARTT) are reminded to sign up through SABES for the ABE Program Design Refresher and SMARTT Updates focusing on Program Planning. Four of the five regions have scheduled SMARTT Updates immediately following the refresher trainings. The SMARTT Updates will be held in computer labs in order to provide an "hands-on" training with a focus on the program plan. The updated reference materials, user guide, and checklist have been posted on the ACLS website under SMARTT System Information (www.doe.mass.edu/acls/smartt/).

  Here is the training schedule:

  Region	Program Design Refresher	SMARTT Update Focus: Program Planning
  NE	4/30   9:00 - 12:00	4/30   12:30 - 2:30
  Central	4/30   12:30-3:30	5/6   1:00 - 3:00
  Boston	5/1   9:30-12:30	5/1   1:30 - 3:30
  West	5/2   9:30-12:30	5/2   1:30 - 3:30
  Southeast	4/25   10:00 - 1:00	4/25   1:30 - 3:30

  If you plan to attend both sessions, make sure you register for each of the sessions separately. Contact your SABES office to register or register online at http://calendar.sabes.org/ and click on your region.

• SMARTT Training Schedule   
  The updated training schedule is listed under the SMARTT System Information section on our ACLS website (www.doe.mass.edu/acls/smartt/). In order to ensure that at least two people per program are proficient in using SMARTT, it is important to ensure that the appropriate staff attend the scheduled upcoming trainings. Programs are encouraged to notify the SABES regional office as soon as possible with future SMARTT/Cognos training needs, so SABES can schedule appropriate trainings. For contact information for the regional Field Technology Specialist and other SABES staff in each region, see http://www.sabes.org/staff.htm. To register for these and other trainings, please go to http://calendar.sabes.org/ and click on your region, or contact the regional offices directly.