6th Annual Focus Users’ Conference

Application Editor and Form Builder

Presented by:Mike Morris

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rAgenda:

• Application Editor Overview• Using Fields, Labels, Groups and Page Breaks• Applying Group Rules and Filters• Enabling and Publishing Form• Accessing and Utilizing the Online Application• Completing the Application• Enrolling Online Application Students

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rAccessing the Application Editor

The Application Editor is used to create and customize an Online Application (and other forms) that can be used for student registration. Access the Application

Editor via the School Setup menu in order to begin.

Once in the Application Editor, the user has the ability to choose which Form can be worked on, as well as the language in which the form is going to be created. The checkboxes at top-right give the user the ability to Enable the form, show the form on the Parent Portal, and

show the form on the /apply URL (discussed later).

The Forms that will show in the drop-down inside of the Application Editor consist of the Online Application, and then any of the student demographic categories that are set as Form

Records. This can be specified on the Field Categories in the Student Fields Setup.

Note: Ensure that a Sort Order is specified on any Form Record Category so that it will show in the Forms Menu in the interface.

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rAccessing the Application Editor

The Application Editor is used to create and customize Online Applications and other electronic forms. Access the Application Editor via the School Setup menu.

The Application Layout itself is constructed based upon four primary components.• Labels – Create directions, headings or field-associated verbiage• Groups – Organize the Application and apply conditions • Page Breaks – Spread Application information onto multiple pages• Student Fields – Collect student data as the Application is completed

For Student Demographic categories that are specified as Form Records, each of the components of the builder will appear, but only the fields in that applicable category will show for use.

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rAdding Items to the Application

Often, Applications begin with a set of directions for use and then segue into groups of fields to be completed by the applicant. In order to add items to the layout, click and

drag the desired item from the right-hand column into the pane at left.

Dragging the Label into the layout will allow the text to be modified. If it is meant to be a simple label, enter plain text; otherwise, use the Use HTML button to customize the label information.

If Use HTML is selected, an HTML text editor will populate that will allow for the addition of images, links, tables and other formatting for the text field

Button Function of Key Button

Allows addition of Images

Allows addition of Charts

Allows addition of Hyperlinks

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rAdding Page Breaks and Groups

In addition to adding Labels, Page Breaks and groups can also be added to the layout in order to provide a more customized look and organize fields. To add either Page Breaks or Groups, drag the item into the layout as with Labels.

The Page Break (represented in Red) provides a hard break between pages of the application. Users must utilize the Previous Page and Next Page buttons to navigate between pages separated by a break.

The Group (represented in Green) provides the ability to organize fields into a series of groups, which can then be shown or hidden in the layout based upon conditions placed upon the group itself. When a group is

added, a Name can be specified and displayed on the application if necessary by using the Display Group Name checkbox.

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rAdding Fields to Groups

Once the basic skeletal structure of the layout has been established and groups have been added, fields can be added to the groups. While fields can be added

outside of groups, it is typically easier to add all fields to configured groups.

The student fields are housed in the Application Editor in dark blue menus that relate to the Student Information tabs on which the information is stored in the interface. Select the appropriate menu to reveal

the Student Fields

Once the proper field(s) have been identified, either drag the field into the desired group in the layout or use the arrow button to the left of each field to move the field over to the bottom of the layout.

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rModifying Application Layouts

As Labels, Breaks, Groups and Fields are added to the layout, there are a number of tools that allow the layout to be modified if mistakes are made, captions are

desired, or if objects need to be rearranged.

Once added, each object in the layout can be modified if necessary:Fields can be given alternate titles in order to help with readability for the end users.

Fields can be listed as Required, which means an applicant cannot progress until they are completed.

If a field or group is added in error, the red symbol can be used to remove it from the form.

The Up and Down arrows are used to move fields or groups up and down the form.

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rAdding Conditions to Groups

Once fields have been added to the groups, conditions can be placed upon the fields so that groups either appear or disappear when those conditions are met.

For example, a group related to IEP information may only appear when the student is indicated to be Special Ed.

Each of the fields that can be added to the editor take their titles and field IDs from the fields that are created under Setup > Student Fields in the Students Menu.

Select the appropriate field category in order to view the fields that are stored within that category as well as their unique Field IDs.

Each of the fields listed in the categories will have a Field ID at right. This is the value used to place conditions upon the fields in the editor.

When writing Group conditions within the Application Editor, all of the fields are stored with the following naming convention: fieldXXXX where the XXXX value is the value stored in the

Field ID as discussed above.

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rAdding Conditions to Groups

Once fields have been added to the groups, conditions can be placed upon the fields so that groups either appear or disappear when those conditions are met.

For example, a group related to IEP information may only appear when the student is indicated to be Special Ed.

Select Show When in order to show the group only when certain criteria are met. Select Hide When in order to hide the group when certain criteria are met. In either case, the logic is based on the condition of a specific field. The example above shows field1553==‘Y’, which means only

show the information when the Special Ed Indicator Checkbox is selected.

There are a series of operators that can be used in the filtering logic. • == (Equal To)• <> (Not Equal To)• CONTAINS (field contains)• AND (for specifying multiple conditions)• OR (for specifying optional conditions)

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rEnabling and Publishing the ApplicationIf the layout is complete and all items have been added, the form can then be

enabled and published out so that it can be accessed from the /apply URL.

Selecting the Enable Form checkbox will allow the form to be available for view to users in the system that have access to Forms. It will appear under the Forms menu in the top-level menus.

Selecting the Publish Form on /apply button will make it so that the form is accessible from your Focus site URL by appending it with /apply

Navigating to the /apply URL will bring Applicants to a logon page where new accounts can be created or existing users can login to view/update their information

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rAccessing the Application on /apply

Once the applicant has navigated to the appended /apply URL, they’ll be able to begin a new iteration of the form or continue any saved forms that they have.

New Applicants will need to provide some basic demographic information in order to get started, as well as authenticate with a reCaptcha utility. Existing Focus users need only to supply their

Usernames and Passwords to access the system.

If a user is returning to the form, they’ll have the option to either resume the form that was saved, or start a new form. If Start New Form is selected, the applicant will have the ability to pick which

of the forms they need to complete.

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rNavigating the Application on /apply

Once the applicant has navigated to the appended /apply URL, they’ll be able to begin a new iteration of the form or continue any saved forms that they have.

Users use the Previous Page and Next Page buttons at the bottom of each page of the application to navigate through the application. Users cannot go to the next page of the application unless all required fields on the page have been completed. The application

is divided into different pages using page breaks in the application editor.

On the final page of the application, users click the Submit and Finish Application to complete the application. Users can return to edit the application even after they

submit it.

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rExample of Online Application

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rProcessing Online Applications

Once the online application has been submitted, the applicant will receive a confirmation that they have completed the process. That applicant will then

appear in the Applicants School for further processing.

Navigate to the Applicants School back in the User Interface in order to view all applicants that have successfully completed the application.

The Student Info feature can be used to generate a list of all students in the applicants school. These students can then be enrolled in a school within the district after processing.

Select a student and navigate to their Enrollment screen in order to process the student into a physical school. Delete the enrollment record (using the minus sign to the left of the record) at the Applicants School and then process the student into a physical school using ‘Add a Student.’

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rQuestions?

Mike MorrisSoftware Trainer – Focus School Software

mikem@focusschoolsoftware.comPhone: (727).388.9973

www.focusschoolsoftware.com

Please be sure to complete the comment card for this session and enjoy the rest of the Users’ Conference!