TestHound Success Story: An Essential Tool for Accurate and Efficient Assessments

The Challenge

Over the course of her 27 years in education, Trotter saw it all when it came to coordinating student assessments. “I've really seen the assessment program evolve over time, as well as the resources available to help us get through that process,” she said. Like most of her colleagues, Trotter organized her first state assessment as a brand-new counselor using a spreadsheet.

Shortly thereafter, she learned how to use a database for test coordination at the state assessment conference and began using that method to organize high school testing information for a campus of 2300 students. “Eventually, it got too complicated with tracking accommodations for different programs and making sure that students had the right test materials,” Trotter recounted. “Unfortunately, you can still make human errors, even with a database.”

Additionally, using spreadsheets and databases is time intensive and requires a certain set of analytical skills. “When you're writing formulas, you truly need an analytical mindset,” said Trotter. “Not everybody has that skill set.” Spreadsheets and databases also lack the functionality to help testing coordinators avoid costly errors that could result in testing irregularities.

Trotter recalled a situation in which she made an error as a campus testing coordinator. “I gave a student an English test booklet instead of a Spanish test booklet,” Trotter shared. “My database wasn't set up to alert me if I assigned the wrong type of test, but TestHound does that.”

“My database wasn't set up to alert me if I assigned the wrong type of test, but TestHound does that.”

The Solution

Like many district testing coordinators, Trotter is always looking for tools to help her campus testing coordinators work smarter, not harder. “I have to consider what is going to be best for our campuses, what is going to save my coordinators time, and what is going to ensure that we have accurate data,” she said. “Many of our testing coordinators wear multiple hats, so if I can minimize the amount of time they have to spend on campus testing, that's a no-brainer.”

“I have to consider what is going to be best for our campuses, what is going to save my coordinators time, and what is going to ensure that we have accurate data.”

TestHound integrates with Irving ISD’s student information system (SIS) for an automated nightly import of student data, giving Trotter and her staff instant access to the most up-to-date student information. “With external programs like spreadsheets or databases, you have to pull those reports on your own and then manually enter that data,” Trotter said. “The evolution from a manual process to an automated process that saves time and ensures accurate data is imperative for state accountability.” TestHound accounts for the myriad of student, staff, and facility considerations, allows for 100% accountability of test booklets, and ensures students receive proper accommodations as documented in their IEP or IAP.  

The Results

Trotter predicted the district would see budget cuts because of less tax revenue but pledged that TestHound would not be among the programs affected. “I would make budget cuts elsewhere to keep TestHound in my district,” said Trotter.

"Without it, we would exponentially increase the amount of time spent on test coordination at the campus and district level.”

TestHound allows Irving ISD testing coordinators to spend their valuable time on what matters most, their students. Beyond providing unequaled assessment coordination, TestHound’s Performance Tracker has been instrumental in giving Irving ISD staff outside of testing coordinators access to critical student information.

“With Performance Tracker, our high school counselors have access to enter exclusions, my special education lead teachers have access to verify accommodations, and any of them can look up a student's STAAR and EOC scores instantly."

TestHound’s EOC Tracker also provides counselors with clear reports illustrating which End-of-Course exams students have already passed and which ones are still required. “It's an easy, quick look to see where students are, or if they have any exclusions or special provisions,” Trotter said. “This helps us make sure students have met their assessment requirements for graduation.”

“I would make budget cuts elsewhere to keep TestHound in my district.”

In addition to year-round support of assessment efforts, Trotter remarked that TestHound’s commitment to school districts in response to the challenges resulting from COVID-19 was appreciated. “The COVID exclusion that the TestHound team created was amazing,” she said. The TestHound development team provided customers with a data file that districts could use to upload their testing exclusions, saving hours of laborious work.

“Our high schools have eight to nine hundred students on that exclusions list,” Trotter shared. “If my CTCs had to go in there and manually enter in those exclusions, it would have taken forever.”

“The process that TestHound created saved our district hours upon hours of work.”

Trotter also shared that she is grateful for the responsiveness of the TestHound development team and excited to see how TestHound will evolve to become an even more powerful tool for school districts. “I know that we'll continue to see more and more features and support, especially with Performance Tracker,” she said. “As long as I’m around, TestHound will always be an essential tool in Irving ISD.”

The Product

TestHound is a comprehensive K-12 testing software and the only test enablement solution that integrates data from disparate systems into a single platform for efficient assessment coordination. By utilizing the efficiencies provided through the platform, tasks that could take several days to accomplish using alternative methods can be done within a matter of hours. TestHound empowers overextended school staff to efficiently and accurately coordinate K-12 assessments, allowing them to spend their valuable time on other priorities.

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