Communicating via the eSchoolPLUS gradebook

Publishing assignments
When you create an assessment in the eSchoolPLUS gradebook you have the option to Publish Item, Publish Scores, both or neither. These options give you control over what assignment information students and parents see online.

Some teachers choose to Publish Item only which allows students and parents to view assessment assigned date, due date as well as assignment details. Others opt to Publish Scores as well allowing online access to the assignment grades. Click here for a tutorial on assignment creation.

Only published scores affect the course grade visible in the Home Access Center. Read on for details.

Know your settings - do missing scores count as zero?
This is a critical setting that affects the way grades are calculated in your gradebook. When you setup categories in eSchoolPLUS, you have the option to make each category count in one of two ways:
The choice you make for each category affects how an unrecorded assignment grades affects class grades.

I want to give students and parents online access to grades - how do I get them started?

1. Send an email to parents providing information related to the Home Access Center. A sample email can be found by following this link.

2. There are two handouts to aid your students and their parents in this process. Each handout is tailored to their needs. Feel free to distribute this information to your classes. Adobe Acrobat is required for both.

Student guide to the Home Access Center

Parent guide to the Home Access Center

Consider guiding your classes through the setup process in the computer lab so that you can describe how you use the gradebook and revisit your grading policies.

Note that students must register their email address with the district at www.redwood.org/collect 24 hours before registering with the Home Access Center. See the student handout above for details.

The Home Access Center can be found at home.tamdistrict.org.

When does a score affect a class grade that is visible in the Home Access Center?
Only published scores will affect the course grade shown via the Home Access Center. If only the "Publish Item" box is checked when creating an assessment the student's grade will not be affected. Published scores will be calculated into a student's overall grade. NOTE: This can result in a discrepancy between the grade visible in your gradebook and that viewed online by a student or parent. Example: you create an assessment worth 100 points and choose not to publish scores. You enter assignment scores and course and course grades are affected. Your gradebook shows that Biff has a B but the student view indicates that Biff's grade is a C. Once you choose to publish this assignment score Biff's grade, as viewed in the Home Access Center, rises to a B matching that found in your gradebook.

Working with assignment due dates and missing scores
An assignment grade does not affect a student's class grade until the due date of that particular assignment has arrived. Consider the following scenarios:
1) Today's date is 11/2. An assignment's due date is 10/31 and you haven't entered grades for that assignment. If you opted for "missing scores to count as zero in the average", these missing scores are now lowering class grades. One solution to this issue to use an alpha score such as NR for not recorded. Read on to the next section.
2) Today's date is 11/2. You have created an assignment that is not due until the end of the semester and you enter grades as available. Be aware that these assignment grades will not affect class grades until the due date arrives.

Consider using alpha codes
eSchoolPLUS alpha codes are designed to take the place of a numeric assignment score. For example, entering EX in place of a student's assignment grade indicates that the assignment has been excused and this grade does not affect their overall class grade. Or you might use NHI (not handed in) to clearly communicate the status of a student's assignment. These alpha codes are visible to parents and students if you choose to that assignment's score.

Click here to view a list of alpha codes.