User FAQ's

General

What is a Clearinghouse?

A clearinghouse is an organisation or body which collects and gives out information on a specific topic

What is a Community of Practice?

A Community of Practice is a group of people who share an interest or a passion for something they do. Generally it will have the following characteristics:

• a shared domain of interest (in this case school leadership),
• its members will engage in joint activities and discussions, and
• its members are practitioners who develop a shared repertoire of resources and approaches to specific issues or problems.

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Account and Profile Management

How do I register as a Clearinghouse member?

Registration is quick and easy. Click on the Register link at the top of any page and fill in the pop up dialog box. The system will prompt you for your first and last name, the name of your school or organisation, your role, country and state. You will need to specify and confirm an email address and password which will become your login details. Check the box which indicates that you have read and agreed to the Terms and Conditions of the website and then click the Register button at the bottom of the form. The system will send you an email containing a link and an activation code - click on the link provided or copy the code into your browser to finalise your registration. You should then be able to log in to the Clearinghouse using your email and password.

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I am already a member at another AITSL website; can I use the same credentials?

Yes. If you are a member of another AITSL website you can log in using your existing email address and password. You will be prompted to confirm your details in order to register for the Clearinghouse, but you will not be required to activate your account again.

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I am already a member at another AITSL website; but I have forgotten my password, how can I re-set it?

If you have forgotten your password, you can reset it from the login dialog; this will also change your password at portal.aitsl.edu.au

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I am not sure if I am already a member at another AITSL website; can I check this?

Yes. Complete the registration form for Clearinghouse, if your email address is already registered your details will be displayed for confirmation and you will be prompted to login.

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I'm interested in registering, but I'm not a teacher/principal. Can I still join?

Yes. This site is primarily for current, aspiring or emerging school leaders, but anyone with an interest in school leadership development is welcome to register.

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I'm not from Australia, can I register?

Yes. Contributions from experienced school leaders from other countries are most welcome. You can include your country in the School/Organisation field on the registration form if you like.

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How do I access my user profile?

You can access your user profile by clicking on the Manage my profile link at the top of the Clearinghouse site. Your profile allows you to manage your details, your saved searches and lets you see the status of any community resources you have contributed.

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How do I change my password?

click on the Manage my profile link above the page header. At the bottom of the My details section you will see a Change password button. Click this button and enter your new password.

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I have forgotten my password, how can I get it reset?

Click on the Reset password link which appears on the login dialog box. You can also contact the Clearinghouse Administrator. The Administrator can send a reset-password link to your email address but they cannot see your password or change your password for you.

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How do I change my username/email address?

You can change your email address from the Manage my profile page. Click on the Edit details button in the left-hand column. Use the pop-up dialog box to change your details and click on Save. You will need to reactivate your account from your new email address. The system will send you a new activation email, click on the link provided in the email to complete the process. If you have not received your activation email, check your junk-mail folder before contacting the Clearinghouse Administrator.

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How do I stop receiving saved search notifications from the Clearinghouse?

On the Manage my profile page you will see your searches listed under My saved searches and alerts. Next to each search, you can either use the Delete button to remove the search altogether, or click on Edit and change the frequency of the notification to 'None' – this would give you the option of re-instating the alert in the future.

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How do I stop receiving all notifications and deactivate my Clearinghouse Account?

From the Manage my profile page, click the Deactivate account button in the left-hand column. You will be logged out of the system and your account will remain inactive until you choose to reactivate it. Your profile information and stored searches will be retained but you will not receive any email alerts.

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How do I reactivate my account again?

Log in to the Clearinghouse using your username and password. The system will notify you that an activation email has been sent to your email address. Click on the link contained in the email and your account will be reactivated. You will then be able to log into the Clearinghouse again.

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Research Repository

How does AITSL decide which material to include on the Clearinghouse?

Resources for the Research database are sourced from high-quality Australian and international journals, books, databases and websites in the field of educational leadership. A wide range of relevant items are included to reflect the full scope of research in the field. Content for the Community of Practice is submitted by registered users and is checked by AITSL for relevance and appropriateness prior to being published in the Clearinghouse.

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How frequently will the repository be updated?

The Research database will be updated at least once a month. The Community of Practice database will be updated at least weekly - whenever newly submitted content has been approved by AITSL.

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How can I find out when new resources are added to the repository?

Setting up an email alert is easy. Once you have created a search which returns your desired results, click on the Save search button to the right of the search results. You will be prompted to provide a name for the search and to select the frequency at which you are notified - daily, weekly or monthly. Regardless of the interval you select, notifications will only be sent if new items have been added that match your search criteria.

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How do I comment on Clearinghouse content?

Firstly you need to be logged in as a registered user. If you aren't registered, see the FAQ on How do I register as a Clearinghouse member? Once you are logged in, you can comment on any of the resources in either the Research Repository or the Community of Practice. To make a comment open the resource in full view, enter your comment into the text box and click the Add a comment button below the text box. Your comment will appear immediately.

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What is the difference between comments on Clearinghouse content and discussion forums

Once you have registered and are logged in you can comment on any of the resources in either the Research or the Community of Practice databases. Open the resource in full view, write your comment into the text box below the record details and click on Add comment. Your comment will appear immediately.

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Community of Practice Content

How do I contribute a resource?

Once you have registered and are logged in you can contribute items to the Community of Practice database. Go to the Community of Practice homepage and click on the Contribute content button at the top left. Provide the details for your resource and click submit. You will be notified of the outcome of your contribution.

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What kind of resources can I contribute?

You can contribute any resource which could be of value to other registered Clearinghouse users, or which supports the further development of school leaders.

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When will my uploaded contribution appear in the Community of Practice?

All Community of Practice content has to be approved by the Clearinghouse Administrator before it becomes visible to other registered users. This could take two working days, depending on the number of submissions received and the nature of the content submitted.

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On what basis are contributed resources approved or rejected?

Resources will be reviewed based on their relevance to the theme of the Clearinghouse and the appropriateness of the content. The Administrator will also assess the providence of the content to ensure that we are complying with copyright law. The Clearinghouse cannot reproduce any licensed content; it can only provide a link to where the full content can be accessed/purchased.

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How will I know whether my contributed resource has been approved?

You will receive a notification when your resource has been reviewed and you will be advised of the outcome. If your resource is rejected, you will be provided with a reason for the rejection.

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Can I share a link to a resource hosted elsewhere?

Yes you can, follow the procedure for contributing a resource and rather than supplying a file, provide the URL which links to the resource. You will need to do this if you are contributing a resource which is greater than 10MB in size.

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Can I advertise local events for school leaders?

Yes you can, follow the procedure for contributing a resource and provide as much information as possible.

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Can I remove a resource that I have contributed?

Yes. If your resource has not yet been approved and published by the Clearinghouse Administrator you can delete it via the Manage my profile page – you will see your contribution listed with a status of Pending under the heading My recent contributions. Click to on the item to open it and then click on Delete. If your contribution has already been published you will need to contact the Clearinghouse Administrator to have it removed.

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I uploaded the wrong file, can I change it?

Yes. Similar to the situation above, if your contribution is still pending approval you can access it via your profile page. If the file has already been approved you will need to contact the Clearinghouse Administrator to have it removed and replaced with the correct file.

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Forums

How can I benefit from participating in discussion forums?

The Clearinghouse discussion forums are the primary vehicle by which members of the Clearinghouse Community of Practice communicate with one another. They are designed to provide a focussed platform for the communication of ideas which promote and support school leadership development strategies. You can use the discussion forums to ask questions, share experiences or discuss the latest thinking in the field.

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Who can participate in the discussion forums?

The discussion forums are visible only to registered users of the Clearinghouse.

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What information can other Clearinghouse users see about me?

Other registered users can see your name and school/organisation.

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Can I attach a file to a discussion post?

No, you cannot attach a file, but you can include links to websites or files hosted elsewhere. If you wish to load a resource, you should submit it to the Community of Practice database.

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Can I edit or delete a discussion post?

Yes, you can edit and delete your own posts. Simply click on the Edit post link to the left of your post; the post will open for editing and you can make your changes. Your post will be marked as edited. If you remove all the content from your post it will be marked as deleted.

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How do I participate in an ongoing discussion?

Open the thread by clicking on the topic name. At the end of the topic there is a Post Reply form. Enter your contribution into the text box provided, making use of the basic formatting features if you like. Click the Post reply button and your post will be displayed.

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How do I start a new discussion?

Select an appropriate forum the forums homepage and click the Start new topic button. You will need to provide a title and content for the post. When you have finished, click on Create topic.

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Are the discussion forums moderated?

The discussion forums are moderated, although moderator approval is not required to create topics and reply to posts. Moderation will take the form of ensuring that discussions stay relevant, on topic and current. Moderators may edit or delete posts if they feel they are not relevant or appropriate. Topics may also be locked from time to time if the moderator feels that the topic is no longer fresh or relevant.

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Can I alert the moderator if I see an offensive post?

Yes, there is a contact form for this purpose. Click on the Report inappropriate content link at the bottom of the left hand column on the Forums page. Your message will go straight to the Clearinghouse Administrator.

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If you have a question that has not been answered in this FAQ, then please don't hesitate to Contact us.

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