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Topic 42 - Importing and Exporting Data - Introduction

In many regions, schools/programs manage their own Connecting Activities data and provide that data regularly to the WIB office. Topics 42-44 of the database manual describe this flow of data.

At the regional level, develop a plan for the flow of data:

  1. Summarize the overall process for sharing data.
  2. List the different locations where data entry will take place. What type of data will be entered at these locations? Placements? Work-Based Learning Plans? Teacher Externships? Etc.
  3. List the files that will be shared with the regional office and how they will be sent. Will schools/programs provide a memory stick with the entire MassSTW2008 program folder? Or will specific files be emailed? If so, which files? Four files are required for the quarterly reports: STW.skl, Employer.skl, Activity.skl and MCASScores.skl. Three other files are optional - AllPlans.skl (Work-Based Learning Plans), Contacts.skl (names of supervisors and other employer contacts), and SContacts.skl (names of school-based staff and teachers).
  4. How often will you do a data merge? How soon will you do a practice merge to see that everything looks right?
  5. Assign a unique 2 or 3 letter IDPrefix to each person/computer. Each person/computer using the database should use the Setup Screen - available from the Main Menu - to enter this IDPrefix on the computer when setting up the database for the year. This way, all record numbers will be unique, and not overlap with anyone else in the region.
  6. Also make sure that the Student ID field will have unique values. If you let the database assign Student IDs to each person (by clicking the orange button with the arrow on the placement form) then this will be all set. But if you use the Student IDs from the school, you probably want to prefix the ID with a 1-2 letter code, in case two schools use the same ID numbers.
  7. Decide what you will do if the person who merges the data finds errors in the data that was entered off-site. (He or she can make the corrections, but eventually the same corrections must be made at the off-site location, or else the same errors will be sent in next time.)
  8. Most importantly, think about ways that you can use this data, beyond just submitting the quarterly reports. Will you send reports back to each school or program? Create employer outreach lists? Create "Skill Gain" reports using data from the Work-Based Learning Plans? Print out Activity Lists from the Activities file? Explore the Reports menu and different layouts to think of ways that you can use the merged database to share information with others in your region.