Name: DMAC Solutions
Telephone: 1.866.988.6777

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Admin Settings

District Administrator(s) have access to ALL settings.
All other user logins have access to the Item Inventory and Test Share Groups.

Item Inventory

View total number of items in TAG.
Items are categorized by: TAG/TEA/TEKS-RS and Content Area/Grade Level/SE (click to drill-down).

Hide Content

DMAC Admin only
Check box next to Content type to restrict access to users below the campus level (e.g., Teacher login).

Test Print Settings

DMAC Admin only
Manage the default test print settings for the district.

Shared Content

DMAC Admin only
Assign automatic access to specific users for ALL district tests (rights include view and copy but cannot modify or delete).
Search Users by name or partial name; select User(s) and click Save.
Selected name(s) appear in window to the left.

Test Share Groups

Any user can share tests they have created with other users or with a Share Group.
Create a new group. (Groups may also be created through Share when making a test)
Name group and click add; select User(s) and click green plus icon; click Save.

Reassign User Content

DMAC Admin only
Assign content created by a user no longer in the district to a current user.
Select TAG Original user > Current User, click Save.

Create a New Test

Click New icon or Tests > New from the top navigation bar.
The test Name is the only required field. Keyword(s) and Directions are optional.
Add items after save (default); click Save.
From the top of the Test > Search page, click the Merge icon to combine more than one test.

Add Items to Test

Use filters on the left to narrow items by: Language, Content Area, Course, TEKS Year, Source, or SE; Click Search.

View items with Grid or List views.
Navigate between pages using the page numbers above items.
Column headers (Date & SE) are sortable.
Click keywords (yellow boxes) to filter items (starts an Advanced Search).
Select magnifying glass next to purple passage links to view a passage or click the purple link to start an Advanced Search for items only tied to that passage.
Check or uncheck next to items to automatically add or remove items to a test.
Total number of items appears on the top next to the test name.

Icons to the right of items:

Preview – view individual item.
Edit – modify item (User items only).
Copy – makes a copy of an item that you can modify; creates a new User type item.
Delete – delete an item from TAG (user items only).
Print – (view web vs. PDF or print an item).

Click On by Advanced Search to open pop-up with additional filters.
Make selections and click Apply, Clear or X to close the window.
NOTE: Only schools who purchase TEKS-RS may use TEKS-RS Unit filter to access pre-bundled assessment questions.
From search results, click boxes and links to filter by passage title, SE and/or Keywords.
Click the red X or Off to remove filters.
Don’t forget to look at selections on the left and remove any SE or other filters to start with a full list of items for that content area and grade level.

Edit Tests

There are two screens when creating tests. 1) Adding/Searching for items and 2)Edit, reorder items.
Any time you place a checkmark next to an item, it is automatically added and saved to a test; uncheck the item to remove it.

Test icons (next to test name)

Preview – preview the entire test.
Print – save test as a PDF or print a copy (web and PDF view).
Key – view or print test key.
Edit – reorder test items or share with others (opens new screen).
Settings – change name of test, modify directions or keywords.

Top right:

ABC/SE button – view or filter the percentages of SEs based on search results.
New – add original User items to TAG (visible to Admins and individual login only).

New Screen (After Clicking Edit)

The Edit icon to the right of a test name is another way to view items attached to a test.

Reorder test Items, Passages or Graphics. Drag and drop and click Save order if you make changes.
Individual test items work the same as on the Test Item page.
If you click the Delete icon, it will remove the content from the test (not the test library).
Use icons in gray preview, copy or remove passages from test.

Share – share test with others at your school.
ABC/SE – view percentages of SEs on the selected test.
Add – return to the Test Items screen to filter and add items to test.
View – preview of the whole test.
Print – web & PDF views (click Settings to change styling).
Key – view/save or print a copy of the test key.
List – return to Test Library screen.

Test Library

Users can create custom tests in TAG or select from a library of pre-bundled assessments including TEA released tests. TEA tests can be modified if copied (this creates a User test).

From the top right, click New to create a new test.
Or, use filters on left to search for Tests by Language, Content Area, Course, Source and/or Name.
Colored boxes above tests display number of available tests for each type.
Date and Test Name column headers are sortable.

Test Type Definitions

User – test created with a DMAC Login
Shared – test shared with you by someone in your district
TEA – released STAAR/TAKS test
TEKS-RS – TEKS Resource System items (district must have access to TEKS-RS items)

Individual Test Icons

Preview – view full test.
Copy – makes a copy of a test that can be modified; creates a new User type test.
Edit – modify existing test; (User tests only).
Print – print full test (Web vs PDF view).
Export test to TEKScore – opens test key in TEKScore (required for online tests).
Settings – change test name, add directions or keywords.
Key – view or print test key.
Delete – remove test from library (User tests only).

Exporting Tests to TEKScore

For Online Tests: Make sure to click the option to copy key and content to set up an online test. Then, check the option to review and approve your content to preview the test before moving forward. This action opens the TAG test in TEKScore as a new Test Key.
It’s important to note that the user performing this action must have rights to create TEKScore Test Keys. With this ability, they can complete the Test Key Header and set up online testing and other settings. Contact the DMAC Help Desk if teachers do not currently have access to Test Keys.

Create TEKS-RS Tests

From the top of the Test Library, click New icon; complete test information, check add items after save; click Save.
Use filters on the left to select Content Area and Course; click Search.
Select On by Advanced Search; enter TEKS-RS Unit (ex: 10); click Apply.
Check small box at the top of the column to add all items from search results (items will automatically save to the test; number will update at the top.
Select Edit icon to the right of the test name to reorder questions or share with others at your school.

Create User Items

All TAG users can add original content or digital versions of resources that your school has purchased. Anything added as User content can only be seen by your login and DMAC Admins at your school.

Formatting Items

Use the links below for tips and tricks on formatting assessment items.

Different Item Types

From the top navigation bar in TAG, select Items > New
Use the menu on the left to select the type of test item
Click on the links below for videos on creating different types of assessment items.

Multiple Choice

Single Response

Multiple Response

True/False

Inline Choice

Text Entry

Extended Text

Numeric

Short Text

Inline Text

Match Order

Match Table (coming soon)
Drag and Drop List (coming soon)
Drag and Drop Inline (coming soon)

Highlight & Drawing

Hot Spot

Hot Text

Math

Equation Editor

User Passages

Schools have the ability to enter passages (purchased or original) to the TAG application. Content added by a DMAC user is accessible only by that individual login.

Create Passage(s)

New Passage – Select Passages > New from top navigation bar; or, New from the Passage Library.
Language – English or Spanish.
Title – Name Passage.
Paired Passage and Format – Select Yes or No if it is a paired passage or check if it is a Revise and Edit passage.
Content Area – Select content area (required).
Course – Select course (required).
Genre – Select Genre (optional).
Readability – Enter Readability level (optional) Note: DMAC uses the Flesch-Kincaid Readability model for existing content in the item bank.
Text to Speech – When an option is selected, that area will read for students who receive the Text to Speech testing support. Any Directions entered will always read aloud.

Selection(s):

The main part of a passage is entered in the Selection(s) area of the page. Formatting is especially important for online tests so they display properly on the screen. Note: Save is not available on this page until content is entered in the Selection(s) text area.

Paste Plain Text – paste text into text box. Delete extra spaces between lines or sentences. Note: Click full-screen to view in a larger format to remove spaces.

Formatting Best Practices:

Title – Centered; bold; 16 point font
Subtitle – Centered; italicized; 12 point font
Paragraph Numbers – Italicized; 11 point font (default); add 2 spaces before/5 spaces after for numbers 1-9 and 0 spaces before/5 spaces after for double digits
Body Text – left aligned; 11 point font (default)
Images – .png preferred, max size 675×875 pixels. Click Add new paragraph icon before and after each image. Right click an image and select Properties to edit image size and alignment or add Alt Text for a description of the image to read aloud with Text to Speech.
Click Print to view how a Passage will look online (Web View) or to print a copy (PDF View).
By adding new paragraphs with the icon, the system will automatically add the paragraph tags for the start and end of a paragraph

HTML Formatting

Revise and Edit

Revise and Edit passages should have additional spacing between lines.
Click the HTML button at the bottom of the Selection(s) text entry box after pasting in your text.
From HTML view include style=”lineheight: 3;” inside of the start of the paragraph tag.
The only supported value for double spacing is 3.
Sentences should be numerically numbered; numbers should be in parenthesis.
Paragraph numbers – add 5 spaces before and 1 space after number in parenthesis.
Select the Design button to exit out of the HTML view and to preview how the passage will appear for students.

Paired Passages

Note: Page breaks are only necessary if you are printing out tests. For online tests, this is not something you need to worry about.
Control where page breaks fall between paired passages by using the following code in the paragraph tags from the HTML view.
nbsp; – Adds a page break after the paragraph.
nbsp; – Adds a page break before the paragraph.
Print – View how passage will look in printed form. Use the controls to print or save the passage as a PDF.

Poems

Click the HTML button at the bottom of the Selection(s) text entry box after pasting in your text.
From HTML view include style =”lineheight: 1.5,” inside of the start of the paragraph tag. Ex.
With poems, every 5th line is numbered counting by 5’s. Each number should be italicized.
The beginning letter of each row/line should align with the starting letter of the prior row/line.
Select the Design button to exit out of the HTML view. Save and select the Print button to preview the passage.

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We pride ourselves on providing stellar customer service. If you would like to talk to a member of the DMAC Help Desk, please contact us! We are available at 1.866.988.6777 or support@dmac-solutions.net.

Help Topics

TAG Online Test Item Bank (eLearning)