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1. 11 for more instructions and discuss this with your IT Internet NB You do not have to be DeTOre proceeding You Explored version connected to the internet to check need to install InCAS on each computer 5 or later these settings 1 Open Internet Explorer 2 Choose Help 3 Choose About Internet Explorer 8 2009 InCAS Manual STEP 1 Uninstalling Software previous InCAS The InCAS software is updated each year and you must remove the previous version of the software from the hard drive before installing InCAS 2009 Failure to remove an earlier version of InCAS may cause problems with the correct running of the 2009 InCAS software program dh To uninstall any previous versions of the InCAS software follow the instructions below 2 Using the mouse click the Start button This is usually located in the bottom left hand corner of the screen 3 Move the cursor up to Control Panel 4 Move your curser to the icon labelled Add or Remove Programs and double click 5 A list of all the programs currently installed on your computer will display 6 Scroll through the list until you find InCAS 2008 then click once on it 7 Click on the Remove button Click Yes when asked if your are sure you wish to proceed 8 InCAS 2008 version has now been removed and you can commence installation Installing the I nCAS Program WARNING If you took pa2. Male M or Female F UPN Unique Student Number as issued by state schools or leave blank Postcode Maximum of 10 characters EAL English as Additional Language enter Yes or No DOA Date of admission in dd MMM yy format eg 01 J AN 09 2 Enter data for each class you wish to add to InCAS Your spreadsheet should look like the example below m CT t 6 i 4 Year Forename Surname DOB Gender UPN Postcode EAL DOA 4 Mra Appie 5 Bob lanana 23 Jan 00 M 1111 1755 05 Mrs Apole 3 Garth Grape 3 Aug 00 F 1111 YES 1 feh 06 4 Appie 3 Mandy Mango 4 Sep 00 F 1111 NO 1755 45 Apple 3 Saly Strawberry 15 Aug 00 M 1111 NO 12 5 amp Mr Sprout 4 Tommy Turnip 15 42799 M 1111 NO 1554 7 Mr Sprout 4 Candy Carrot Dec 96 1111 NO 1 Feb 04 8 Mer Sprout 4 Pau Potato 30 May 99 M 1111 NO 1 feb 06 9 Mr Sprout 4 Pamela Purmoien 17 99 F 1111 NO 175 54 3 Once you have completed your data entry you need to save your file in CSV format In Microsoft Excel go to File gt Save As In the drop down box choose CSV Comma delimited Type a name for your document and click Save ton O me Bae AV feet a m c Pc AC amma Lll 10 1 177 E it es bum birou sm trai h imo d 4 Open the InCAS Program login as INCASUSER Click on the Import Data button 5 Select PIPS CS
3. Page 30 Page 32 Microsoft Excel Page 31 Page 34 Accessing the feedback Using InCAS 1 Go to www incasproject org Enter your Username InCAS ID and InCAS Password to login to the secure InCAS website On the main screen you will see a yellow strip across the top with a series of drop down Before you access your feedback you may wish to check which students have had data uploaded Hold the cursor over the Administration tab and then click on the Check Student Details option You will see a table like the one below with an menus described below Username and Password Your username and password should be located at the front of this manual If you have password The options mislaid your please contact your Contact details appear on Page 3 these menus are entry for each class uploaded Click on the icon the View column The date each student completed the assessment will be displayed in another table Version Class View Username and or 6 To retrieve your feedback results you will need to use the Results Analysis form Menu Options Administration InCAS Log Delete uploads Display assessments Check student details Check identifiers Return Data Upload results Results Analysis Feedback form Age comparison chart Downloads User guide Feedback guidance Reading handbook Baseline student d
4. 36 2009 InCAS Manual I nterpreting the feedback SECTION 2 Longitude Chart The Longitude Chart is a graph which shows the progress a student makes over a period of time The Longitude Chart will only be available once students have been assessed for a second year The chart becomes valuable as the students are assessed year on year Longitude Charts are available for Reading General Mathematics Mental Arithmetic Developed Ability The Longitude Chart is presented in Microsoft Excel The horizontal axis shows the actual age of the student while the vertical axis shows the Age Equivalent Score The scale on the vertical axis is sometimes shown as half years sometimes as whole years This is automatically determined by the program for each student and depends on the difference between the age and the age equivalent scores Children aged 8 years would be expected to have an Age Equivalent Score of 8 years children aged 9 years would be expected to have an age equivalent score of 9 years and so on The green reference line illustrates this The black diamonds represent a student s Age Equivalent Score at the time of assessment and the bars above and below the diamonds represent the 68 confidence interval See What does the Scores Chart Mean on Page 36 for further explanation of the confidence interval For schools that have assessed their students with the PIPS On entry Baseline Assessment previou
5. Age 2009 InCAS Manual 37 I nterpreting the feedback SECTION 3 Difference Table How is the Difference Table presented The Difference Table sets out the difference between the Actual Age and the Age Equivalent Scores at Class or Year Group level The tables are presented in Microsoft Excel and can be sorted by first name last name or scores To sort click on the blue box at the top of the table and use the drop down menu pictured below Difference Table What does the Difference Table mean The student s Names and Actual Ages are listed The remaining columns show a or value If a student has an Age Equivalent Score three years above their Actual Age the value would be 3 If a student has an Age Equivalent Score three years below their Actual Age the value would be 3 Some students age equivalent scores fall below the minimum or above the maximum In these instances the difference between the chronological age and Age Equivalent Score is denoted by less than if the age equivalent score is below the minimum or gt greater than if above the maximum Differences tables are not produced for attitudes Case Study The example Difference Table below shows Achievement scores for three students from a class The table has been sorted by Reading score which puts the highest positive difference at the top Difference Table Sally Strawberry is the top reader in the class with a Reading Age
6. MO wees Cam E metad Ma Carm Leid Maer eni Canty ayer heey in oem Fam Fes Lexiged Fenta Flauta Ader bh 29e eat oat 12299 Deti dry b Spe 24 Tom T Dip ddr Feasa a POR Yor Co ey as Surname 0 Fet Name Age Assessment Mir Sproat Carrot C 80911 Dewejoped Abd y Spront Carrot Candy 89911 EKeadng IEM l Mr Sproat Potato 91522 Developed Ability RVF Mr Sproat Pumplan Panela 57139 Developed Abdiy UHR Mr Sproat Suawberny Saly 8 2984 Developed EWC m Mr Sproat Turn Tommy 9 6345 Developed 2009 InCAS Manual 21 I mplementing the Assessment I mplementing the Assessment SECTION 1 Some considerations Students can only complete each assessment once and cannot pause or leave and return to the assessment once they have begun Make sure you have thought about the following before allowing students to begin ds Make sure there is sufficient time for the student to complete the session 2 Make sure the student has had a toilet and drink break before beginning the session 3 Make sure the volume is at the correct level by using the Test Sound button 4 Students need to listen carefully to the instructions To minimise distractions we recommend the use of headphones 5 If the student will be assessed using a lap
7. This way you do not lose data if the computer fails to operate properly when you resume testing on another occasion 6 Once you have completed testing all students and before you send the data make a backup copy of the data refer to page 25 and keep it somewhere safe 50 that you can restore the data when necessary 7 When you have successfully made a backup copy of your data you will need to submit your school s data Please refer to pages 24 26 where you will instructed on how to submit the data 8 submit your data InCAS you will need your School s unique InCAS ID and Password to enter the website You will find this information at the front of your manual Please note that this is not the same password used to access the InCAS program 9 Refer to the Feedback Guide on pages 29 39 once your School has downloaded it s InCAS Feedback These pages provide a step by step guide detailing how you should interpret the feedback using examples to explain what the feedback shows 10 Use your InCAS Feedback to inform planning and action To support you in this Handbooks are available See the information on page 39 2009 Manual User Manual Installing the I nCAS Program Installing the software Some considerations WARNING Consider the following issues before deciding which computer or computers will be used for InCAS computer and meet the minimum specifications I
8. 28 Understanding the types of feedback 28 I nterpreting the Feedback Standard Age Comparison Chart 34 Custom 36 2009 Manual Acknowledgements Acknowledgements InCAS Australia thanks the following organisations for their contribution to the 2009 InCAS manual Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring University of Durham England Copyright Statement This publication is copyright Schools registered to use InCAS in 2009 may photocopy this publication for the implementation of the InCAS Assessment in their school For any other purpose permission must be sought from the InCAS Coordinator at the InCAS Australia Office 2009 Manual I ntroduction Welcome to I nCAS 2009 This booklet is divided into two parts to give you guidance on using the InCAS program and interpreting your InCAS feedback We advise that you carefully read this manual both prior to and during the assessment process If you require further clarification about any issues please get in touch with your InCAS contact Part One User Manual Section 1 Introduction Section 2 Installing the InCAS Program Section 3 Getting to know InCAS Section 4 Entering Student Information Section 5 Creating Assessment Sessions Section 6 Implementing the Assessment Section 7 Submitting Data Part Two Feedback Guide Section 1 Introduction Section 2 Accessing your feedback Section 3 Interpreting the feedback
9. Section 4 Feedback based planning and action Symbols and Tools used in the Manual The InCAS assessment software has been designed for users with minimal computing experience If you do experience a problem some solutions are best implemented by you the actual user n some circumstances you will require local IT support n other situations you may need to contact your InCAS person for assistance To guide you symptoms of possible problems are shown at the relevant section accompanied by the relevant symbol A quick and easy solution to be implemented by the user Contact your local IT Technician as there could be a problem with the computer Contact your InCAS person You will require basic familiarity with compatible computers to understand this document and to use the PIPS software program If you are unfamiliar with computers explanation of key terms is provided in Tip Boxes throughout the manual like the one below Handy Tips in boxes like this one Tips can be found throughout manual to provide explanation of relevant computing terms and useful hints WARNI NG i Warnings must be read and observed by users to prevent serious problems or complications 2009 I nCAS Manual I ntroduction Contact nformation For issues relating to installation and administration of InCAS or submission and interpreting feedback contact an InCAS person via one of the foll
10. Word Decoding The student hears nonsense word and chooses the correct written representation of that word WORD DECODING This category is measuring the student s ability to decode or figure out increasingly difficult nonsense words Attitude to School The student hears and sees To SCHOOL a number of statements relating to their feelings about school and rates them on a sliding scale This category is measuring the way the student feels about school Spelling The student hears a word and uses the on screen keyboard to spell it SPELLING fT j imtoo This category is measuring the student s ability to spell increasingly difficult words bori Mental Arithmetic The student is presented with a number problem that they must choose the correct answer for ARITHMETIC _ This category is measuring I 4 the student s ability to perform increasingly difficult mental calculations General Maths The student sees and hears GENERAL MATHS a mathematical problem They select the answer from on the screen This category is measuring the student s ability to solve increasingly difficult maths problems Comprehension Conditional on scoring well enough in other reading sections the students must read a passage and select the correct words to complete a sentence CO PE RHE GI
11. before you create assessments ee Se l 2009 I nCAS Manual 19 Creating Assessment Sessions Individual Student Continued You may type in a unique Password login code or you can click the button shown below to randomly generate one 10 Repeat for each student You will also need to repeat to create multiple sessions for one student Tip Creating Password login codes Make sure your Password login codes follow these rules 3 7 letters long No digits 1 2 3 etc or symbols etc REMEMBER Password login codes will be printed out for future 1 reference They need not be memorised or kept secret example screenshot below shows the student Candy Carrot in Mr Sprout s class has had two assessment sessions created for her When you click on the student name existing assessment sessions and their associated Password login codes will be listed in the white Session box EDIT amp VIEw BIOGRAPHICAL DATA E je Ga Class Sessions Open InCAS and login as INCASUSER 2 Click Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click the name of the school in the white School box 4 Click the name of the class in the white Class box 5 Click on the Assess button to the right of the white Class box 6 The Enter Assessment Session Details box will appear 7 Click the assess
12. 9 5 InCAS If you are using the network option you will 0 i only need to upload once I RRR E ee a OE ear a The Inc A5 bg bet movements of Between PEAR acc schools m te dat Deive monte Pn can be ubed fur bo eere test data fies have Deer Log Type 34 1 Pte Fite inae at 02190 11 Ang ON Ragitration 2008 Pupii 465 120 Fab cete agwtratis Problem Solution have forgotten my InCAS password bre me One 5 The upload screen will now load Click the ond RCA Browse button and find the file you saved SA when you transferred your data 24 person for a reminder of your password Ll Eod LLLI ib RI I 8 9 8 0 5 Upload Results Tip Backup Data To hrowes for pee transfer Me folios the shapi Detuw Make sure you save a back up copy of your transferred data to safe location such as CD or USB drive It is expected that all schools will make a gt 200b es aud Bish nad on tation backup copy of thier InCAS data From the wah page cick on the Select Sutton and Choose fw 4 CM the bettan awl the tere Upto adie may Calo a Tow minties Faedbach Oewraly mmedately with th exception ef the SATS chances aed t
13. Grape Garth Grape Actual age of 7 years 8 months Reading score is appropriate to his age General maths score is slightly higher than his actual age Developed Ability score is well above his actual age He performed better on the Non Verbal component rather than the Picture Vocabulary but both scores were above his actual age Performed above his actual age f or Word Decoding Word Recognition and Spelling but slightly below his age in comprehension Performed above his actual age in all facets of Mental Maths except for subtraction where he performed slightly below his age Attitudes to Reading Maths and School are all highly positive This profile provides an overview of Garth s strengths and weaknesses Coupled with a teacher s contextual knowledge areas for extension and areas requiring extra attention can be identified example the teacher may notice that Garth has a strong understanding of the mechanics of language i e Word Decoding and Spelling but is not as strong when it comes to synthesising these elements to generate meaning i e Comprehension Results can be used to directly inform individual and class level planning and action 32 2009 InCAS Manual I nterpreting the feedback Reading and General Maths a Reading is a composite score calculated from the Word Recognition Word Decoding and Comprehension Scores Students who do not reach the Comprehension stage iz of the asses
14. Password Login Codes REPORTS When students come to use their Password login codes they will enter them into the login screen This is where you would usually login as INCASUSER Follow these steps s ede seses Fe sdms jean ented nent ti 1 Provide the student with their Password Login f rodini to dunt mavens Ivi raso ap Code on a post it note Serererert imei pert wt 2 If you are already logged into the InCAS program click on the Back to LogIn Screen button from the main menu 3 The student should enter the code that corresponds with the assessment that you wish for them to undertake as their login 4 Click the Show Report button 4 Click the Log In button 5 The Password List will open in your Internet Browser In this example each student from NB Using our previous example Candy Carrot Mr Sprout s class will be assessed on Developed would enter PBF in order to begin her Ability They all have a unique Password login Developed Ability assessment code LoG IN i US Xe oe e Q ommo om rat stem PL Ty dom I Aliy INCAS ACTIVE FESSIONS THE CUNBEST DATABAXT gt c arc uc V ap y T MM B es Fee Mene ier Sooners
15. Symptom Explanation The computer You may not will not let me permission to create a folder create folders on the network network drive drive Check with IT to see if you have permission to create folders on the network drive cannot find the shared InCAS folder You may not have sufficient permission to view the folder Check with IT to see if you have permission to view the shared folder The shared InCAS folder may not have been created yet Hold the cursor over Start and Click search As above Type InCAS 2009 without the quotes into the search box If the search does not find the file then the InCAS shared folder has not been created Refer to pages 9 10 on how to create a shared folder I MPORTANT You must install the InCAS program on every computer you intend to use for InCAS testing Follow the instructions above for every computer 12 2009 InCAS Manual Installing the InCAS Program Additional Assistance The InCAS Manual has been written so that you will find immediate troubleshooting advice on the same page as the task that you are trying to undertake Please follow those instructions prior to seeking assistance Installation Flow Chart Consider issues outlined on page 8 prior to installation Check minimum specifications Contact your IT person to address the problems Uninstall any prior versions of I nCAS
16. a single computer or on a network a group of computers working together Either option will require you to install the software on every computer you intend to use to assess students Step 2 is divided into two sections SECTION 1 Installing on a single computer SECTION 2 Installing on a network SECTION 1 I nstalling on a Single Computer l Insert the InCAS CD ROM in the CD Drive 2 The program has been designed to automatically install onto your computer Depending on your computer it may take 30 seconds or so before you see the various screens showing the progress of the installation 3 Once the software installation is complete you will not require the InCAS CD during the assessment It should be returned to the plastic sleeve for safe keeping Note If you cannot locate the InCAS CD ROM inform your I nCAS contact If InCAS 2009 does not load automatically it is due to your computer s settings and the software can be installed manually following these steps l Insert the InCAS CD ROM into the CD ROM drive 2 Move your cursor to the Start button click Move your cursor to Run and click 3 In the dialog box that pops up click on Browse Run 2 53 qum Typa the name of a program folder document or E Internet resource and Windows wil open it for you Open w Cancel 4 Move the cursor to My Computer and click 5 Choose the CD Drive It will be represe
17. are given the option to Enable Macros when you open the file In the earlier versions go to Tools gt Macro gt Security and choose Medium before you download the file If you have trouble with this process you may need to ask your IT Person for help 2009 I nCAS Manual nterpreting the feedback I nterpreting Standard Feedback The Standard Feedback is presented as a series of tables Feedback is produced for all students who completed the InCAS assessment Feedback is grouped first by Year group and then by Class Feedback is presented in PDF format Each students name is listed and next to their Name is their Actual Age at the time of testing in Years and Months 5 4 means five years and four months The scores given in the remaining columns are Age Equivalent Scores they show the age in years and months at which the student performed during the assessment If a student is performing as expected their Age Equivalent Score will be the same as their Actual Age When scores are very low you will see a value such as lt 4 00 This means that the score is too low to be represented more accurately than as being lower than 4 years The only exception to this is the table which represents Attitude scores Attitudes scores are rated on a scale of 1 to 5 1 indicates a very negative attitude while 5 indicates a very positive attitude Looking at the tables presented to the right we can profile the student Garth
18. decoding skills but perhaps poor understandings of passage text Other children will be able to read reasonably well but have problems with spelling and so on The added dimension of picture vocabulary and non verbal ability enables teachers to see if a student s reading is in line with these This is particularly useful for children for whom English is an additional language The Students responses for vocabulary non verbal ability reading spelling mental arithmetic and general mathematics are converted to age equivalent scores that can be compared to their actual age Attitudes are reported on a scale of negative through to positive Feedback is downloaded from the InCAS secure website and can then be printed or saved onto the hard disk of your own computer This method of feedback delivery has the advantage of making available a large amount of information that is updated on a regular basis Schools can print school and class summary tables and graphs and then select more detailed reports on particular students This guidance explains the feedback and how to access it from the InCAS secure website Feedback Standard Description year group then by class Age Comparison Charts group 15 performing Custom This option produced tables of age equivalent scores grouped first by This option produces box and whisker plots which show how a class or year Using the Feedback Guide Understanding the types of feed
19. his Word Recognition and Decoding skills Scores Chart How is the Scores Chart presented The Scores Charts are small graphs which profile individual students scores A graph is produces for all components of the assessment a student has completed including the Attitudes section Age Equvatert Score The Scores chart is presented in PDF format What does the Scores Chart mean The little blue squares show the age equivalent scores and the lines above and below are the confidence intervals These show the range of 1 standard error within which we are 68 confident the child s true score lies On a different day a student might have had a few more correct or incorrect responses and achieved a slightly higher or lower score The confidence intervals give an indication of the range in which a child might score on a different day The green line is the student s actual age at the time of the assessment If the confidence interval overlaps the green line the age equivalent score is not significantly different to the student s chronological Age Equvetert Score Age Equivalert Score Age Equvaent Score Age Equevatert Score age There is also a chart for Attitude scores These are on a scale from negative to positive As with the cognitive profile charts the red square represents the attitude score and the lines above and below are the confidence intervals Age Equvalert Score 02062008 02 05 2006
20. software page 7 Installing on a single computer Installing as a network Follow instructions on Follow instructions on pages 10 through 11 pages 11 though 12 2009 I nCAS Manual 13 Getting to Know I nCAS Familiarising with I nCAS Opening I nCAS To open the InCAS program either double click on the icon which is located on your desktop or hold the cursor over Start gt All programs gt CEM Centre and click on InCAS 2009 The I nCAS Admin Menu You will be taken to the InCAS Admin Menu Edit View Biographical Data Here you set up and view school class and student information and create assessment sessions Back to Log In Screen This button takes you back to Log In screen allowing you to enter new passwords to swap between users I mport Data Import biographical data for students or results of previous InCAS assessments Transfer Data Transfer biographical and assessment data from the InCAS program to other locations Browse Assessments Browse a selection of assessment questions in each of the categories Reports View and print password lists About I nCAS View information about copyright and the creators of InCAS Exit Close the InCAS program Browsing the Assessment After clicking on the Browse Assessments button you will see the following screen lt lists each category in which students will be assessed Select the category you wish to browse by clicki
21. to the Start menu and click on My Computer b Select the network drive that all InCAS users have access to C Create the folder by selecting File New Folder from the top of the screen Name the folder InCAS 2009 IMPORTANT Please write down the exact network path and file name of the shared folder E g z sharedfolder nCAS2009 3 Once you have set up a folder in the shared drive you need to let InCAS know where to store the files and information This will also need to be completed on each computer 4 Click on the InCAS shortcut on your desktop or move your cursor to Start gt All Programs gt Centre gt InCAS 2009 and click 11 Installing the I nCAS Program Installing on a Network continued 5 When InCAS opens you will see the following welcome screen 6 You need to direct InCAS to the shared file you created and noted down on page 9 You can do this one of two ways a Click on the symbol next to the Database Folder dialog box and navigate to the shared drive b Type the network path and file name directly into the Database Folder dialog box 7 Enter the password INCASUSER and click on the Log In button 8 Click Yes in the dialog box that appears 9 The files have now been created You will only need to follow these actions once on each computer Troubleshooting Networking
22. Accessing the feedback If you selected Pupil level you need to choose pupil or the All Pupils option from the drop down box Dave Jones Pupil Scores Chart Pupil Longitude Chart Pupil Scores Table If you selected Class Year or School level you will need to select the part of the assessment you wish to generate feedback for from the drop down menu Reading Modules Yeargroup Feargroup 4 GenMaths Modules Mental Arithmetic P veorgrour Vert 5 Developed Ability Dev Abil Modules Yeargroup DIITEFerice Table 8 Select the chart or table you wish to generate by clicking the appropriate button Buttons will be greyed out if the options are not available ETE Dave Jones 7 LIE Yoorgroup Scores Chart Pupil Scores Chart C Pupil Longitude Chart Pupil Scores Table Yeergroup Olfference Table Tip Viewing feedback in Microsoft Excel SECTION 3 Age comparison chart 1 Hover your cursor over the Results Analysis tab and click on the Age Comparison Chart option 2 This chart is opened in Excel You may need to alter your security settings to enable Macros to run See the tip below 3 The chart that is generated will look similar to the one below ad e o5 Ago Equivalent Score years view charts generated in Excel you need to change your Security Settings to an appropriate level In Excel 2007 you
23. Equivalent Score 9 months above her actual age Sally is not the top in maths this sample Candy Carrot has a Math Age Equivalent Score 1 year and 1 month higher than her Actual Age Achievement EP CEN Sally Strawberry Tommy Turnip Candy Carrot T SS 38 2009 InCAS Manual I nterpreting the feedback SECTION 3 Scores Table How is the Scores Table presented The Scores Tables are generated in two different formats Class Year and School level These tables are the same as the standard feedback but are produced in Excel so they can be sorted by name age or score Student level These tables are more detailed reports into the individual achievement They are presented in PDF format and cannot be sorted What does the Scores Table mean Please see advice on Interpreting Standard Data for Class Year and School level tables Student level tables set out the Actual Age Age Equivalent Scores Differences for each assessment component completed Case Study The example below looks at a Student level Scores Table and shows a clear profile of the student 2009 InCAS Manual 39 Planning and Action Using I nCAS feedback for planning and action InCAS testing provides comprehensive information on individual students and classes Together with your contextual knowledge this assessment information is highly useful to inform your planning and action at an individual and whol
24. OI This category 15 measuring the student s ability to understand what they read Attitude to Maths amp Reading ATTITUDE TO READING The student hears and sees statements relating to their feelings about maths and reading and rates them on a Sliding scale This category 15 measuring the way the student feels about maths and reading 2009 I nCAS Manual Entering Student I nformation Entering Student nformation Before beginning student assessments you must create files and assessment sessions for each student Students will be allocated individual password logins for each assessment session These passwords should be printed out for future use Student information can be added in two ways and as such these instructions are divided into two sections SECTION 1 Importing class data SECTION 2 Entering individual data SECTION 1 I mporting Class Data When setting up InCAS with new class information for the first time it is recommended that you use the Import Data function to save time Follow these steps to import class data l Open an Excel document and set up the following headings Reg This is your class name eg Mrs Apple maximum of 25 characters Year School year group eg 3 Forename Student first name eg Adam maximum of 25 characters Surname Student surname eg Smith maximum of 25 characters DOB Date of birth in dd MMM yy format eg 01 09
25. THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA ICOIETINOG eT NATION Education interactive Computerised Assessment System This manual is accompanied the 2009 InCAS CD ROM only if there is a plastic pocket adhered over this area If there is no CD ROM with this manual this means that a copy has been provided to your school in a separate 2009 InCAS Manual Only one copy of the CD ROM is provided per registered school or campus and can be installed on as many computers as required I nCAS ID Number Program Password for CD ROM is INCASUSER I nCAS Password for access to InCAS mportant For security purposes you may require your InCAS Password to identify yourself as a genuine InCAS user Note The InCAS ID is not the password to use the program Contents NTRODUCTI ON Welcome Contact I nformation For new users oO A UW Top 10 Tips for InCAS Users PART ONE USER MANUAL 1 a Getting to Know Familiarising with InCAS Understanding what the questions measure 15 Creating Assessment Sessions Some considerations Creating assessment sessions for individuals classes and schools 19 Printing and using password login codes Implementing the Assessment Some considerations Assessing a student 22 Student instruction poster 23 Form Updating contact details 26 PART TWO FEEDBACK GUIDE Using the Feedback Guide What is feedback
26. V from the menu that appears and click on Import west dar yn T tuto e ogee dy Dedie aei Hd cem dog h om Pe cm t gt rert Pe tee De energ ader Pm meme od momen em ee oc feet ta n m Pha md o tutor m Deme oftege A ba fya G taret dont adel Dated 151420 46 gt palo nihad lest cbe c4 he 6 Find your CSV file in the box that pops up and click on Open 16 2009 InCAS Manual 7 Click Ok on the dialog box that appears to tell you that the data has been successfully imported 8 You will now need to manually enter the school details and enter any additional details for students with additional needs Back at the Admin Menu click on Edit View Biographical Data button First you will edit the school details 10 Click the name of the school you need to edit and then click on Edit The following screen will appear ENTER SCHOOL DETAILS 11 the required information Fields marked with are optional Your InCAS ID will be sent to you with your enrolment information 12 you have students with additional needs in your classroom you will need to manually edit their details also 13 Back at the Admin Menu click on Edit View Biographical Data button In the Student field click on the name of the student you need to edit then click Edit 14 For a student with Special Educational Needs select Yes unde
27. a reference line of actual Age against Age Equivalent Scores Students above the green line have Age Equivalent Scores above their actual age Those below the green line have Age Equivalent Scores below their actual age It is interesting to see the range of scores for each year group or class and the progression with increasing age As with other assessments InCAS has its limits and can only provide reliable age equivalent scores between particular age ranges For example it does not make sense to give a child a Reading Age Equivalent Score of 1 year and 8 months Therefore the red horizontal lines on the Age Comparison Charts represent the upper and lower limits of the range of scores that InCAS can provide You will see these red lines if the students in your class have extremely high or low scores Tips Box and Whisker plots In some cases the box and whisker part of the chart will be in a solid colour which will obstruct the names which fall within in the box To rectify this right click on the box and choose Format Shape and choose No Fill 34 2009 InCAS Manual I nterpreting the feedback Case Study The Age Comparison Chart below shows results for all students who have completed the Word Recognition component of the assessment It can be seen that Year 3s are depicted in orange and Year 5s are depicted in blue Word Recognition All students Hayley is immediately recognisable as a student with an exceptional
28. and this manual provides step by step guidance on getting to know InCAS Part Two of this booklet provides assistance with interpreting the InCAS Assessment Feedback This manual is designed to be self contained so that you will be able to install the InCAS CD Rom and use the program Contact details for further assistance are provided on page 1 2009 I nCAS Manual I ntroduction Top 10 Tips for InCAS Users 1 Make sure you carefully read and follow the installation instructions on pages 7 12 of this manual The Installation Flowchart will help you to plan the steps you need to take 2 Follow the instructions in the manual referring to Password Login Codes Do not let the word password confuse you These codes do not need to be kept secret The codes are provided as individual logins for students to use to begin each ses sion The codes are randomly generated and you will print them out Follow the instructions provided in this manual to use the password login codes 3 ensure students are not distracted while completing the assessment provide them with headphones and select a suitable location 4 The assessment cannot be paused once the student has started Make sure they have had a drink and gone to the toilet before they begin 5 Don t wait to test all the students before transferring data to a safer location Transfer the data to the C Drive or a USB Pen Drive after each testing session see page 24
29. ansfer Data button on the Admin screen uu INCAS ADMIN MENU InCAS Home Page w aatbm Asasaunat ie 4 duuititeaf dapati uf le Lube modas priscts te eed by the Larga hi ant Munt t Ouian Leet 1 fu popie ham Y 1e r Prt reed cect Ia Aware tu ert j ps 42 i 1 TUR WEVA 9 E NT a Wo gt B 1 h ciiam f gt Cante Fw meme pinoro conia derste Mera w cents the fae of aga I cs i if LI v toa 3006 Lowe a b Fae OP Ganee a omnt rt SF Dorem rmm Ye read mm Sree ee _ 84 3 Enter your Username InCAS ID and your 3 Click on Save dialogue and then click the InCAS Password This information can be Transfer button found on the inside cover of your manual 24 2009 InCAS Manual Submitting Data I IMPORTANT 4 Move your mouse to Return Data on the top menu and select Upload Results If you are using several stand alone computers B Pre Page Windows to conduct your InCAS assessments you will a sd que 1 need to follow the data submission process for each computer He Ow
30. asa of ttavia teed ures wa gerwatad 2 hows uj ine D sw 6 Once you have selected the correct file click the Upload button 7 After few moments a summary page of your uploaded data will be displayed Tip Feedback Data For guidance retrieving and interpreting your feedback see Part Two of this manual 2009 InCAS Manual 25 Form Updating Contact Details Itis essential that you keep your InCAS contact details current so we can communicate important information to Please use this form to let us know about any changes in contact details l Please mail or fax it to InCAS Australia Details are provided on Page 3 Please make changes to LI Principal contact details InCAS Coordinator contact details Other contact details Change of Principal Contact Details Surname Email Change of I nCAS Co ordinator Contact Details Surname Email Please use this space to provide details of other changes 26 2009 InCAS Manual PART TWO Feedback Guide What is feedback Feedback gives a profile for the whole school individual classes and individual students Student reports allow the teacher to see reading spelling and mathematics abilities in relation to vocabulary non verbal ability and attitudes The analysis of reading and spelling scores will enable a teacher to see which students have good word recognition and
31. back InCAS allows you to download different types of feedback displayed in different formats Which types you choose depends on the information you wish to see and how you wish to use it The table below outlines the different types of feedback available to you and directs you to the page you will need to refer to in the manual to obtain and interpret this feedback SOFTWARE REQUI REMENTS To download and view the feedback you will need Microsoft Excel and Adobe Acrobat Reader Adobe Acrobat Reader is available for free download from the Adobe website www adobe com Format To download To interpret Adobe PDF Data is customised according to your specifications and can be displayed at As below Page 30 Page 36 student class or year group level Scores chart Longitude chart This option displays the full profile of a student in graphical format Adobe PDF Page 30 Page 36 This options shows progress made over a period of time and is available only after the student has been assessed in their second year of participation Difference table Microsoft Excel This options shows the differences between chronological age and age Microsoft Excel equivalent scores in a tabular format Scores table This option produces the same display as Standard feedback but in Excel Microsoft Excel format in order that you may work more easily with the data 28 2009 InCAS Manual
32. component a d Mental Arithmetic is further broken down into the e te four areas of Addition Subtraction Multiplication and _ Division Mandy Mango d Each student is presented with a range of Mental Maths questions that give an accurate overall estimation of his her attainment However when the assessment is sub divided into the four modules described above the accuracy of each measure is necessarily lower because they are based on much fewer questions When the confidence interval of a module measure exceeds plus or minus one year InCAS does not report that score If this happens an asterisk will appear in the feedback instead Attitude e Attitude scores are reported on a scale of 1 to 5 2009 InCAS Manual 33 I nterpreting the feedback I nterpreting Age Comparison Charts How is the Age Comparison Chart presented Age Comparison Charts are presented as a box and whisker plot Feedback is produced for all pupils who completed the component of the assessment you choose to view You can choose to view either by Class or Year groups The box and whisker plot is presented in Microsoft Excel You will need to alter your security settings to enable Macros Once the chart is displayed you can customise your feedback by using the drop down menus at the top of the screen You need to select the assessment component i e Reading General Mathematics and the cohort i e Class or Year group T
33. d from research across the world into the progress of students in schools Further information can be found at the CEM website at http cemcentre org InCAS Australia at The University of Western Australia 5 authorised by CEM to coordinate the InCAS assessment in Australia The assessment is a PC compatible CD Rom based program Students can work through the assessment without the need for close supervision using the mouse to record their responses The items becomes progressively difficult so that it is extremely rare even for gifted students to reach the ceiling of the assessment The program is tailored to each student s ability and if a student starts to falter in a given section the program automatically moves on to the next suitable section In this way the student is not presented with a fixed number of questions that must be attempted to the detriment of the student who is aware that he or she cannot answer correctly The assessment is designed to assess students in many different contexts and is not designed to assess students against local curriculum objectives Students can be assessed at any time of the year as long as the assessment is administered only once per academic year The user friendly nature of the program means that the student needs only to click on computer screen buttons in order to enter their response It is helpful for teachers to have familiarity with the assessment prior to students using the program
34. e class level In order to further guide your planning and action Handbooks are available for the areas of Reading and Mathematics These handbooks have been written by Christine Merrel and Peter Tymms of the CEM Centre at Durham University There is no cost associated with obtaining these Handbooks We recommend you download and refer to these handbooks They are available from the InCAS website Login to InCAS 2 Hover your cursor over Downloads 3 Click on Reading Handbook or Maths Handbook A download will begin The Handbooks are in PDF format amp D 40 2009 InCAS Manual 2009 I nCAS Manual 2009 Manual 2009 I nCAS Manual Graduate School of Education The University of Western Australia M428 35 Striling Highway Crawley WA 6009 Tel 61 8 6488 2859 Fax 61 8 6488 1052 Emal joanne faulkner uwa edu au CAICOS Provider Code 001285
35. etails Maths handbook Displays recent activity on your InCAS account Deletes all previously uploaded files This option should be used with care Produces a table to check which assessments students have completed and when Produces a table to check name date of birth and identifier information for students Use this table to check the Unique Student Number UPN for each student These details need to be updated before the longitudinal results can be viewed This link is used to upload results from assessments see Page 23 of the User Manual handbook To access Standard and Custom feedback To access Age Comparison Charts UK version of the User Guide available for download UK version of the Feedback Guidance available for download Download a paper to support planning and action for reading based on InCAS results Import details for students who have been assessed using PIPS Baseline Assessment Download a paper to support planning and action for maths based on InCAS results 2009 InCAS Manual 29 Accessing the feedback Downloading Feedback This topic is divided into three sections in order to guide you through downloading the three types of feedback available from InCAS SECTION 1 Standard Feedback SECTION 2 Custom Feedback SECTION 3 Comparison Chart SECTION 1 Standard feedback 1 Hover your cursor over the Results Analysis tab and click on the Feedback Form option 2 The following tab
36. he drop down menu looks like the one shown below Yetgroupe yo Y2 gt Classes L2 What does the Age Comparison Chart mean The box and whisker plot shows a picture for each class or year group Box and whisker plots help the teacher to see The general starting point of the whole class B The homogeneity of the class The varying strengths of the class Individual students who stand out as being exceptional within the class Each pupil s score is represented by a small diagonal line which their name is written next to The box and whisker part of the plot is shown in the diagram and explained below median half of the students unusual Nstudent 2596 2596 2596 25 The box width will vary on your plot The width of the box shows the range of ages for the middle half of the class or year group The line in the middle of the box is called the median and represents the middle score for the year or class group The box holds half the students in your class and the whiskers normally extend to the highest and lowest scores in the class Sometimes there is a student outside of the box and whisker portion which indicates that they have an extremely low or high score in comparison to the rest of the class The box and whisker part of the chart is plotted on a graph as shown in the diagram below c Age Equivalent Score years Ei 9 Years The diagonal green line is
37. ick the name of the class the student belongs to in the white Class box 5 Click on the name of the student in the white Student box 6 Click on the Edit button next to the white Student box 7 Change to details you need to and click OK to save the information im Open InCAS and log in as INCASUSER 2 Click on Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click on the name of the school the student belongs to in the white School box 4 Click on the name of the class the student belongs to in the white Class box s Click on the name of the student in the white Student box 6 Click on the Delete button next to the white Student box 1 Open InCAS and log in as INCASUSER 2 Click on Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click on the name of the school the student belongs to in the white School box 4 Click on the name of the class the student belongs to in the white Class box 5 Click the name of the student in the white Student box 6 In the white box to the right of the Move button click on the name of the class you want to move the student to 7 Click the Move button In the example shown below Sally Strawberry will be moved to Mr Sprout s class EDIT amp VIEW BIOGRAPHICAL DATA EG ee Com Cmm miu dto nem Can folio aita 18 2009 Creating Assessmen
38. ions poster for you to photocopy and display near computers where students are taking the InCAS assessment 15 provided on the next page Checking completed assessments Once students have begun taking the assessments you may wish to check from time to time so you know who has completed what and keep track of what students still need to complete To do so simply follow the instructions on page 19 to view the Password List Any assessment Password Login Codes that remain on this list are yet to be completed 2009 InCAS Manual Once you start the assessment you cannot pause it Make sure you go to the toilet and have a drink before you start 1 Enter the Password Login Code your teacher has given you into the Login Screen 2 Click on Login 3 Check that your name and birthday are right If they are not right ask for help 4 Put your headphones on if you have them Click the Test Sound button Is the volume right If it is not right change it or ask for help 5 Once everything is ready click the Start button 6 Listen carefully to the instructions and use the mouse to record your answers DO NOT BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP IF YOU GET STUCK WHILE YOU ARE USING INCAS Submitting Data Submitting Data Once all assessments have been completed you need 4 You will need to specify a location for the file to to submit your data to InCAS so it can be analysed be saved We recommend creating a fi
39. k on the Log In button 14 Click Yes in the dialog box that appears 15 The files have now been created Troubleshooting I nstalling ull a e RE The computer Refer to the will not install troubleshooting the program note regarding security on page 7 As above There may be a fault with the CD Drive If possible insert another CD Rom into the CD drive to see if you can access the material As above There may be a fault with that particular CD Try installing the CD on another computer If this is unsuccessful obtain another CD through your InCAS contact 2009 Manual SECTION 2 I nstalling on a Network Installing InCAS on a network allows all users to save their assessment data in one central location There are some important points to consider before deciding to use InCAS on a network InCAS must still be installed on every individual computer You will need access to a shared or network drive You should talk to your IT person before deciding to network InCAS If after considering these points you decide to install InCAS on a network follow the instructions below 1 Follow the instructions 10 stopping after Step 10 to install the program on each computer that will be used for InCAS testing 2 On your shared drive you need to create a folder to store your InCAS information and assessment data To do this a Move the cursor
40. le and reported to you as comprehensive InCAS somewhere accessible and calling it InCAS feedback The instructions for submitting data are Data 2009 divided into two sections 5 You can rename the file so the name has SECTION 1 Transferring data meaning to you We recommend naming it INCAS lt ID gt _YY n our example the file is SECTION 2 Submitting data to InCAS named INCAS1234567 09 SECTION 1 wen 4 Transferring Data Recent Documents CHOOSING A TRANSFER METHOD Sume Floppy disk Drive A This is not a recommended option Your InCAS contact cannot access data from a Floppy disk Floppy disk Drive A biographical data only To transfer student information onto a Floppy disk for your own use only INCAS1234567 09 Al Fes 1 Hard disk Program folder Saves your data to the hard drive of your computer If you use this option be prepared to write down the file path that InCAS provides Save dialogue This is the recommended option The instructions iin this manual will step you through this option only 6 Click Save and then click OK in the dialogue box that appears 7 The transfer process is now complete SECTION 2 Submitting data to InCAS 1 Open your web browser and to www incasproject org 1 Login as INCASUSER 2 Select InCAS Login from the top of the 2 Click on the Tr
41. le will appear on your screen Click on Standard Feedback The results you obtain will look similar to those shown below 30 SECTION 2 Custom feedback I Hover your cursor over the Results Analysis tab and click on the Feedback Form option 2 The following table will appear on your screen Click on Custom Feedback CA You will now need to select options to customise your data output 4 The first choice you must make is the level of the data Your options are Pupil level Feedback is produced for an individual pupil You will need to repeat the process to generate feedback for multiple pupils There is an All Pupils function which you can choose later in the process to generate individual feedback for all of your pupils Class level Feedback is produced for all pupils in the class and can be saved in a single file This option will take a little longer to download than Pupil level data as it is a bigger file Year group School level Feedback is produced for all pupils in a year group or school and can be saved in a single file This option will take a little longer to download than the Class level option as it is a bigger file 5 Select the level from the drop down box 6 Select the Academic Year you wish to generate feedback for Version Neos s p Depending on your earlier choice you may be asked to select a class to view 2009 InCAS Manual
42. ly low score Students around the bottom of the box and whisker i e Dannielle Caitlin J ason and Nathan are achieving well below their actual age Students around the top of the box and whisker i e ohnathon Megan and Thomas are achieving well above their actual age n Year 3 there is a 4 5 year difference between the highest and lowest Age Equivalent Scores n Year 5 there is a 7 5 year difference between the highest and lowest Age Equivalent Scores 12 11 4 e gt 2 9 Reference o Upper Lima t Lower Limit o 3 S 5 gt 8 o lt 7 6 5 7 8 9 10 11 Age Years 2009 InCAS Manual 35 I nterpreting the feedback Custom Feedback Custom feedback comes in four formats depending on the options you select from the InCAS website As such the information on Custom Feedback is divided Case Study into four sections The Score Charts below are for the student Garth SECTION 1 Scores Chart Grape Looking at the Score Charts gives us a visual SECTION 2 Longitude Chart representation of Garth s Age Equivalent Scores We can see that for example while Garth is performing SECTION 3 Difference Table slightly higher than his actual age in General Maths he has an Age Equivalent Score much higher than his SECTION 4 Scores Table actual age for Developed Ability We can visually see how much weaker his Comprehension Skills are in SECTION 1 comparison with
43. ment you would like the Class to undertake 8 A password will be automatically generated for each student You will access these when you print the password list see Page 21 Repeat for each class You will also need to repeat to create multiple sessions for one class School Sessions l Open InCAS and login as INCASUSER za Click Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click the name of the school in the white School box 4 Click on the Assess button to the right of the white School box 5 The Enter Assessment Session Details box will appear 6 Click on the assessment you would like the School to undertake 7 password will be automatically generated for each student You will access these when you print the password list see Page 21 8 Repeat for each school You will also need to repeat to create multiple sessions for one school 20 2009 Creating Assessment Sessions SECTION 3 Printing and Using Password Login Codes Printing Password Login Codes Continued Printing Password Login Codes 6 From here you will need to print a copy Choose File then Print Set up the options for your 1 Open InCAS and login as INCASUSER printer as you would for any other document 2 Click on the Reports button 7 Your printed copy can now used by students logging into their assessment sessions 3 Click on Password List in the white Report box Using
44. nCAS must be installed a PC compatible 1 Who will be the best person to supervise Students while they complete InCAS Remember students should be able to work Minimum specifications through the assessment independently and only require minimal supervision Specifications 2 The computer should be located in a quiet area where students can hear the audio Alternatively students could be provided Windows 98 or This information will be displayed headphones later as one of the screens when you start the computer 3 If students will be using a laptop ensure that a p mouse is connected or that the student can navigate adequately using the touch panel My Computer icon from your desktop 4 The computer must meet minimum and choose Properties specifications as listed in the adjacent table or you are likely to experience major problems Pentium II 200 Right click the My Computer icon with using the program or better from your desktop and choose Properties 5 You will need to install the InCAS program of each computer used for testing 128 MB installed As above RAM 500 MB 6 Optional If you are using multiple computers free hard disk to assist with completing assessments and your space school has a network or shared drive you may be able to keep all assessment data together by instaling a shared InCAS database Please URN cake refer to the manual
45. ng on it and then clicking Start You will be presented with another list This list Shows a selection of the items that students may be presented with Choose an item by clicking on it then click on Show Item PICTURE VOCABULARY The item will be presented exactly as the students will see and hear it You will need to select an answer in order to close the item screen in order to return to the Browse Items menu Closing InCAS To close InCAS click on the Exit button at the bottom of the screen Students will not be able to exit or pause InCAS while they are undertaking assessments 2009 InCAS Manual Getting to Know I nCAS Understanding What the Questions Measure Picture Vocabulary Students hear a word and choose the picture that represents that word PICTURE VOCABULARY This category is measuring the student s understanding of increasingly difficult words Non Verbal The student sees a collection of shapes in a particular order They must find the same pattern in a _ larger collection of shapes 11 lt 1 VEREAL This category is measuring X the student s ability to reason through increasingly difficult problems Word Recognition WORD RECOGNITION The student hears a word and must then identify the written representation of that word on screen This category 15 measuring the student s ability to recognise increasingly difficult written words
46. nted an icon that looks like this Move your cursor to the icon and double click 6 In the dialog box that appears move your cursor to the drop down menu at the bottom of the box indicated in red Click on the arrow and use your cursor to select All Files Browse 4 Look 0904110996 0 m 12 My Recent Documents 9 Desktop My Documents J Fie nome Opes Mu Fhes of type Programa w Lancel 7 Choose the InCAS 2009 icon by moving the cursor to it and double clicking The icon will look similar to the one below 8 Click on the button to indicate that you accept the Terms and Conditions Click OK Click Install on the next box that appears 10 The program will now install When prompted click on Finish 11 You now need to create a folder to store your InCAS files and information Navigate to the All Users folder and open it then right click the mouse choose New gt Folder and name your folder InCAS 2009 10 2009 Installing the I nCAS Program Installing on a Single Computer continued 12 Open the InCAS program You now need to direct InCAS to the folder you just created Click the symbol next to the Database Folder dialog box and navigate to the folder you wish to use Dututzwos Frider m Seer Punt 13 Enter the password INCASUSER and clic
47. o obtain this score these modules must be completed on the same day Tip Password login codes Do not let the word password confuse you These codes do not need to be kept secret The codes are provided as individual logins for students to use to begin each session The codes randomly generated and you will print them out Follow the instructions provided in this manual to use the password login codes SECTION 2 Creating Assessment Sessions for Individuals Classes and Schools Individual Student 1 Open InCAS and login as INCASUSER 2 Click Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click the name of the school the student belongs to in the white School box 4 Click the name of the class the student belongs to in the white Class box Click the name of the student in the white Student box 6 Click on the Assess button to the right of the white Student box EDIT amp VIEW BIOGRAPHICAL DATA a 7 The Enter Assessment Session Details box will appear NOTE If you select a student who only has incomplete biographical data entered a message box will appear Follow the instructions on Page 18 to change student details and add the required information c P S 8 Click on the assessment you would like the student to undertake You need to read the important information in Section 1 Some considerations on Page 19
48. owing methods I nCAS Office 08 6488 2859 Vivienne Pepper Email vivienne pepper uwa edu au Jo Faulkner Email joanne faulkner uwa edu au The postal details for the InCAS Project are as follows I nCAS Australia Graduate School of Education University of Western Australia 35 Stirling Highway Crawley Perth Western Australia 6009 Please use the following space to record any other important contacts such as your school s InCAS Coordinator 2009 InCAS Manual I ntroduction For New Users InCAS stands for Interactive Computerised Assessment System InCAS is a fully adaptive program meaning that it presents an assessment tailored to the individual student s ability just like the PIPS Baseline Assessment Unlike PIPS InCAS can be used to assess students at any time throughout the year once per academic year The program has been specifically designed so students can work through the assessments without the need for close supervision The items are diagnostic and cover a broad range of areas including reading skills maths skills attitudes and non verbal ability Feedback is immediate provides age equivalent scores and is explicitly linked to practical teaching strategies Feedback can be used to profile whole schools year groups classrooms and individual students The InCAS assessment was developed by the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring CEM University of Durham England InCAS has been develope
49. r the SEN field by clicking in the circle Students with SEN can be categorised into the following fields by selecting the check boxes Cognitive and learning difficulties Emotional behavioural and social difficulties Sensory and physical difficulties Communication and interaction difficulties Deaf Mild moderate severe profound 15 Once you have completed the details for the student click OK You can continue to alter as many students as necessary ENTER STUDENT DETAILS aE SECTION 2 Entering individual data l Open InCAS and log in as INCASUSER 2 Click on Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click on the name of the school the student belongs to in the white School box 4 Click on the name of the class the student belongs to in the white Class box 5 Click the New button next to the white eG Student box EDIT amp VIEW BIOGRAPHICAL DATA in all student details Fields 6 Manually fill marked with are optional 7 Click OK to save student information 2009 I nCAS Manual 17 Entering Student I nformation Editing Student nformation If you need to change the personal details of a student eg Name Date of Birth SEN information you can do so by going through these steps l Open InCAS and log in as INCASUSER 2 Click on Edit View Biographical Data 3 Click on the name of the school the student belongs to in the white School box 4 Cl
50. rt in InCAS in previous years you must use only the 2009 CD Rom and Manual this year Tip Using the mouse Unless stated otherwise you will need to use only the left hand button of your mouse Normally you need only click the mouse once that is press the left hand button once If you have to double click then press the left hand button twice in quick succession The position of the cursor on the screen is shown either by a hand an arrow or when entering text a vertical line which sometimes flashes When you want to click something move the cursor to the appropriate position on the screen and then click the mouse Tip What is the desktop This is the screen your computer rests at after turning the computer on The desktop typically shows icons for various software programs available on the computer Troubleshooting Uninstalling Symptom Explanation The computer will not remove the program The security settings for your computer may have been modified so that only IT administrators may remove or install software Check with IT to see if you have sufficient permission to remove or add programs to the computer Ask IT to provide you with sufficient permission to uninstall 2008 InCAS software 2009 InCAS Manual 9 Installing the I nCAS Program STEP 2 Installing the I nCAS Software InCAS can be installed on a stand alone machine
51. s years the PIPS Reading and Mathematics scores have been converted to Age Equivalent Scores and are plotted on the Longitude Charts for Reading and General Mathematics respectively to enable progress from the start of school to be monitored gt IR 5 oO Age Equivalent Score OD Occasionally a students score on a previous assessment will be higher than his her latest score This is usually within the confidence intervals and so the two scores are not significantly different Very rarely this difference will be a significant one and this would tend to apply to students with special educational needs It may be that the student was lucky in the first assessment selecting correct multiple choice answers by chance and the later assessment is a more accurate reflection of their achievement or ability The example below shows a Longitude Chart for Reading i e the composite score derived from Word Longitude Chart Actual Age at first InCAS assessment 7 years and 3 months Reading Age Equivalent Score approximately 7 years and 6 months slightly higher than his actual age Actual Age at second assessment 8 years and 3 months Reading Age Equivalent Score approximately 7 years and 9 months fallen behind the expected level f or his actual age Third assessment Reading score was significantly lower than would be expected for his Actual Age Fourth assessment Reading Age in line with Actual Age 9 9 5 10 10 5
52. sment due to low Word Recognition and ue ur lo 9 o Ro Word Decoding scores are credited with the minimum Comprehension score in order to calculate their Reading scores GenMaths is the overall score from the General Mathematics component Picture Vocabulary amp Non Verbal Developed Ability E PicVocab is the overall score from the Picture Vocabulary component NonVerbal is the overall score from the Non Verbal component amp Taken together these scores indicate Developed Ability ken Developed Ability has been defined for Professor Peter 7n 1 5 Tymms Director of the CEM Centre as the ability of children to learn This ability is developed by children a over their lifetime and will continue to develop e Developed ability is calculated by using a combination of items which measure language acquisition and non verbal ability Word Recognition Word Decoding Comprehension and Spelling amp WordRecog is the overall score from the Word Recognition component WordDecod is the overall score from the Word ME NON Decoding component If have not completed component with of the students from your class for example if you omitted the Spelling component the column for that component will not appear Mental Arithmetic MentArith is the overall score from the Mental Arithmetic
53. t Sessions Creating Assessment Sessions Before assessing students with InCAS you must create assessment sessions for each student Every session will be assigned a Password login code These Should then be printed for future use The instructions for setting up assessment sessions are divided into three sections SECTION 1 Some considerations SECTION 2 Creating assessment sessions for Individuals classes and schools SECTION 3 Printing and using password login codes SECTION 1 Some Considerations m There are a number of options to choose from when setting up assessment sessions Modules I ncluded Developed ability Picture vocabulary Assessed in a Non verbal ability single session Reading Word recognition Assessed in a Word decoding single session Comprehension Spelling Individual Select one category Each module sessions at a time to assess assessed in a These shorter Separate sessions may be session appropriate for younger students 2 The spelling module may be difficult for young children so you may wish to omit this module 3 Take care not to create multiple overlapping sessions for the same student For example if you select the Reading assessment do not create a Word Recognition module for the same student Refer to the table above 4 InCAS feedback will include a reading score which is calculated using the Word Recognition Word Decoding and Comprehension modules In order t
54. top make sure you attach an external mouse if students have trouble navigating with the built in laptop touch pad Remember sessions cannot be paused or saved and resumed at a later time Some sessions are timed and results will be affected if students leave the computer during the session SECTION 2 Assessing a Student Things you will need E Computer with InCAS installed Student Biographical information entered correctly into the InCAS program Printed Password Login Code list Mouse Headphones recommended Sufficient time for student to complete assessment 1 Open the InCAS Program or if you have already been working with InCAS click the Back to Log in Screen button on the main menu 2 Students should be given a copy of the password login code they are to use You may wish to provide this on a post it note Students must check that their Biographical Data appears correctly on the screen It is essential that Date of Birth is correct as this is used to calculate the starting point of the assessment 4 Students should click the Test Sound button to make sure the headphones or speakers are working and the volume is at the correct level 5 Once the student is happy with the sound level they should click the Start button 6 The assessment will begin The student should listen carefully to questions and instructions and use the mouse to record their response Tip Student Instruct
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