PL Report Systems
Tel: (UK) 0121 351 3346
E-Mail:
INFORM Tracker is for tracking your pupils throughout the course of EYFS and Key Stages 1 & 2.
The program is easy to use and maintain, and provides you with an instant view of your assessment data for any group in your school. You can define your own groups in addition to the standard, embedded groups(SEN, FSM, etc.).
The program allows flexibility in your choice of when to assess.
A comprehensive list of functions is provided for target setting and for analysis of your data.
Installing the download demo version of the 'INFORM Tracker' pupil tracking system for EYFS, KS1 and KS2
The file you will download from this web site is called ‘Tracker6dld.exe’.
When you click ‘Download’ you will be given the option of ‘Run’ or ‘Save’. It is simplest to select the ‘Run’ option. If you do select this option, then upon the file will be downloaded to a temporary folder on your computer. When the download ends you will be asked again if you wish to run to the downloaded file. You should do as requested, and then the install program will start. Just click the appropriate buttons and the program will be installed on your computer. An icon labelled ‘Inform Demo-Download Tracker’ pointing to the program will be put onto your desktop.
Using the demo of 'INFORM Tracker'
Please note – in this demonstration version, none of the changes you make to the stored data can be saved.
Start the program by double-clicking on the ‘Inform Demo-Download Tracker’ icon for it on your desktop.
The Pupil List screen
The screen you will see when you start the program for the first time is the pupil list screen, and all pupils in the database will be showing. This is the “house keeping” screen, where non-assessment type data (e.g. Name, DOB, SEN, etc) for the pupils is entered and shown. You can select a year group and a particular class or group using the “filters” at the top.
You can write on to the grid, but you will normally enter most of the data for the pupils by importing a common transfer file (CTF) from your school’s managemement information system (SIMS or CMIS, etc).
Any useful data which is not included in the CTF, such as a pupil’s class and special groups of which he/she is a member can then be imported from file or written on the grid.
You will see that there are cohorts of pupils classified as year 7, 8, 9 and 10. These are pupils who left in previous years. Their data is very useful for comparison with current pupils.
A pupil’s year will be automatically incremented by one just before the start of each academic year (September).
The Subjects screens
You spend most of your time with INFORM tracker using the Subjects screens. To access a Subjects screen, move your mouse pointer to ‘Tracker’ on the main menu at the top, and move your mouse pointer down to ‘Subjects’. Then select ‘Reading’.
Select ‘Year 7’ for the year, and ‘All’ for the group and subgroups (using the filter drop-down lists at the top left).
You are now looking at the whole picture for your last year’s KS2 SATS candidates for Reading (English AT2). This picture shows all of the teacher assessments, QCA or other yearly test results, KS2 predictions, end-of year predictions, KS2 SAT achieved grades.
Meaning of the colours:
Red =well below target, Pink = below target, Amber = 1 sub-level below target, Yellow = on target, pale green = above target, dark green = well above target.
You can try looking at other years - the picture beneath shows the current year 6 pupils, class 6B, Reading data. As with the pupil grid, you can write directly on to the Subjects grid (though some columns have to be “unlocked” first from the “Other Options” drop-down list).
Selecting specific groups
By using the filters at the top-left of the subjects screen you can drill down to show specific groups, such as “Early Leavers”, “Late Starters” “SEN A”, Ethnicity etc. You can also define groups yourself (perhaps “Summer births” or “G&T”).
Viewing all subjects for a pupil at the same time
Double-click on a pupil’s name to show all of the subjects for that pupil. A grid appears at the top with all the data for the selected pupil (a second double-click will hide this grid).
Use the Up/Down arrow keys to navigate throught the pupils.
Drag the top grid out of the way if you wish by clicking and dragging on the name box at the top-left of this grid.
KS2 Target setting
The “interpolation method” is designed to be used with FFT estimates.
FFT estimates can be imported using the special “wiizard” and stored in the “KS2 Est” column on the grid. The “interpolation method” can set targets linearly between two fixed points, e.g. the KS1 grade and the FFT estimate). You won’t be able to use this function in the demo version because you won’t have an FFT file specific to the pupils in the demo database.
Whichever method of setting targets you use, you may wish to fine-tune an individual’s targets in the light of your experience of the pupil by “nudging” up or down. You can do this by right-clicking on the target on the grid and using the “+” or “-“ nudge buttons.
The effects of the “nudge” on the targets Is best seen by opening the “Pupil Progress graph” for the child (see below). Davina has had her end-of-year 4 target nudged upwards, as shown by the discontinuity in the coloured lines.
Pupil Progress Graphs
The progress chart for a pupil show a plot of his attainment against time. It is useful in conjunction with the nudge button for altering a pupil’s targets.
If you select a pupil and then click the ‘Progress Chart’ button above the grid you will get a box showing the graph of the pupil’s results. Use the Up/Down arrow keys to move to a different pupil.
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Davina seems to have made no progress for considerable periods. This should have been picked up and an intervention made. When you want to record anything special about a pupil, like an intervention, right-click on the pupil’s name and a text box will appear in which you can write notes for the pupil. Once a pupil has a note his/her name is highlighted on green on screen (see the first subject screen picture earlier on).
The Statistics screen
If you click on the button labelled ‘Statistics’, the statistics screen will show.
On this screen you can see how your predictions are spread over the various grades, and also how closely your predictions agreed with the eventual achieved KS2 SAT results.
Some of the data on the statistics box is useful for the various official returns.
Group Snapshot
If you select a column of grades by clicking on either of the two header cells for that column, and then click the ‘Group Snapshot’ button, you will get a box showing a snapshot of the attainment of the group at the point in time represented by the column.
The ‘snapshot’ shows the number of pupils above target, within target and below target.
It also show those above target by more than one sub-level and those below target by more than one sub-level. There are also scatter plots and other bar charts available.
If you move the mouse pointer over the appropriate labels and click you will see a list of the pupils in the particular category which you have selected.
This is just a quick skim of the system. There are lots of other very useful features. For example, KS1 tracking and Primary Target estimates are included. The full manual is included in the download and is available from the Help drop-down menu.
To find out more about the system, please contact PL Video on phone number
0121 351 3346 or E-Mail:
A time-limited but otherwise complete version of the system can be provided, so that you can give the system a thorough test with no obligation.