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Guidelines for Conducting the Student Headcount 2019 (Secondary) in WebSAMS

Introduction 1. The Student Headcount 2019 (Secondary), short named as Headcount below, aims at

collecting data of registered students and the number of repeaters of the schools as at the

reference date. The reference date of the Headcount for the 2019/20 school year is

16/09/2019.

2. The Education Bureau (EDB) will send a parameter file to schools’ WebSAMS through

the Communication and Delivery System (CDS) on 05/09/2019. The description of the

CDS message is Student Headcount 2019 (Secondary) Parameter File. Schools have to

import the parameter file before the Headcount can be conducted.

3. The Headcount consists of the following two tasks:

Task 1 - List of Registered Students, which includes detailed information of

registered S1, S2, S3 and S4 students, including student name, Student Reference Number

(STRN), whether the students are dropout(s) before admission to the respective class level

in the current school year and the name of the referral organisations ; and

Task 2 - Statistics of Students and Repeaters by Class Level, which includes

number of S5 and S6 students and number of own school repeaters and repeaters from

other schools.

4. Please note that after completing the Headcount, schools should also conduct the

“Enrolment Survey” and submit the data file to the EDB.

Please be informed that the data file of the Headcount can be prepared and input into the

WebSAMS in advance but can only be confirmed on 16/09/2019 (i.e. the data file for

submission must be updated to the position as at 16 September 2019). School should send

the data file to the EDB through CDS before 12:00 noon on 16/09/2019.

Besides, school should input the required data and generate a backup data file from the

WebSAMS in “Tabular” format before the Headcount. This is for contingency purpose

when school is unable to submit the survey data through the CDS on the Headcount date,

school can still send the data file (after updated to the position of 16 September 2019) in a

CD-R or other storage devices to the Senior School Development Officer for further

processing.

Pre-requisites 1. Please upgrade WebSAMS to Version 3.0.0.30072019 or above.

2. EDB will send a CDS message with the parameter file (SDCTPAFL.DAT) to schools on

05/09/2019 for conducting the headcount. The file will be decrypted automatically in the

CDS module. School has to import the file in the “Process Incoming Message” in the Data

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Communication of the Student module before the Headcount can be conducted.

3. The parameter file specifies the school year and the reference date of the Headcount, the

class levels involved in Task 1 and Task 2 and the expiry date of the parameter file.

Procedure 1. Pre-task

Data Preparation

- Update the operating class information for the 2019/20 school year

- Update the student information as at 16/09/2019 including name, STRN (if any),

class assigned and departure record (if applicable). The STRN is the reference

number of a student assigned by the EDB.

- If the system message “Warning: There is a STRN message (STFCSTRN.DAT or

STFDSTRN.DAT) waiting to import” is displayed, please import the data file as

displayed in the warning message before preparing the outgoing file for Student

Headcount.

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- Update class assigned, if applicable.

- Update departure record, if applicable.

Granting Access Right

User(s) must have access right to access the School Management, Student and CDS

modules.

Handling Incoming Message

Check whether the CDS message “Student Headcount 2019 (Secondary) Parameter

File” with the parameter file has been delivered on 05/09/2019. The file will be

decrypted automatically in the CDS module.

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2. Data File Preparation & Confirmation

2.1 Follow the path below to import the parameter file (SDCTPAFL.DAT) attached in the

CDS message “Student Headcount 2019 (Secondary) Parameter File” for the

Headcount.

Path: Student > Data Communication> Process Incoming Data

2.2 Follow the path below, then select Student Headcount 2019 (Secondary) and press the

“Prepare” button to prepare the data file. Schools can prepare the data file on or before

16/9/2019.

Path: Student > Data Communication > Prepare Outgoing Data

2.3 After the data file has been successfully prepared, click the link of the Preparation

Date to check and maintain the data to be sent to EDB. WebSAMS will capture the

latest relevant data from the Student module when the link is clicked. Manually

entered data will not be deleted when you click the preparation date. It will be

deleted if you press the “Un-prepare” button.

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2.4 Task 1 (List of Registered Students)

You can maintain the data of Dropout Before Admission, the Referral Organisation

and the name of the organisation which makes the referral of the “dropout” student to

school.

By “Dropout”, it refers to students who

(i) are attending primary or secondary classes; and

(ii) have been absent from school for 7 consecutive school days or more.

(For more information on dropouts, please refer to Education Bureau Circular No.

1/2009.)

You have to enter the Name of the Referral Organisation only if you have chosen

“NGO” or “Others” in the “Referral Org” dropdown box. For the Name of the Referral

Organisation field, if a mixture of Chinese and English characters are entered together,

the English character should be entered in double byte alphabet (全形英文).

Save the data after updating.

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2.5 Task 2 (Statistics of Students and Repeaters by Class Level)

You have to enter the number of repeaters from other schools in the textbox

manually, if applicable, as no data will be captured from the Student module.

System calculated data from the Student module will be displayed in the column

marked with asterisk “*”. You can edit the data of the Total No. of Students and No. of

Own Repeaters manually in the textbox next to the column. If no data is manually

entered, the system calculated data will be adopted. Otherwise, manually entered

data will override the system calculated data.

Save the data after updating.

2.6 Preview the prepared data

After the data are maintained and saved, you can preview the prepared data in three

formats, raw, tabular and report through clicking the “Preview” button. In case

schools cannot send the data file to EDB through CDS, please save the data in

tabular format. You can follow the following steps to update the data before

submitting the data file in tabular format to EDB for further processing, if necessary.

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Task 1 (in tabular format)

When completing the column “Ident Doc Type Code” * for students without Hong

Kong Identity Card / Hong Kong Birth Certificate, please refer to the table below and

enter the appropriate 2-digit code.

Identification Document Type Code Table

02 Passport 07 Declaration of ID for Visa purpose

03 Re-entry Permit 08 One-way Permit

05 HK Doc. of Identity for Visa Purpose 09 Others

06 Entry Permit (Dependent for N months) * School must ensure that students registered hold valid documents as at the reference date. For details, please refer to EDB Circular No. 19/2019 “Entry of Non-local Children and Children Holding a Form of Recognizance to Schools in Hong Kong”.

Dropout before Admission: Mark “Y” for Yes. Otherwise, leave it blank.

Referral Organisation: “NGO” for Non-government organisation

“EDB” for Education Bureau

“Others” for Other organisation

“nil” for no referral organisation

Name of the Referral Org: Must enter if the Referral Organisation is “NGO” or

“Others”. English or Chinese name is sufficient.

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Task 2 (in tabular format)

2.7 Data File Confirmation

The data file can only be confirmed on 16/09/2019 and not earlier.

Please update and maintain the prepared data on 16/09/2019 before confirmation

by clicking the link of the preparation date.

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3. Outgoing Message Handling

Prerequisite: The school encryption key must be valid on 16/9/2019.

(1) In the pop-up window, click the “Encrypt” button.

(2) Input the school encryption key and then click the “Encrypt” button. The CDS

message will be processed and then sent to the EDB.

The whole exercise is completed.

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FAQ

Pre-task

1. What can we do if we have not received the CDS message with the parameter file from the

EDB?

A: The CDS message attached with the parameter file was sent to school through the CDS

on 05/09/2019. Please check if the CDS connection works by sending WebSAMS

version or call the CDS helpdesk on 3464 0550 for support, if necessary.

2. What can we do if the CDS message cannot be decrypted automatically?

A: The common key may be corrupted in the above situation. Please contact the CDS

helpdesk on 3464 0550 for support.

Data Extraction & Confirmation

3. What do we need to do if we find this warning when we prepare the data file of the

Headcount?

A: If schools have not updated the STRN of the relevant student, you can import the data

file of the STRN for updating (Path: Student > Data Communication > Process

Incoming Message). If the STRN has already been updated manually, you can delete

the message in the Incoming message of CDS. Please be informed that the message is

a warning and it will not prohibit you from preparing the data files of the

Headcount.

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4. What can we do if the data extracted are incomplete/incorrect?

A: Please first check whether the relevant data in the Student module has to be updated

through the following path:

Path: Student > Profile > Schooling / Student >Info Upload

You may print the Class Enrolment List (R-SCH007) report for reference.

Outgoing Message Handling

5. What can we do if the message cannot be encrypted?

A: Through the following path, check if the encryption key has expired. Renew the school

key, if necessary.

Path:CDS > School Key management > Change School Key

Miscellaneous

6. Is it necessary for WebSAMS to migrate to the 2019/20 school year before extracting data?

A: No, it is unnecessary.

7. Is it necessary to update the student attendance data for 16/9/2019, i.e. mark the absentees

in the Student Attendance module, before conducting the Headcount?

A: No, it is unnecessary. The attendance records do not affect the enrolment information.

Enquiry For general enquiries on the Headcount, please contact your Senior School Development

Officer. Should you have any enquiries concerning WebSAMS and CDS, please contact your

WebSAMS school liaison officer or the CDS helpdesk on 3464 0550.

Systems & Information Management Section

Education Bureau

September 2019