Registering CM students is now fast and easy. Just click on one of the topics below to find out how.

• Help for beginning computer users
• How to log into system using your username and password.
• How to change your password
• Did you forget your password?
• How to enter information about yourself.
• How to register a student for CM.
• How to change the information for a student.
• How to see all of your registered students.
• How to see the fees that you owe.
• Branch Chair instructions

Logging In with Your "User Name" and "Password"

Your user name is your special identification to the CM database. It and your password ensure that only you can see and modify the information about your students. Your CM branch chair will tell you what they are. Use them to log into the system.

A user name has already been assigned to you by the computer. It is unique among all the members of MTAC. Typically it is your first initial, all or part of your last name, and in some cases a number. If your title is "Dr.", your first initial may be assigned as "D."

A password is like an ATM PIN number. It insures that no one but you can look at your information. An initial one has been assigned to you by the computer. It was chosen randomly. We encourage you to change your password to something that is easy for you to remember.

Please keep your user name and password in a safe place. Don't tell other people what they are.

More information:

• How to Change your password
• Forget your password?

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How to change your password

You can change your password at any time and as many times as you wish. Your password is for your convenience and safety. Here's how to change it:

1. Go to the home page.
2. Click on Edit Teacher Info. It will take you to a page named "Teacher Information Page". Near the bottom you will see your password.
3. Select your old password and type a new one. It can be any combination of 6 to 8 letters and numbers – anything you want, for example "763mary" or "Fido62" or "allegro". It is case insensitive, that is capitalization makes no difference. Try to make it hard for people to guess. A good rule of thumb is to include at least one number in it, e.g. "joyce5".
4. Click on the Submit button at the bottom.
5. Click on the Back button at the top of the window as many times as necessary to return to where you came from.

That's all there is to it! You may use this new password from now on. The old one has been discarded.

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Did you forget your password?

Did you forget your password? Don't despair! We'll remind you what it is. Here's what to do:

1. Go to the login page.
2. Click on the Forget Password? link. The "Forget Your Password?" form will appear.
3. Click in the "username" box and type your user name.
4. Click on the Submit button.
5. Click on the Back button at the top of the window as many times as necessary to return to where you came from.

Your password will be emailed to you soon using the email address that you specified in your teacher information page. If you didn't fill in an email address, please do so now, and then do steps 2-5 again.

If you don't have your own email address, then you can't find out your password this way. Perhaps you can use your branch chair's address or that of a friend. Please contact your branch chair for help.

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How to enter information about yourself

Before you can register students for CM, you must complete an information page about yourself. You only have to do this once, as the database will store it for future years. You can go to this page any time to change the information.

1. Go to the home page.
2. Click on Edit Teacher info. A page will appear called "Teacher Information Page". Here's how to fill it out.
3. Click in the circle for either Northern or Southern California, depending on where your branch is located. If you are not sure, ask your branch chair.
4. Click in the boxes next to the instruments for which you are designated by MTAC as a qualified teacher. A check mark will appear in each. Click all that apply. If you make a mistake, click in that box again, and the check will disappear.
5. If you teach an instrument that is not listed, click in the "Other" box and type the name of the instrument.
6. Branch ID, State Teacher ID, and your name should already be filled in. This information uniquely identifies you in the state. Your Local Teacher # will be added by your branch chair; it is just for convenience.
7. Click and type in the boxes for your address, email address, phone (including area code), and Fax (if you have one and wish to include it). To get from one box to the next you can type a TAB, or you can click in each box with the mouse. DO NOT USE THE RETURN KEY as you would on a typewriter, as this will invoke the Submit command. If you do not have an email address, you may wish to ask a friend or your branch chair if you could use his or hers. The email address is used to remind you of your password if you forget it.
8. If you wish to change your password, simply select the old password with the mouse and type over it. See How to Change Your Password for more information.
9. Look over the information for accuracy, then click on the Submit button. You are now eligible to register your students for CM. And you won't have to enter this information ever again unless you wish to change some of it!
10. Click the Back button at the top of the window to return to where you came from, or use one of the links at the bottom of the page.

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How to register a student for CM

If you have already completed your Teacher Information page, you are now ready to register students. You must do so before November 15. The registration system closes at 11:59 p.m. on November 15. There is no late registration.

1. Go to the home page.
2. Click on New Student Registration Form. A page will appear called "Student Registration Form". You need fill out only the information in the gray boxes.
3. Click and type inside the boxes for student name, birth date, phone, and email. To get from one box to the next you can type a TAB, or you can click in each box with the mouse. DO NOT USE THE RETURN KEY as you would on a typewriter, as this will invoke the Submit command.
4. Please use a capital letter and small letters for student names (e.g. Mary rather than MARY), as this information will be stored in the database for convention programs. Use a number for the month (e.g. 7 or 07 for July) and FOUR digits (e.g. 1986)for the birth year. (Remember the lesson of Y2K!)
5. Click in the circle by either Path A or Path B.
6. Use the pull-down menus to select CM Level and School Grade. Click Information for Beginners if you need help in using pull-down menus.
7. Click in the box to apply for Panel. Please note the qualifications for Panel listed.
8. Click "Yes" by Senior Award ONLY if your student meets the criteria. Students must have passed the CM exam in 3 of the 4 years of high school (grades 9-12) to qualify.
9. If student has transferred from another CM teacher, click in the box. Find out from the student the name and branch of the former teacher, then ask your branch chair for the necessary ID's.
10. Look over the information for accuracy and completion. Carefully read the statements at the bottom concerning primary teacher and non-refundable fees. A primary teacher is one who teaches the student in the same instrument that the student is being registered in, on a regular basis in a full-length lesson, at least 3 weeks each month.
11. If everything is correct, click the Submit button. A page will come up that verifies the information has been entered. Click "New Student Registration" to register another student, or "Logout" if you're done.

If you need to change a student's information (e.g. change an email address, add a birth date, change CM Level), please click Change Student Information for instructions.

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How to change the information for a registered student

1. Go to the home page.
2. Click on Student List. A page will appear titled "Student List".
3. Set the pull-down menu on the student's line to "Edit Reg. Info", and click on "Go". This will open that student's record, just as when you first entered it.
4. Edit any information that you wish.
5. Click on the Submit button.

The new information will be entered into the database. CM policy is that student information may be changed only until November 15. After November 15, registration is closed and cannot be changed.

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How to see all of your registered students

To see all of the students whom you have registered for CM:

1. Go to the home page.
2. Click on Student List. A page will appear titled "Student List".

The list of students is organized in columns which are self-explanatory. Note the asterisk (*) code for Senior Award and the "P" for Panel. Check to see that all of your CM students are listed correctly.

For instructions on how to change the information for a student, please click Change Student Information.

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How to see the fees that you owe

To see the fees owed for all of your students:

1. Go to the home page.
2. Click on Student Fees. You will see the total fee you owe your branch. This includes any branch surcharge.
3. Follow the directions for making out the check and send it to your branch chair.
4. To see detail on each of your students, go to the top of the form and use the pull-down menu to select either Path A or Path B students, then click Go. This shows you a summary of fees owed by each individual student.

Please note: All CM fees are non-refundable.

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Information for beginning computer users

Are you new to computers? Have no fear! After you learn just a few basic computer skills, you will find it easy and fast to use the new on-line CM registration system – and you will not miss hauling out your typewriter every year! The easiest thing to do is to ask a friend to help you through the process at first. Your branch chair will be happy to pair you with a mentor. Below is a glossary of terms. Please read through them, then with someone's help, go through the steps listed in these help pages.

Mouse - the small plastic box next to the keyboard, connected to it by a cord (the mouse's tail!). It has a button or buttons on it that you can push. Move it around and look at the screen. You'll see an arrow

Cursor - a moving symbol: sometimes an arrow, sometimes like the letter I, sometimes a hand. It responds to the movement of the mouse. Try moving the mouse and watch the cursor respond to it.

Pointing - moving the cursor over something on the screen.

Clicking - pressing and releasing the mouse button. If your mouse has more than one button, use the left one.

Typing - pressing keys on the keyboard as you would on a typewriter.

Any time you need to put information inside a box on the screen, remember this:

POINT – CLICK – TYPE

Point to the box into which you want to type. Click and you will see a blinking "|" inside the box. Wherever you see the "|" blinking is where your typing will go. Type normally. Then to get to the next box, either type a TAB or POINT AND CLICK in the next box. DO NOT USE RETURN as you would on a typewriter! Many forms are set up so that RETURN invokes the "submit" button on it. Typing RETURN might accidentally submit the form you are filling in before you are ready.

Scrolling - moving the contents of a page up or down so that you can see more of it. On the right side of the page is a thin vertical gray band. At the top and bottom of this band are arrows. Placing the cursor over either arrow and holding down the mouse button will move the text in the opposite direction of that arrow.

Selecting - Put the cursor in front of the first character in a box that has text in it, hold the mouse button down, and move the cursor to after the last character. Then let the mouse button up. This is called "dragging" the cursor. Notice that the text you passed over became highlighted. You can now type over the highlighted text and it will change to what you type. You can select just part of the text if you wish to fix a typo or make a small change; you don't have to select everything.

Radio Buttons - circles that indicate choices available to you. You may choose one. Click inside the circle you want and a black dot will appear inside it indicating that that is your choice.

Check Boxes - square boxes that indicate independent choices available to you. You can choose as many as you wish. Click inside one and a check mark will appear inside it, indicating "yes". Clicking again will remove the check, indicating "no".

Pull-down Menu - a list of choices. When there are many choices available to you, sometimes they are displayed as a pull-down menu to save space. You will see a box with arrows on the right side. Point to the arrow and hold down the mouse button. A list, or "menu", will appear. Keep holding down the button as you drag the mouse up or down to your choice. When the choice you want is highlighted, let up the mouse button. Your choice will appear inside the box.

Button - a gray rounded rectangle containing a word. It indicates an action that the computer can take. Point and click on a button to cause its action to execute. For example, click on the "Submit" button at the bottom of the Student Registration Form, and your student will be registered. That's all there is to it!

Link - a word or words in color that will take you to another page on the Internet. When you point to a link, the cursor will turn into a pointing finger, and the link will become underlined. Simply click and the Internet will take you to the new location.

Back Button - In the upper left corner of the window in which you are reading this is a square button that says "Back." Pointing and clicking on this button returns you to the Internet page that was on your screen just prior to the one you are viewing now. You can back up as many times as you wish to get back to a specific page. If you back up over a form that you have submitted, don't worry. You won't undo the submission. The data will remain safely in the database.

These functions are all you need to do everything in the new system. You can now follow the rest of the directions in the help files. Find a friend to help you through this first time. This time next year, you'll be helping others!

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