Frequently Asked Questions

If a student forgets his password, the teacher can easily find it by following these steps:

1. Open the Acellus App and sign into the Acellus Teacher Interface using your GoldKey.
2. Go to Students and search for the student by last name using the alphabet menu or by typing the student's name in the search field.
3. Select the student's name in the search results.
4. Select "Profile"
5. You will see the student's password, along with their user ID, listed on this page.
6. If you wish to print a new Sign-In card for the student, do the following:
   1. Select Students.
   2. Select Print Sign-In Cards.
   3. Select the appropriate class.
   4. Select the students you want to print a Sign-In Card for.
   5. Select Print Sign-In Cards

If a teacher or administrator forgets their GoldKey PIN, they can reset it through the Acellus App.

To reset your GoldKey PIN, do the following:

1. 1. If you have not already done so, insert the token whose PIN you want to reset into a USB port on your computer.
   2. Open the Acellus App and select Teacher / Parent Sign-In.
   3. When you are prompted to enter your PIN, select "Forgot your PIN?" instead.
   4. On the browser page that opens, enter the email address that is associated with your Teacher Account.
   5. On the same computer where you entered the email address, check your email, and select the Account Recovery link in the email that you have been sent.
   6. In the list of Security Tokens that appears next on the screen, select the token whose PIN you have forgotten.
   7. Select the Reset PIN button.
   8. You will be prompted for further identity verification, and then you will be prompted to reset your PIN by entering it twice.
   9. If you have any problems with this process, please contact your Acellus Coordinator.

If you find that one of your Acellus Electronic Textbooks or 3D Computers will not boot up, please try the following:

Drain the unit completely and recharge it overnight in a known good power source.

If there is still no sign of life, hold down the power button until the unit comes on. (This may take awhile -- be patient.)

If this does not solve the problem, please contact Customer Support.

If your students' workstations cannot find your school's Acellus server to access the video or graphics, Acellus will attempt to access the media over the Internet from one of Acellus' Media Servers in our National Data Center. In this case, the students will see the "Using Alternative Server" indicator. If this occurs, you should check with your network administrator to ensure that the server's network settings are correct and that your network is properly configured. Please see the Proxy Filter and Firewall Configuration Support Note for details. If the Alternative Server indicator persists, please contact Customer Support.

When students do not score well on an Exam, it is identified that they need help on specific concepts that were previously covered.  It is obvious that students need to review this material further... while at the same time they need just the right intervention or they will end up becoming very discouraged.  Acellus has taken a new approach on helping students 'recover' their Exam scores (building upon previous ground-breaking discoveries such as 'Success Zone') that will reinvent the way students respond to failed exams. When students fail an exam they begin 'Exam Recovery'.  Here, students are presented with the problems that they missed on the exam including the wrong answers that they entered - and given another chance to work the problems.  If they are not able to solve the problem with another try, they are given supplemental videos on the topic to help them review the concept. Once student has re-worked all of the problems they failed - they are given another chance to take the Exam.

This can be caused by several different problems:

Incorrect software configuration – You can use the latest version of the major browsers for Acellus students, but we recommend that you use the Acellus App. If you are using browsers, check our Technical Specifications page to be sure that your student's computers are using supported software. In addition, make sure that your students are using the latest version of your browser and plugins.

The browser's cache is too full – browsers often cache up data in order to minimize loading and buffering times. When students watch multiple videos, their browsers may cache up more data than their computers can hold and still function properly. When this happens, performance suffers, and sometimes video will not play. To correct this, clear the browser's cache. If this does not work, try having the student use a different browser, reboot the computer, or try a different computer.

Network/Internet connection problems – If you are using Wi-Fi in your classroom or computer lab, we recommend that you optimize your Wi-Fi. If you do not have a local Acellus Media Server, video issues can also be caused by poor Internet connection.

Acellus Media Server Issues -- In Acellus, the video is delivered from the local Acellus Media Server if possible, or via the Internet. If you are using a supported browser and your school has an Acellus Server, make sure the server is turned on, that the student workstations have access to it over the local area network (LAN), and that you have reported the current IP Address of the Acellus Media server to your Acellus Coordinator. If the server is not functioning, make sure your Internet connection is functioning properly and then contact Acellus Customer Support.

If you are using Wi-Fi in your classroom or computer lab, we recommend the following for optimum performance:

Use 802.11n wireless for the client computers.

Use high-quality wireless hardware.

Use a gigabit data rate to connect the Acellus Server and your wireless Access Points.

Change the wireless channel width from 40 MHz to 20 MHz. A 40 MHz channel width is not recommended for commercial or multi-access point deployments. Using a single 40 MHz channel for many access points causes interference between access points, and the 2.4 GHz band is not large enough for multiple 40 MHz channels to operate without interference. More information about the use of 40 MHz channels can be found here:http://www.connect802.com/80211n_channels.htm

Reconfigure your access points with correct channel distribution. We recommend that you first discover the physical location and channel settings of third-party wireless networks around your school. You will then be able to configure each of your access points on the channel with the least interference from surrounding units. To avoid interference among your access points, you should use channels 1, 6, and 11. More information on correct channel distribution can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireless_channel

The best place for your access points is in the classrooms where students will be using the Acellus laptops or other wireless devices. Mounting the wireless unit as close to the center of such work areas as possible will improve your signal. Make sure to avoid mounting the unit right next to flourescent lights or other sources of electric interference.

Use WPA2 with AES security.

Yes. To use Acellus over VLANs, make sure that the port on which the Acellus Server resides is a member of all the VLANs from which you wish to access the Server.

Yes, but be sure that you have a good Layer 3 switch between segments, to ensure adequate bandwidth.

A 1000BaseT LAN connection to the server can handle up to 2,000 students online simultaneously. With a 100BaseT connection, the number of simultaneous users drops to 300.

Each video stream is approximately 300 Kbps. Typically, an online user plays video 50% of the time.

Please see technical specifications for client station requirements.

Yes, Acellus will run on an iPad, an iPhone, or an Android Phone or Tablet. See Acellus' technical specifications for more information.

Yes, Acellus will run on a MAC with OS-X 10.5 or higher.  See Acellus' technical specifications for more information about compatibility.

Teachers running the Yosemite Operating System (OS-X 10.10 or higher) will need the latest version of the GoldKey Software, which can be obtained at the following address: http://www.goldkey.com/support/download-center/

The Acellus Media Servers are used to serve up video lessons, audio clips, images and drills used in the various courses. This takes the majority of the network load off of the school's wide area network connection. The Acellus Media Servers work best when installed on the same local area network where the students will be using Acellus.  See more information on the Acellus Server Specification sheet

To set a student(s) to repeat steps, follow these steps:

First make sure that the student has exited the Acellus program.

Next, if you have not already done so, open the Acellus App (or open a browser to www.acellus.com) and sign into the Acellus Teacher Interface using your GoldKey.

Select Classes.

Next, select the class to which the student belongs.

Now, choose "Repeat Steps." (This is located on the light-blue bar below the gray button bar.)

Select which student(s) you want to set repeat steps for.

Place a checkmark in the box beside the step(s) you want the student(s) to repeat.

Select Assign Repeat Steps.

Please note that you can select any student and then select "Clear Repeat Steps" to cancel the steps you had selected for him/her to repeat.

Teachers have the ability to move students around in the course, as they feel appropriate.  When using Acellus for initial credit, we recommend that you allow students to move from lesson to lesson in the order prescribed by the syllabus.  Acellus is designed to take a student through all the concepts of each course, beginning with the most basic concepts, and moving as quickly as the student is able to go through the entire course. Using Acellus in this way ensures that the gaps in a student's knowledge are filled. Skipping lessons limits the deficiency diagnostics that happens natively in the system.

However, from time to time a situation arises in which moving the student is the best option. Please be aware that when you reposition a student, the student will start from the point in the course where you place them and move forward from there.

To "reposition" a student in the Acellus Program, follow these steps:

First make sure that the student has exited the Acellus program.

Next, if you have not already done so, open the Acellus App (or open a browser to www.acellus.com) and sign into the Acellus Teacher Interface using your GoldKey.

Select Classes.

Next, select the class to which the student belongs.

Now, choose "Reposition a Student." (This is located on the light-blue bar below the gray button bar.)

For each student, use the pull-down list to choose the Step you wish the student to do next (video steps have the same name as problem steps; video steps appear before problem steps).

Finally, click on the "Reposition Students" button at the bottom of the page.

An alternative to repositioning is the "repeat steps" option, which allows you to specify individual steps in the course that you want a student(s) to repeat. In this case, the student(s) will finish whatever step they are currently on, then will be temporarily diverted to do the step(s) you marked for them, then will return to the next step they would have done if you had not set them to repeat steps.