PhilNeal

@matt40k Capita does not encourage TPs to get above their authority level!

@ITGURU/@Zag The ONLY way we have been able to replicate this error is when Exams is open when the upgrade is being applied. Re-applying the upgrade does solve this. SOLUS 3.8 expected November 2014 will be able to force closure of Exams and avoid the problem.

Is this person in the system twice?

Some issues are caused by basedata. Try refreshing.

Email from the DfE

I've just received a note to say that this project has been stopped. Too many other projects happening.

From spring 2015 there will be an interventions tool within SIMS. It is already possible to create user defined fields within SIMS to record the details you describe.

It is added by Curriculum & Lesson Planner. We do still sell this but tend not to promote it. It was a product before it's time. Strangely enough it is well suited for the new curriculum.

Yes the English government is now calling it SEND where "D" is disability. Some conditions are no longer classified as special needs.

Not quite sure what you mean. New SEND codes are available in the summer release. You will still need access to old SEN codes for existing arrangements. Our labels change next spring.

The change from SEN to SEND affects all schools in England. The DfE have only just finalised the new regulations with consequent changes in processes; there are still a few uncertainties. From Sept new assessments have to be under the new rules but existing SEN arrangements continue for a period. The SIMS summer release brings in new codes etc. but we haven't changed the labels. With the right permissions it is possible to click on labels and rename the descriptors. In spring we will bring in a set of enhanced processes to help schools and at that point we will change the labels.

The Exam result aspects are not showing the correct points values attached when put into a Marksheet - so I can't calculate total points scores/capped 8/ work out the best 2 BTEC grades etc. – This has been raised by Cambridge today and we are investigating – I have spoken to the team & they have confirmed that there are a few cases regarding this. This will be escalated for a fix. No Welsh Board results from previous seasons are coming through – There are 2 cases (one resolved one live waiting for data which may be connected to this issue) however we would need to know more to investigate. Maths - If modular and linear were taken in the same season (mainly Nov 2013) the discounting is not working – SIMS Exams cannot discount if the 2 exams were taken in the same season, this has to be done manually. Some Cambridge Technical IT qualifications are being discounted, even though the student hasn't taken any other qualification with the same discount code. - We are not aware of this issue and would need a case to be raised to investigate it. I'm afraid that even beyond results day, anomalies will be found in exam board data. A2C will make this easier to deal with in future years.

@TheScarfedOne We're working on what the "right" solution is. Technically there is no need to flag the universal free school meal as this is age related (Reception, Yr 1 & 2) but it might be necessary for processing dinner money. If you're using SIMS Dinner Money then resource 23007 gives advice on how to handle the new requirement. There will be permanent changes made to DM to make this more straight forwards.

If I believed that I wouldn't be so passionate about what I do!

SIMS will do all of the PI calculations for you without needing to export. We've moved the analysis from Exams Organiser to .net. Check out the release notes. Also ask on SupportNet Forums where you will find experts on Exams.

There is a results day survival guide on SupportNet.

I'd say this is a driver for us to make things simpler. Schools cannot run effectively or efficiently on paper. We will try harder.

Will it be there in the next gen? Probably not!

I come back to my original point - why encourage the use of paper? As soon as anything goes onto paper it is out of date.

You can also configure the home page to show real-time info

It's not something I'd recommend. Mixing information in data always complicates the solution. Attendance is attendance, effort is effort. Additionally you can only assess effort at the end of the lesson not the start and the whole point of recording lesson attendance is to act on absence immediately.

Interesting Windows 8 store has Apps!

When I taught (in the olden days) the fire register was in fact a truant trap. These days that is checked on every change of lesson so I can't see the point of wasting time on finding a solution to something that is not encouraged by the experts i.e. the fire service.

Are you opposed to talking to the fire service?

Talk to your fire service - almost certainly they will say that they will ignore anything you say!