Technology Requirements for Online Testing

For the South Dakota Smarter Balanced Assessment

Copyright © 2014 American Institutes for Research. All rights reserved.

Site Readiness Network Requirements Hardware and Software Requirements Secure Browser Installation Network Diagnostics and Configuration

Topics

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By the end of this presentation, you should be able to: Understand your role and responsibilities Prepare for online tests at your school Install the secure browser Troubleshoot technical problems during the tests.

Objectives

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• Logins and passwords• Minimum system requirements• Secure browser• Determining system readiness/network

capacity• Troubleshooting technical issues

Technology Coordinator Tasks

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Network Connection:• A stable, high-speed (wired or wireless) network and

internet connection are required for the test. • The response time for each test depends on your

network’s bandwidth, number of students simultaneously testing, size of test content, proxy server (if used), and other factors.

Network Requirements

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Network Configuration:• Session timeouts on proxy servers and other devices should be set to

values greater than the average scheduled testing time. For example, if test sessions are scheduled for 60 minutes, consider session timeouts of 65–70 minutes.

• Web proxy servers must be configured to NOT cache data received from servers.

• For any device that performs traffic shaping, packet prioritization, or quality of service, the IP addresses to be used for testing should be given a high priority to ensure the best performance.

Network Requirements

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Whitelisting:

Content filters, firewalls, and proxy servers should be configured to allow the URLs for the servers being used.

The URLs for the following sites need to be accessible for testing:• Secure Browser • Test Administrator Training Sites• Practice and Training Test Sites• Test Administrator Interface• Test Information Distribution Engine (TIDE)• Interim Teacher Hand Scoring System (THSS)• Online Reporting System (ORS)

Network Requirements

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Performance Factors:• Bandwidth• Number of students simultaneously testing• Wireless networking configuration (if used)• Secure browser

Network Requirements

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Bandwidth:• At least 20Kbps bandwidth per student being tested• Affected by both Local Area Network (LAN) traffic and

internet traffic from the router• LAN should always be analyzed to determine potential

traffic bottlenecks

Network Performance

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Number of students simultaneously testing:• Network performance may slow when large numbers of

students are testing at one time. • Multiply the number of students being tested by 20Kbps to

get an estimate of bandwidth needed, and compare that estimate with the network speed test.

• Perform network analyses at different times to ensure adequate capacity.

Network Diagnostics Tool

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Network Diagnostics Tool

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Wireless Network Configuration:Wireless traffic must use encryption.• Wi-Fi Protected Access II (WPA2) • Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)

Wireless access points have limits on total bandwidth and number of simultaneous devices in use.

Network Performance

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System Requirements

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Supported Operating Systems

Minimum Requirements Recommended Specifications

Windows

XP (Service Pack 3), Vista, 7, 8.0, 8.1

Server 2003, 2008 (thin client)

Pentium 4 or newer processor that supports SSE2

512 MB of RAM

200 MB of hard drive space

Pentium 4 or newer processor that supports SSE2

2 GB+ RAM

80 GB+ hard drive

Mac OS X (PowerPC)

10.5

PowerPC G3, G4, or G5 processor

128 MB RAM

200 MB hard drive

1.3 GHz processor

2 GB+ RAM

80+ GB hard drive

Mac OS X (Intel)

10.5

Intel x86 processor

512 MB of RAM

200 MB hard drive space

1 GHz or faster processor

1 GB+ RAM

80+ GB hard drive

Mac OS X (Intel)

10.6– 10.10

Intel x86 processor

512 MB of RAM

200 MB hard drive space

Pentium 4 or newer processor

2+ GB RAM

80+ GB hard drive

Supported Mobile Devices

Operating System

Supported Tablets Browsers for TA Sites Browsers for Student Sites

Android 4.0.4 to 4.4 Google Nexus 10Motorola XoomSamsung Galaxy Note (10.1)Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1)LearnPad Quarto

Native browser GoogleChrome

Android SecureBrowser(AIR Mobile secure browser)

Chrome v31 to v39 Chromebook GoogleChrome GoogleChrome

iOS 6.0 to 8.1 iPad 2iPad 3Fourth-generation (Retina Display)iPad Air

Safari iPad secure browser

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• Monitor settings may need to be adjusted if test items with shaded images (e.g., pie charts) are very light or cannot be seen.

• Monitor Resolution should be set to 1024 x 768 or better.• Students using small monitors or tablets may need to

scroll vertically and/or horizontally. The Zoom tool can be used to enlarge the content.

Appropriate Monitor Display

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• The secure browser prevents students from accessing other computer or internet applications and copying test information during testing.

• Practice and training tests can be accessed with either the secure browser or with Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, or most native tablet web browsers.

Secure Browser

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• The Student Testing Site requires the use of a secure browser.

• The correct secure browser for each operating system must be downloaded and installed on all computers that will be used for student testing.

Secure Browser

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Secure BrowserComputer/Device Secure Browser Location

Windows, Mac, and Linux computers

sd.portal.airast.org

Android tablets Play Store

iPad tablets App Store

Google Chromebooks Chrome Web Store

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*The secure browser version that was installed for the Field Test is not valid for future assessments.

Installation Method:• Download the secure browser from your portal and install

it.• Download and save the secure browser onto a media

device (such as a flash drive), and copy and install the files on each computer.

• Download and save the secure browser to a network folder, and then copy and install the files on each computer.

Secure Browser Installation

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MSI file type enables deployment using a number of tools:• Active Directory Group Policy• Microsoft SMS• Microsoft SCCM• Microsoft WSUS• Windows NT Batch

Secure Browser InstallationWindows

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MacDMG file type enables deployment using Apple Remote Desktop. Munki Filewave

LinuxTAR file type enables deployment using a number of tools including the following: Shell scripts Puppet

Secure Browser InstallationMac and Linux

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AndroidThe secure browser can be downloaded from the Google Play Store.

iPadsThe secure browser can be downloaded from the App store.

Secure Browser InstallationTablets

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• Chromebooks app is available at the Chrome Web Store

• Installation varies for managed and non-managed Chromebooks

Secure Browser InstallationChromebooks

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• Configure internet browsers on Test Administrator devices to allow pop-ups from your testing websites.

Pop-Ups

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Spaces, Launchpad, and Fast User Switching must be disabled.

Secure Browser ConfigurationMac 10.7 and Above

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• Voice technology must be available and functioning for students who require this accommodation.

• For Windows and Mac operating systems, default voice packs are generally pre-installed.

• Windows users may also choose to use the NeoSpeechTM

Julie voice pack for online tests. The Julie voice pack and installation instructions can be downloaded from TIDE.

• Linux users may need to install a Text-to-Speech package if one was not installed with the operating system.

Text-to-Speech

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Further Information

South Dakota Portal: http://sd.portal.airast.org/

Thank You!

South Dakota Smarter Balanced Assessment Help Desk

Hours Monday–Friday 7 a.m.–7 p.m. ET

Phone 1-855-838-8378

Email SDHelpDesk@air.org