Whether it’s a formative assessment or a large districtwide common assessment, we know that testing day can make students and teachers nervous. Students are expected to demonstrate their mastery of the concepts, while teachers want to make sure everything goes according to plan. With nerves running high amongst students, teachers, and school leaders alike, there are steps you can take to help ensure that everything goes smoothly once it’s time to take that test. 

On days when many students are taking online tests at one time, as with any technology, there is always a chance that performance issues could arise from additional pressure on the network, servers, and devices. This is especially the case in large districts where students are signing onto common assessments at the same time and, in particular, are using their own devices. This seldom happens on Edulastic as we are constantly re-evaluating our back-end set-up to support the front-end load. Just as we do our best to set the stage for success, there are minor things that you can do on your end to reduce the chance of encountering technical glitches on testing days if you’re looking to go the extra mile. 

Here are four ways that teachers, students, and school leaders can ensure a smooth test experience for everyone involved.

1. Shut Down Background Apps

Prior to taking a major Edulastic assessment, shut down all background applications on the device. Extra apps running in the background, even if students aren’t actively using them, can strain the district network. As a result, devices may run slower and have trouble loading all question types. Students should shut off music, other tabs, and any other apps that may be open on their device. Plus, this will help create a safe and cheating-free test environment!

2. Follow the Rule of 5

Teachers can encourage their students to stagger when they log onto Edulastic, especially when multiple classes are using Edulastic at the same time. Staggering the sign-on of students helps to reduce the load on the district network. A good way to think of this is the “Edulastic Rule of 5” — have 5 students sign-on every 20-30 seconds until the whole class is accessing the assessment. This is a very small and specific adjustment, but it can yield huge results. 

3. Double Check Links

Adding multimedia and various links to assessments is one of the many perks of Edulastic. This adds a new dimension to tests and often gives students a whole new way of thinking about the given question. When common district assessments include links and multimedia, teachers and school leaders should do a final check to make sure there are no broken links. This will ensure that students have no problems as they go through the questions and #RockTheTest. 

4. Share this Article with your IT Team

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The district IT team contains the real experts. They know exactly what school servers and networks can handle. If you are a teacher or a school/district leader, we recommend working with your IT team when giving districtwide common assessments. Share this article with them, and they can double check that your network is optimized for running with Edulastic. 

Technical issues are rare for Edulastic. The website and app are optimized to work in large districts and with large amounts of students at once. The chances of technical issues arising are very low, but it is always good to be safe and prepared when it comes to taking tests online. We hope these tips will help you have a great testing day! 

The Edulastic Status website has the most up-to-date information regarding our app. And as always, the Edulastic team is here to support you. We have unlimited email support available 24/7 (support@edulastic-web.snapwiz.net), and phone support available Monday-Friday 8AM-8PM Eastern Time (510-901-4739). 

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