Import – FAQs
Why do I need to import?
It is important to import student records from your SMS into e-asTTle to keep your student information in e-asTTle up to date.
I have a few students who have just enrolled in our school. Can I import a file with just those students?
No. The import file must include all your school’s current students and class details. You should not use the import function to import only some classes/students.
I imported students last year, do I have to re-import these same students in the new year?
Yes. It is important to carry out an import which includes all your school’s current students and class details, at least at the beginning of each year, even if you have imported these students in the previous year. This is so that student details such as Instructional Year which changes from year to year will be kept up to date in e-asTTle.
What happens when I choose "Yes" to overwrite student records?
When you overwrite a student record with the importing file record, the student details in e-asTTle will be updated to the details in the import file. In the example below the student, Jane Smith is a Female Year 4 student in an e-asTTle school. The record in the importing file has Janet as her first name. Selecting "Yes" to overwrite will update the e-asTTle student record from Jane to Janet. Note that the student’s year will also be updated from Year 4 to 5.
| First Name | Last Name | Gender | SMS | NSN | Ethnicity | Year | Language | |
| e-asTTle | Jane | Smith | Female | Aaa | 1111111111 | Pacific | 4 | English |
| Import file | Janet | Smith | Female | Aaa | 1111111111 | Pacific | 5 | English |
Will overwriting a student record with details from the importing file, also overwrite any test results that they have?
No. Overwriting a student record will only update the student’s personal details - First Name, Last Name, Gender, SMS, NSN, Ethnicity, Year and Language. It will not overwrite test data.
Do the student first and last names in the importing file need to exactly match those in e-asTTle for the record to update automatically?
No. e-asTTle uses "fuzzy matching" to compare information as it's imported. Fuzzy matching checks if the names are a subset of each other. If they are, they are treated as a match. Apostrophes, hyphens, upper/lower case are all ignored when comparing first and last names.
In the three examples below, the first and last names would all be considered a match.
| e-asTTle value | Importing file value (SMS) | ||
| Student One | First name | Jane | Jane Mary |
| Last name | Harris Gordon | Harris-Gordon | |
| Student Two | First name | Tima | Ti'Mata |
| Last name | Smith | TUPOU-SMITH | |
| Student Three | First name | JENNI | Jennifer |
| Last name | Murphy-smith | Smit |
Can imported students and classes be changed manually?
Yes. Students that have been imported into e-asTTle can be edited manually through the Manage Student screens. You will need to have an e-asTTle administrator role to be able to do this.
Classes/groups that have been imported into e-asTTle can also be edited manually through the Manage Group screens.
What effect does importing have on students and groups that have been created manually?
Students and groups added manually can be updated via importing as long as they are included in the import file. The import will empty out any groups you created manually if those groups were not included in the school's import file. To prevent this from happening, make sure the import file also includes any manually created groups.
I get a message that tells me to zip my file. How do I do this?
Download instructions on how to zip your import file.
- Related information