What is the procedure for new schools needing FITNESSGRAM software for the 2008-2009 school year?
Human Kinetics was given a list from TEA of the new schools opening for the 2008-09 school year. These schools are to receive the FITNESSGRAM software at the same price of $230 as last year. The kits are at no cost to the new schools with the costs (including shipping) being charged to TEA. For these new schools ordering the FITNESSGRAM software and kit, The Cooper Institute will again forego their royalty. All new schools will need to be verified by TEA.
If your district has a new school that needs FITNESSGRAM software, please give Human Kinetics a call (1-800-747-4457) and ask to speak to Angie Fiala. Angie is the Texas sales rep and will take care of (1) verifying your school with our TEA list, and (2) sending you a FITNESSGRAM kit which corresponds to the district order of the software from last school year. As always, IT staff should be consulted before the software order is placed for the new school.
My district received the FITNESSGRAM software and kits last year. Can we order more kits or manuals? Who pays for these resources?
You can certainly order additional FITNESSGRAM kits (with no software), manuals, and other FITNESSGRAM-related products. Unfortunately, because your district received the kits last year, you will have to pay for any FITNESSGRAM orders for this school year. If you are in need of additional manuals, curl-up strips, or other FITNESSGRAM ancillaries, please give Angie Fiala a call at 1-800-747-4457 or email: angief@hkusa.com.
What if my district would like to upgrade the program we received last year to one of the network versions?
Please let us know if you want to upgrade your software this year with one of these scenarios:
- Upgrade from Stand alone program to one of the network versions (Small Area Network or the District programs)
- Upgrade from the Small Area Network program to the District Server program
If you are interested in upgrading your program, here are the steps you shoud take:
- Review the system requirements for the network version and the network documentation on this web site.
- Contact our Technical Support staff to discuss what needs to be done to import student information and if you want to have data from last year entered into the upgrade program for historical purposes.
- Contact Angie Fiala for upgrade pricing information.
What are the costs if I do upgrade my current FITNESSGRAM program to one of the network versions?
There would be an upgrade price depending on which version you are using now and which version you want for the upgrade. Angie Fiala can help you with pricing. Your district would have to pay the costs for the upgrade as well as associated shipping charges.
What is the 8.4 update to the software?
Each year we do an update to the FITNESSGRAM software. The latest update is the 8.4 which is now available for free and via download from the FITNESSGRAM web site.
What enhancements/fixes are in the FITNESSGRAM software 8.4 update?
We've added a lot of enhancements to the update, including the following:
- Checks to make sure all relevant student information (i.e., date of birth to calculate the student's age, grade, and gender) are present before entering FITNESSGRAM scores.
- Checks to make sure teachers are assigned to a specific school and not aligned under the Unassigned school.
- A new data validation report that shows teachers which students do not have a date of birth, grade, or gender.
- A new export for the Achievement of Standards report indicating if the student is in the Healthy Fitness Zone for 0 out of 6 test/fitness components up to 6 out of 6 test/fitness components. This export will be in a flat file-comma-delimited text file.
- We've added the Texas PEIMs ethnicity codes to the program so they can be imported (via the custom import option) and exported.
This is a major update to the program so be sure to download it and install it.
Do I need to wait until the FITNESSGRAM 8.4 update is ready before I can re-import my students and/or enter FITNESSGRAM scores from testing this fall?
No. Please go ahead and enter scores for this fall if you have already collected them. There is no need to wait for the update to be ready and installed before adding scores. The update will not affect data already entered into the program.
How do I go about preparing the FITNESSGRAM software for this school year?
Please review the Data Management document written by our technical support staff. Call our tech support staff with any questions you may have about importing and setting up the database for this school year. They are waiting to hear from you!
What training is being offered this school year for FITNESSGRAM?
Listed below are tentative dates for TETN teleconferences set up by TEA for this school year.
Teleconferencing/TETNs on FITNESSGRAM Implementation Requirements and Strategies (Please plan to attend each session, as critical information will be shared at each. Register with your ESC):
3/6: 9am-12pm Software Usages and Upload Process
3/31: 1pm-4pm # 31286 Software Usages and Upload Process
* Please note that dates and content are subject to change. Stay informed through Marissa Rathbone's listserv.
What else do I need in order to administer the FITNESSGRAM tests?
Two additional resources in your FITNESSGRAM kit will help you conduct fitness testing. Also bound into the FITNESSGRAM manual is an audio CD. On the CD are audio tracks for the 15- and 20-meter PACER test as well as the cadences for the curl-up and push-up tests.
In your kit are also samples of the curl-up strips for the curl-up test.
The manual also provides instructions on conducting the individual tests along with required equipment such as mats, rulers or yardsticks, and CD players.
To construct inexpensive Sit and Reach boxes, you can build according to the instructions in the manual or you can substitute cardboard boxes or milk crates and attach a yardstick to the top of the box. Make sure you follow the manual instructions on the placement of the yardstick.
To measure 20 meters for the PACER test, you will need to mark off a distance of 21 yards or 63 feet and 32 inches. Sample PACER scoresheets can be found in Appendix B of the FITNESSGRAM manual.
Copy masters for scoresheets, student fitness records, etc can be found in these locations: (a) Appendix B of the FITNESSGRAM manual, (b) on your software CD in the PDF folder, and (c) on the manual DVD.
Do I need to use the current PACER CD in the manual or can I use the older CD?
No. The differences in the PACER CD bound into the 4th edition of the manual are that the laps for the PACER and the repetitions for curlup and pushup cadences are counted out loud for teachers and students. Otherwise, these tracks are the same.
What can I do to learn how the software works?
Use software training videos to learn about entering information and generating reports from the program. You can access the software training videos by using the following:
The FITNESSGRAM Testing Process
Submitting FITNESSGRAM Results as Specified by SB 530
Information will be forthcoming concerning the procedures that schools and districts will need to follow in order to submit FITNESSGRAM test results to the state and comply with SB 530.
All schools and districts will be able to submit their FITNESSGRAM results to TEA using a web-based program. This program will be able to aggregate the data by school, district, grade, and gender as currently specified by SB 530. Further, and as stated in the language of SB 530, the aggregated FITNESSGRAM data TEA receives will not have student names nor their IDs nor teacher names associated with the data.
Testing students with special needs/disabilities
I have special needs students in my classes. Do I have to send in fitness results to TEA?
From TAHPERD and TEA: The law says all students in grades 3-12 are to be tested. The law allows a school district to determine if a student is unable to participate. Most districts are following the IEP for students with disabilities. They can participate in the areas they are able. Temporarily disabled students (broken arm, flu, etc.) can take the portion of the test they missed later. We agree that any student, including those with special needs, that can complete a fitness test should participate.
Most students can take the PACER aerobic test and quit when they are unable to continue. Some special needs students or those with medical notes concerning asthma, etc. may be exempted.
More information from the TEA is available here.
Testing large groups of students and students not in PE classes
SB 530 indicates that all students in grades 3-12 must go through fitness testing. What is the best way to test large groups of students? How do we test those students not taking physical education? Can I use volunteers to help with testing?
Volunteers are definitely OK as long as you train them about the FITNESSGRAM test protocols and what to look for in terms of error corrections. That being said, if you have access to volunteers, your best solution for large groups would be to have volunteers assist you. Please make certain that your district will allow the use of volunteers to assist with fitness testing. Also, we encourage you to allow for students to do peer-testing and to work in stations.
There are approximately 1,200 districts in Texas and are probably going to be that many solutions for to how to deal with the SB requirement to test students not in physical education classes. We feel strongly that you need to enlist the help of your administration to determine the best method possible for your district. The following are possible solutions from districts who have already conducted fitness testing for students not in PE.
- Make fitness testing be the focus for one or two days (sort of like TAKS) and get students out of class as you need to test them. That way you only interrupt classes for one or two days.
- Assign one physical education teacher to do nothing but test the students who are not in PE.
- Have them come in the morning, at night or on weekends.
- Hire a testing team to go around the district and test these students.
Sending FITNESSGRAM test results to TEA
Coming soon: Information on the complete submission process for sending FITNESSGRAM test results for this schol year 2008-2009 from your campus and district to TEA. Fitness test results can only be submitted through a specific export process--the Research Export--from the FITNESSGRAM software. This export de-identifies student names and IDs (per SB 530) from the fitness results.
2/19/09
