Welcome to SchoolStatus Boost! Whether you’re new to the platform or just looking to learn more, this guide walks you through everything you need to know to navigate Boost, manage your professional development, and access your personalized tools and feedback.
Navigate to the different sections by the links below:
- What is SchoolStatus Boost?
- How do I navigate my dashboard?
- How can I start a new document or PD item?
- How do I locate and access my recent forms?
- How do I set goals?
- What are next steps?
- What does my insight summary show?
- Help, I still have questions!
What is SchoolStatus Boost?
SchoolStatus Boost, also known as Boost, is a collaborative portal that enables teachers, staff, coaches, and school leaders to engage in meaningful dialogue focused on professional development and improving student outcomes.
Note: Each school or district that uses Boost implements a custom-designed set of activities for you throughout the year, reflecting your in-house evaluation/coaching workflows. As a result, some features and toolkits mentioned below may or may not form part of your school's evaluation process.
How do I navigate my dashboard?
After logging in, you will land on your Splash Page, a landing page from where you can access the dashboard of any school or group you are part of. Depending on your role, you may have only one option or multiple options. You can return to this page anytime by clicking the Boost logo in the top left.
When you enter the school dashboard (sample dashboard below), you will see your My Profile dashboard—a personal hub for forms, goals, feedback and professional development. The different sections are explained below.
Left-hand navigation panel
- Dashboards: Click My Profile to return to your dashboard from other areas of Boost. Check the Calendar for a visual of your scheduled forms and events.
- Activities: View a list of your forms, goals, and next steps.
- Reports: Access your Insights Summary for a snapshot of your progress
- Resources: Select Help & FAQ to head to the Boost Support Center. Explore your school's Library and use the Framework Explorer to deep dive into your organization’s frameworks, focus areas, and Rubric Comments. Your organization may also upload resources here, associated with framework focus areas.
- Summatives/My Videos: If your organization uses our specialized summative or video observation tools, you’ll have access to them via the navigation panel.
How can I start a new document or PD item?
To create a new activity of any type in Boost, simply click the blue New Activity button right at the top of your dashboard. This opens a dropdown menu for you to select any of your school or district's custom activities.
You can use this to create goals, next steps, self-reflections, and more, depending on what’s available for your organization.
How do I locate and access my recent forms?
If you've already created a form—or a school admin has created a form for you—you will see this appear in the Recent Activity area on your Personal Dashboard. Forms and events are shown by scheduled date, with older ones lower on the list. Select the View All Forms button to see a list of all of your forms from the current school year.
The rows of the Recent Activity list are color-coded and show the current status of each form:
- Gray: This form has been scheduled by an admin
- Yellow: This form is in progress
- Green: This form has been completed
Clicking on the View option in the Action column will take you to the Form Summary Page, from where you can:
- View the current contents of the form
- Edit the form (if you are the author)
- Attach a file
- Print/download the form
- Discuss the form with an admin
- Sign your copy of the form
Please note: forms created by administrators only appear after they’ve been completed or shared with you.
Pro-tip: Find out how to locate your forms from previous years in this help doc!
How do I set goals?
To set a new Goal:
- Click on the New Activity button at the top of your dashboard and select the Goal option.
- Enter a start date and click Start Goal.
- Fill in the goal fields. You can save a draft to finish later with the green Save button.
Pro-tip: Learm more about goal-setting in Boost in this help doc!
All your open goals will appear in the Active Goals section of your dashboard. Any associated focus areas will show on the goal, along with a progress bar for linked next steps. Select View All Goals to see the full list of drafted, in-progress, or completed goals.
Clicking View Goal on any of the Goal cards will take you to a goal page, or the goal summary page, from where you can edit the goal, attach evidence, or mark it as completed.
What are next steps?
Next Steps help to manage your progress and act as a dynamic 'To Do' list right on your dashboard.
To create a new next step:
- Click on the New Activity button at the top of your dashboard and select Next Step.
- Fill out your new task, align framework focus areas, attach resources, and set an optional due date.
- Finally, click Save Next Step.
Once created, your new step will appear in the Next Steps area of your Personal Dashboard.
Note: Next Steps may also originate from Forms about you or your Goals within Boost. If so, this is indicated by a link on each step—clicking this will take you straight to that Form or Goal.
Each step can be marked Complete by checking off the box to its left. Any completed steps are hidden, although these can still be accessed and reviewed via the Show completed next steps link at the bottom of the list.
Additionally, clicking the three-dot menu under each step will give you the option to:
- Edit
- Delete
- Mark Complete
Note: Although you can mark all your next steps as complete when they have been accomplished, if you are not the original author of a step (e.g. it was assigned to you by a coach or evaluator), you cannot edit or delete it.
What does my insight summary show?
The Insight Summary gives you a quick, data-driven view of your performance throughout the year, allowing you to track your progress over time.
Any practice feedback data that is shared with you will populate the Insight Summary table, providing insights into how you are doing in each area of the framework.
You can view your performance on a component level by clicking on the (+) to expand the top-level focus area. For further insights, click on the Report button to see a list of feedback that’s been given to each component, as well as a breakdown of how you have been measured overall.
Note: If your organization measures your progress on multiple frameworks, use the framework pulldown menu on the upper right of the Insight Summary widget to toggle between these.
Help, I still have questions!
Can’t find what you’re looking for in this guide or the Boost Support Center? Reach out directly with a support request, and be sure to include as many details as possible so we can assist you quickly. We’re here to help!