Importing School Data into Renaissance Place™
“IF the students DATES OF BIRTHS ARE IMPORTED AS 01/01/9999”
STAR™ Norming calculations will begin from that date
This guide will show you how to import a list of students, teachers and classes using Microsoft
Excel. This is the most commonly used import method but other formats are also supported such as
.txt or .xml. Additional support for these import methods can be given by either giving us a call or
using the online CHAT feature built within your Renaissance Place™.
Your Spreadsheet
The first step in importing your data correctly is to decide what data you want to import. By using an
Excel spread sheet (.XLS / .CSV) you can combine student, course, class and teacher information
onto a single spread sheet in a Microsoft Excel workbook.
An example spread sheet can be found on page 5 of this guide.
By importing this with one file, you will save yourself the job of setting up each class manually.
However, if classes have already been set up in your Renaissance Place site you can choose to
import a new list of students by following the method below.
Student Data
To import a list of students you will need to have the following required fields (Headers) in your
Excel file:
• Student First Name
• Student Last Name
• Gender (M or F)
• Date of Birth (dd/mm/yyyy format)* Required Field
• School Year (Year must number only i.e. “7”) Required Field
• Unique I.D. (We recommend Admissions Number, but any unique number is valid)
• Student Username (see below)
• Student Password (see below)
www.renlearn.co.uk
Students will not be able to test unless all this information is imported.
*A note on dates of birth: Microsoft Excel defaults the DOB information to a format which is not
compatible with our import system. To fix this, please right click on your DOB column, choose
Format Cells and select the following option:
Please do not select the dd/mm/yyyy year format with the asterisk
Selecting a Student Username and Password
All users will require a username and password in order to access Renaissance Place. If your
students and staff already use a username and password to access your school network, we
recommend entering this information into the username/password fields of your spread sheet.
If you do not enter a username and password for the student, the system will generate one based
on the student’s name – this can later be viewed in STAR Reading™ > Reports > Student
Information
www.renlearn.co.uk
Importing Classes
To setup classes you need the following information:
• Course name (i.e. Accelerated Maths™ or Accelerated Reader™)
• Class Name
• Teacher
The Course > Class hierarchy must be employed when importing data to Renaissance Place, each
class must be nested within a course. Many schools divide their year groups into courses, with
individual classes inside, but this is entirely up to you. However you decide to name them, your
courses must be present on the spread sheet.
Teacher Data
To import teacher data, you need to place it in the subsequent columns following the Course and
Class data (see page 5 for example)
• Teacher First Name
• Teacher Last Name
• Teacher Username
• Teacher Password
Please Note: Unlike student passwords, teacher passwords must be entered to import correctly.
Teacher passwords must be a minimum of 3 characters with a number.
Putting It All Together
With all your information arranged on the spread sheet, it should similar to the example sheet found
on page 5.
For your convenience, a template with correctly organised headings is available for you to fill in at
http://www.renlearn.co.uk/customer-zone/new-school-year-process/
Importing Data
Once you are happy with the file you will need to log in to your Renaissance Place website using
your Administrator Username and Password. From the homepage select Personnel and Students
followed by Import Information. Click Browse to select the file you created and click Next. From the
drop-down menu (near the bottom) of the page select the school year you wish to add students to. It
is important to check that your School Year has been added and that you are able to import into the
correct school year. If the year is not available, please go to http://www.renlearn.co.uk/customerzone/new-school-year-process/link.
www.renlearn.co.uk
Once you have chosen the school year click Next in the bottom, right-hand corner of the page.
This next page is where you determine which parts of the file are the headers and which is student
data as shown below.
If this row contains the headings for your columns, you will need to select Header from the drop
down box. The first row in your sheet should contain this information and normally the system will
detect this. Once your header row is selected, hit Next.
On the following screen you have to specify which columns represent which data. For example, if
Column 1 contains your student forenames, select Student First Name. If you have named your
headings as outlined above, the system will usually detect which columns are which, though we
recommend that you review this before hitting Next.
The next screen asks you to confirm which data you are importing – if you were, for example, only
importing student data, the Student Data check box will be ticked. If this all looks correct, click Next.
www.renlearn.co.uk
The Student Options screen lets you choose what to do if any matches are found.
You can choose to Create A New Student If No Match Is Found and Update Any Existing Students
With The Information Being Imported by selecting the appropriate tick-box. The drop-down menu
will allow you to specify criteria by which to search for matching students. Data can be matched on
I.D. Number or First, Middle and Last Name. For students that are found to already be in the
system, you may wish to create a new student or simply update the existing record with new
information
Once you are happy click Next.
Finishing up
This final screen allows you to review your import and the options chosen. When you are ready,
select Start the Import to complete the process. After a few moments your import should be
complete.
You may wish to check that this has been completed successfully by going to Courses and Classes
(if you have imported Course, Class and Teacher information) or Personnel and Students > View
Students > hit Search (if you only imported Student data).
Having walked through steps above, if you feel you need assistance or at any point run into any
error messages on screen, please contact Support.
Customer Support
Renaissance Learning™ Customer Support is available between 08:00 – 17:00, Monday to Friday.
T: 020 7184 4000
E: [email protected]
You can speak to a representative by clicking
Renaissance Place Site
www.renlearn.co.uk
from within your
Example Import Sheet
www.renlearn.co.uk