AzEDS Distance Learning Reporting

Arizona Department of Education (ADE) announced that Distance Learning reporting for the 2021-22 school year would be submitted through AzEDS Attendance records. For students participating in Distance Learning (DL), distance learning attendance transactions must be reported in addition to student absence transactions for all days that a student participates in distance learning. For each day a student participates in distance learning, the percentage of time the student is 'Distance Learning - Absent' or 'Distance Learning - In Attendance' must be reported, as well as the amount of total absence for the day.

For instance, a Distance Learning student is 100% distance learning for Monday, August 9, 2021, and is absent (excused) for half of the day. ADE is expecting three attendance records to be published:

An absence transaction of .50 with an event type of Excused Absence
A 50% distance learning transaction with an event type of In Attendance - DL
A 50% distance learning transaction with an event type of Absence - DL

Note: For more DL reporting examples, see the Learning Modality tab of the state's Use Case 7.0 document.

PowerSchool has implemented Distance Learning data collection utilizing student Special Programs and Bell Schedules to minimize the burden on teachers. Overview:

Create Distance Learning Special Programs at the District Office.
Enroll students in Distance Learning Special Programs for the dates the student is participating
Configure Bell Schedule Items, specifying which periods of the day a DL Program is remote and which periods the program is in-person.

For instance, if your school offers 100% DL and one Hybrid DL program where DL students are DL in the morning but in person in the afternoon, then you would create two DL Special Programs, one for DL100% and one for DL 50%. When configuring your Bell Schedule Items, you will configure your DL100% program to be Remote for all periods in the Bell Schedule and configure your DL 50% program to be Remote in the AM periods and In-Person for your PM periods.

Distance Learning Attendance can be collected in two ways:

Configuring Bell Schedule Items, specifying which periods of the day a DL Program is remote or in-person
- When utilizing Distance Learning data collection through Bell Schedules, students do not need to be marked with a DL Absent or DL Present attendance code. The Bell Schedule can determine the student's DL status.
Marking a student as DL Present or DL Absent using DL Attendance Codes.
Note: Both methods can be used within the same school.

Note: There is no reporting change for students who are 100% in-person.

Distance Learning Setup Items

See the sections below for Distance Learning setup and configuration.

Create Distance Learning Special Programs

PowerSchool uses Special Programs to track Distance Learning students. Create as many DL Special Programs (Cohorts) as you have differing DL scenarios.

Example Special Programs:

Distance Learning 100: Students 100% Distance Learning
Distance Learning Hybrid A: Students are remote in the AM and in-person in the PM
Distance Learning Hybrid B: Students are remote in the PM and in-person in the AM

Setup Steps:

Navigate to the Special Programs setup screen at District Office (Start Page > District > Special Programs)
Click the New button, specify a Program Name, and check the 'Qualifies as a Distance Learning program' box.

Enroll Students in Distance Learning Programs

Students participating in Distance Learning must be enrolled in a Distance Learning Special Program. Students can be enrolled individually or in a group.

Single Student:

Navigate to the student.
Click Special Programs > Distance Learning tab, then click New.
Select the applicable Distance Learning Program, enter an Entry Date, and submit.
1. Note: End Date can be entered when a student exits Distance Learning.

Multiple Students:

Select a group of students using the 'Select By Hand' button under a list of students (Start Page).
Under the list of students, click the down arrow to display the student functions list, then select 'Mass Enroll Special Program.'
Select the applicable Distance Learning Program, enter an Entry Date, and submit.

Note: Only students participating in distance learning need to be enrolled in a program. Students who are 100% in person are reported as has been reported in previous years.

Configure Bell Schedule for Distance Learning Programs (Bell Schedule Method)

In PowerSchool State Reporting version 21.6.2, PowerSchool updated the Bell Schedule Items screen to allow users to specify whether a DL Special Program is In-Person or Remote for the selected period. These setup items will calculate the percentage of time a student enrolled in a DL Special Program is attending In-Person or Remote.

Setup Steps:

Navigate to a school's Bell Schedule setup screen (Start Page > School > Bell Schedules)
Click Edit Schedule to display the list of periods in the Bell Schedule.
For each period in the bell schedule counting towards attendance, click the period number, and populate the Remote or In-Person status for each Distance Learning Program.
1. Note: Programs having the 'Qualifies as a Distance Learning program' box checked on the Special Program setup screen are listed.
Repeat for all Bell Schedules

Distance Learning Attendance Setup (Attendance Method)

At each school, set up a DL attendance code category (Start Page > School > Attendance Code Categories > New):
- Name (suggested): Distance Learning
- Code (required value): DL
At each school, set up at least two DL attendance codes (one Present and one Absent) associated with the above attendance code category (Start Page > School > Attendance Codes > New):
- Example Attendance Codes:
  - Code: DLP Name: Distance Learning Present
  - Code: DLA Name: Distance Learning Absent
- Note: More and or different codes can be created, but all distance learning attendance codes should be associated with the DL attendance code category.

Recording Attendance (Attendance Method)

Students not participating in DL:
- Teachers will either mark the student as Absent, Tardy, or leave the student blank (present).
Students participating in DL for the day:
- Teachers or administrators will mark the student with a DL Present code if the student satisfies the criteria stipulated in your DLP submitted to ADE for participation each day.
- Teachers or administrators will mark the student with a DL absent code if the student does not satisfy the criteria stipulated in your DLP submitted to ADE for participation each day.
  - Note: Partial attendance may be given for partial participation.

AzEDS Distance Learning Publishing

PowerSchool is awaiting reporting guidance from ADE School finance for calculating DL percentage cutoff amounts. Distance Learning publishing will be released at a later date.

Alternative Schools

For alternative schools reporting minutes of attendance instead of absences, it may not be possible to use Bell Schedules to calculate the percentage of time a DL student attends remotely or in person. If your school cannot use Bell Schedule items to record accurate DL time-frames, it will be necessary to record Distance Learning when taking attendance, using Distance Learning Attendance Codes for Distance Learning presents and absences, and using non-distance learning attendance codes when a student is attending in-person. Positive Attendance must be used for DL time.

Examples for Alt School students reporting Minutes:

The student is expected to attend remotely on 8/6/2021 but does not attend: Use a DL absence code.
The student is expected to attend remotely on 8/9/2021 and attends all day: Use a DL present code.
The student is expected in person and is absent: Use a non-DL absence code
The student is expected in person and present: Use your normal process (depending on setup).

Note: Students in Alternative Schools reporting Minutes of Attendance do not need to enroll students in DL special programs. The student's DL status can be determined by looking at attendance codes. Students can still be enrolled in DL programs for easier searching and reporting, but it is not required for AzEDS Publishing.

Distance Learning Reporting

PowerSchool is awaiting reporting guidance from ADE School finance for calculating DL for alternative school students. Distance Learning publishing will be released at a later date.