Quest from School: Exam SchedulED

Appendix: Initial Client Interview

Date of Interview	: January 11th 2025
Client’s email	: christopher.warren@ykpaoschool.cn
Client’s position	: Head of Highschool’s Academic Affairs Office
Location	: Offline
Mode of Interview	: Offline in Academic Affairs Office

Me: Can you tell me about the project—the exam planner you asked me to do?

Client: The academic affairs office wants software that displays timings of different exams in an exam room setting, and across multiple rooms for students with access arrangements. We also run two exam boards simultaneously—the IB Diploma and the Cambridge International exams system. We want to use a CSV upload with schedules. In the platform, the main exam invigilator should access the exam name, the component, and the length. There should be alternatives for students who get additional time arrangements, displayed in another area within the same exam display.

Client: For IB, we separate exams by Higher Level and Standard Level. Multiple logins for running different exam start times for the same exam in different locations is a key feature. For example, on exam day, we set the main hall with 100 students, and then I need to go to S206 where students have access arrangements that may allow an extra 50% time. We do not keep them in the gym because they may need an extra hour, which takes away from the facility for sports fixtures. We start them in another area. I want to log into the platform, start the exam, and have a different display for the same exam running. When you start the exam at the gym, the timer in the other exam room should simply start. They are exclusive from each other.

Client: It takes time to get there and set up the students, so I would log in and find the exam. It would be a completely different login to the exam. It would be great to have User 1, User 2, User 3, where they see the interface independently of what is operating in the other exam room. We would like to do that for up to five rooms. Currently, with the external source we are using, we buy multiple licenses.

Me: I see.

Client: It takes stress off the system. The other consideration is the backup if there is a power shortage.

Me: A backup?

Client: Is it possible that when we hit start, the system takes an automatic screenshot of the start times and emails them to the exam invigilator? If it took a screenshot of the start time and sent it to us, we would have a digital record on our phones, even if the power goes out, so we could manually put the new times up. We also need more clocks installed in the gym because there are none. We rely on a big digital screen, which is risky. Currently, we take photos of the screen. It would be useful if it automatically saved to a folder and emailed it to us.

Me: For login, do you want a login page with email and password, or to create invigilator accounts?

Client: We could have Invigilator 1, 2, 3. Alternatively, we log in and have Room 1, Room 2, etc., and when you enter a room, it shows the exam display interface. We could label those rooms.

Me: If you had a command center—a home platform—you could see the starts and finishes of all locations.

Client: This is more advanced, yes.

Me: About the PDF format. I am parsing a certain PDF structure to get information. What is the structure for the actual data?

Client: I can send a screenshot to compare. For the real exam session, the dates, session, duration, paper, and exam codes are there. You have most of it already. For IBDP, it is a little different because you have level, but not a code. Everything else is the same field. There is more detail about exam type. Cambridge uses level for listening.

Me: Okay.

Client: I can show what it looks like. They updated it based on our requests. When we select IBO Language and Literature HL and add Literature in Spanish—these would run simultaneously in a real exam session—they can be reordered. Previously, you could not. The key is that everything normally auto-started—once you hit start, all would start. You can set two to auto-start and another to manual. All can auto or alternatively start.

Client: In “Use Now,” if I hit “Start Exam,” it breaks into another step allowing five minutes reading for specific exams, and you can choose which ones have five minutes reading because IGCSE does not. It would be better to have an option so two exams start reading time at the same time, rather than double-clicking.

Me: Yeah.

Client: I did not check the auto-start interaction. If I auto-start two IB exams and set the Cambridge exam to manual, then hit auto-start, the two should work together. In theory, they should synchronize. Colors change automatically, which is good. Defaults should avoid identical colors to reduce setup time.

Client: Ideally, I do not need to set up and save displays. I can pick the date and start the exam.

Me: Yeah.

Client: When Year 9 and 11 use it, they will customize. Other year levels are not official exams, but they can custom design and type the display name.

Me: Okay.

Client: Let’s try “Use Now.” Two greens— not ideal. I can “Use Now.” If we go start, we do not like that. Auto-start, no reading. And this one has reading.

Me: I see.

Client: That is a problem—seconds apart. Maybe add a button for IB reading and another button for IGCSE reading, so they click “Start IGCSE,” “Start IB.” By the time we use this for the real exam session, there will be no cases where one exam has reading time and another does not in IB, because multiple-choice will no longer have no reading time after next year.

Figure 1: This is the past timer website the school has been using. The reading time occupies the entire screen, even though only one exam needs additional reading time

Client: Okay. We are clear then? We have an idea.

Me: Can I see the CSV file as a reference for the database?

Client: I will get the Cambridge CSV from Mr. E and send the most recent one as a PDF or CSV.

Me: Great.

Figure 2: Snippets of IGCSE exam schedule PDF

Me: Any other security or privacy requirements? It will be accessed only by teachers.

Client: No.

Me: Understood. That is all the questions.

Client: Thank you.