Create Sittings

You can add new sittings to enable students to take online tests.

When you create a sitting, it is added to the Sittings List, so you can view its details at a future date or make changes to it, if required.

When creating a sitting, you will be prompted to enter relevant details using the Sittings Wizard. You will be asked to provide the following information:

• Sitting Name - The name you assign to the sitting. 
• Service - The test you want students to take.
• Test Group - The level of test you want students to take.
• Test Start Period (From Date and To Date) - The earliest and latest date and time by which a student can begin their test.
• Students - The names of the students who will be sitting the test.
• Test Start Mode - The manner in which the test will start.

1. Click the Sittings button on the home screen.

All existing sittings will be visible within the Sittings List. If no sittings are displayed, it is either because no sittings have been created, or because existing sittings have been archived.

2. Click the Add Sitting button to display the Sittings Wizard.

To create a sitting, you will need to enter all information into the Sittings Wizard.

3. Enter the Sitting Name, which will identify the sitting throughout the system, including within the Sittings List.

Ensure that the sitting name entered is clear and recognisable by colleagues also using Testwise and note that this will be printed on the access code slips provided to students. 

4.  Click on the drop-down button next to the Service field to display all the services available to you. Select the appropriate option.

5. Click on the drop-down button next to the Test Group field to display all the tests in the service you selected. Select the appropriate option. You may also click on the Search Groups button which will display more information about each test, such as the recommended age of the test taker.

The time period for the sitting defines the earliest and latest date and time by which a student can start their assigned test.

For example, a one-hour time period to log into the Test Lobby starting 08/12/2020 4 pm; the 'From Date' would be defined as 08 Dec 2020 16:00, and the 'To Date' would be 08 Dec 2020 17:00.

Note: Each Sitting Time Period cannot be greater than the Maximum Sitting Duration, which is defined by the System Administrator. If your sitting is for longer than the permitted number of days, a red warning triangle will appear next to one of the dates. When you hover your mouse over the red warning triangle, it will tell you that you have exceeded the specified Maximum Sitting Duration. Adjust the dates accordingly. The Maximum Sitting Duration is usually set to 30 days.

6. Define the earliest date by which a Student can begin their test by clicking the Date button next to the 'From Date' field and selecting a date and time.

7. Define the latest date and time by which a student can start their test by clicking the Date button next to the 'To Date' field and selecting a date and time.

There is a limit of 30 calendar days for a sitting period. 

8. Click the Manage Students button to move to the next stage of the Sitting wizard, which is the Students page.

9. Ensure there are enough remaining credits for each student to take a test. You will need 1 credit for each student user taking a test. If you do not have enough credits, then you should contact the Testwise Renewals Team. The Credit Status Bar is displayed at the top right. 

10. Find the students who will be taking the test using any method, including sorting, searching or using the Refine Search option on the left-hand side of the page.
If a Load More button  is displayed at the bottom of the student list, this means there are additional students. Click the Load More button to display the next 100 Students.

11. Select the students who will be taking the test. Please note that the number of credits in the Credit Status Bar will reduce each time you add a student. Once the list is finalised, click the Save button.

The number of students you have just added will now be displayed by the Sittings Wizard.

12. In the Test Start Mode section, select one of the following options, which defines how the test is started:

• Manual Test Start - Students can log into the Test Lobby within the Test Start Period. However, tests are locked until a Testwise user (Teacher or School Administrator) manually starts the test by clicking the Start Test button in the Sittings area on their screen. Please refer to the section on 'Manually Start Tests' under 'Start Tests' for details about how to find the Start Test button.
• Automatic Test Start - Students can log into the Test Lobby and start their tests any time within the Test Start Period. They gain access using a code given to them by a Testwise user. Please refer to the section on 'Automatically Start Tests' under 'Start Tests' for additional details about how this feature works.

13. Once all information in the Sittings Wizard has been populated, check that all the details of the sitting you just created are correct, and make any changes required.

14. To save all the information you entered in the Sittings Wizard, you will need to click either the Save Draft button or the Save button. 

• Clicking on the Save Draft button means that the sitting details are saved without reducing the number of credits in your total number of credits. The number of credits for this sitting will only be deducted when you change sitting details and then click on the Save Sitting button.
• Clicking on the Save button means that the sitting details are saved and the number of credits in your total number of credits is reduced by the number of students taking tests in the sitting.

The sitting you have just created will now be displayed in the Sittings List.

15.  To return to the home screen, click on the Home button.